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The logistics and supply chain industry is
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DIGITAL INDIA PRIVATE INVESTMENTS
Plus Columns,
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COCNOQRUOEUNRPAS
YOGI’S TRYST WITH VILLAGE FORAYS

In mid of April, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was tested first non-Yadav and non-SP CM to visit the state of the art
Covid positive. He got himself isolated but continued Hospital in Safai, the bastion of Yadavs.
monitoring the covid situation through virtual meetings.
That was the time when corona infection was at its peak His visits galvanized the state machinery. The district
and he continued stressing on his 3T policy of Trace, officials strengthened the Covid-19 management
Test and Treat. On April 30, Chief Minister tested Covid infrastructure. The covid protocol was restored and the
negative and since then, Yogi is on ground zero - visiting Integrated Covid Command Centres (ICCC), said to be
district after district to take stock of the covid situation. the lifeline during the first edition of corona infection
was strengthened. The number of corona tests increased
Chief Minister decided to catch the raging bull of corona proportionately and and it is now estimated that over 3
infection by its horns as he assessed the ground situation in lakh tests are being carried in Uttar Pradesh.
almost all the 75 districts of 14 divisions, by either visiting
them physically or through virtual meetings. Travelling The result was evident. The number of fresh cases declined.
from the West to the East and from the North to the South, Within weeks the number of fresh cases came down from
Yogi crisscrossed the state visiting hospitals, villages and 38,000 to less than 100. The crisis – be it of availability
even holding meetings with the officials. He travelled to of oxygen, beds or medicines – was taken care of. The
Noida to have a firsthand account of the crisis. Incidentally, reports of deaths coming from villages are also on the ebb.
Noida is considered a jinxed city for the Chief Ministers of There is a confidence among the hoi polloi that the worst is
Uttar Pradesh as it is believed that the Chief Minister who over. This is the magic of Yogi Adityanath Adityanath that
visits Noida loses the election. Yogi even went to Safai - the helped UP to come out of the crisis.

YAOGGAIINGSOTVDERELNTMA+ENVTASRCIAANLETS UP MEASURES

When other 5,000 New Sub Health Centres
states are To strengthen the health infrastructure in Uttar Pradesh
grappling ahead of an anticipated third wave of Covid-19, CM Yogi
to control the second wave, Uttar Pradesh has scaled up Adityanath has directed to set up 5000 new sub health
preventive measures to control the highly contagious Delta centres in all the development blocks of the 75 districts of
plus variant of the coronavirus. For the in-depth study the State in July.
of the ‘Delta Plus’ variant that could majorly contribute
to a possible third Covid-19 wave, the Genome testing of The UP Government targets to have 32,000 sub health
samples is currently being performed at BHU-Varanasi, centres. With as many as 20,812 centres already functional
KGMU, RML Institute, CDRI- Lucknow, and IGIB-New and the work of 5000 new will be completed in July, the
Delhi for the state to formulate immediate containment State will have about 26,812 sub health centres in total.
measures to avoid its spread.
Sub health centres are established in those areas where
The exercise for the identification of any new mutations there are no PHCs or CHCs. These sub health centres will
has also begun at the National Botanical Research Institute be staffed by at least one doctor, nurses and administrative
(NBRI) in the state capital with genome sequencing of support staff.
samples in the coming week.
The Chief Minister has decided to set up these health
Over 6000 PICU Beds Established centres in order to provide quick medical aid and quality
In view of the possible third wave, which is feared to affect health facilities to the people, including disease prevention
the children more, Yogi Adityanath has asked to expedite and health promotion.
the process of establishing PICU/NICU in every district.
As of now, over 6000 PICU beds have been set up in Follow Appropriate Covid-19 Protocol
medical colleges. The Government has urged people to adopt a proactive
and multifaceted approach to nullify a probable third wave
CM Yogi has also asked the Health Department to expedite and not let the guard down by strictly following Covid-19
the process of setting up PICU/NICU across the state. “Top appropriate behaviour which includes 100 per cent usage
priority should be given to the establishment of PICU/ of double masks, sanitisers, social distancing, and extensive
NICU beds in all the districts,” he said. vaccination.

ACMCIOSIMSNIP2OL4NISDJHUANEYDSE

One crore doses in 24 days! The task was easier said than Under the World’s Largest Free Vaccination Drive,
done. But the UP government made it possible in no time. vaccination pace in Uttar Pradesh is the highest in the
Uttar Pradesh achieved a major milestone in its Covid-19 country leaving behind Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh,
vaccination effort by administering one crore doses in just West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Kerala.
24 days under the ambitious target ‘Mission June’.
July onwards, to meet the target of 10 crore , the State
From July 1 onwards, the UP government is eyed the next government will aim to administer nearly 10 lakh doses a
big target to administer around 10 lakh doses a day and day. Therefore, the next task for the state is to ensure that
achieving the landmark of 10 crore doses by the end of it has enough manpower as well as to add more vaccine
August. delivery centres to achieve the goal. The services of more
than 12,000 new nursing students will be taken for this
Additional Chief Secretary (Information) Navneet Sehgal purpose.
said that the drive was organised by the direction of CM
Yogi Adityanath to cover the maximum population. UP For reaching the target of 10 crore doses, the government
has set a new record by administering one crore doses a has adopted the Cluster Approach Strategy. The entire
week before the set time period. population will be divided into clusters. Focusing on
the rural areas, more than 97,000 revenue villages of all
The vaccination pace in Uttar Pradesh is currently on a the development blocks in the State will be divided into
high, as the daily doses are skyrocketing to around 8 lakh clusters. The cluster mobilisation teams will start their
per day. Earlier, the state had been vaccinating about 4.5 awareness drive three days prior to the pilot. Two Quick
lakh vaccines a day under ‘Mission June’. The change in Response Teams will be deployed at the centres during the
Centre’s policy, announcing that vaccines would now be cluster vaccination in order to manage any kind of adverse
free for all, is the factor that contributed to the spike in situation.
vaccinations in the State.

WMYOIANGNSIA’SPGRCEAOMIVESINEDST

Australia’s federal independent are to be uploaded in real-time.
Member of Parliament Craig Kelly
has praised the state of Uttar The Court further observed that as
Pradesh for successfully ‘smashing’ per data available with the Director,
the ‘scary’ Delta variant of Covid-19 Training and Employment, Uttar
with the use of Ivermectin. Pradesh, as many as 37,84,255
migrant workers have returned to
The Australian MP said that the state their native places during the entire
of Uttar Pradesh with a population Covid-19 pandemic period. Their
of 23 crores curbed the second wave skill mapping has been completed
of Covid-19 by using the ivermectin and 10,44,710 labourers have
tablet. The daily case count in Uttar already been given employment.
Pradesh has come down to just 182
while the UK, with a population PM Lauds UP
of merely 6.7 crores, has around Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
20,479 cases on the date the tweet lauded the Yogi government’s efforts
was sent. to increase investment and improve
the ease of doing business in Uttar
Kelly’s tweet praised Adityanath’s Pradesh. In a tweet in this regard,
handling of the covid situation as, “ PM Modi described the efforts of
Indian state of Uttar Pradesh Pop: the Yogi government as remarkable.
230 million Smashed the ‘scary’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Delta variant with Ivermectin. tweeted, taking cognizance of news
Today’s new daily cases in UP: about the increase in foreign direct
182. UK Pop: 67 million Rejected investment in Uttar Pradesh. The
Ivermectin, worshipped the vaccine. PM said that Uttar Pradesh has
made remarkable efforts during the
SC Hails UP’s Migrants Crisis Management last four years to increase investments and improve ease of
In a word of praise for the UP government, the Apex Court doing business.
in its order of June 29 observed that UP is maintaining
a robust system of registration of such migrant workers President Appreciates Yogi
as they come into the State. A portal on the website of President of India Ram Nath Kovind praised Uttar Pradesh
the Relief Commissioner, www.rahat.up.nic.in, has been Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for taking effective steps to
created, on which all relevant details of all migrant workers handle the Covid-19 pandemic in the state.

UP-TOSPMPAERRTFCOIRTMY EMRISUSNIDOENR THE

Uttar Pradesh has been ranked as the top performer under In the Stage IV category of these awards, Saharanpur has
the Smart Cities Mission by the Ministry of Housing and got the first position in the selected smart cities.
Urban Affairs for its innovative and excellent works as it
grabs the number one position while Madhya Pradesh A total number of 10 cities from Uttar Pradesh were
comes second on the list followed by Tamil Nadu. selected under the Government of India’s Smart City
Mission in different rounds.
Under the Smart City Mission, Agra stood in first place
and Varanasi in third place among the selected 100 smart Lucknow was selected in the first round, Kanpur, Agra,
cities of the country in different Stage-II cities. Varanasi were in the second round, Prayagraj, Aligarh
and Jhansi in the third round, Bareilly, Saharanpur and
In the various segments of the Smart City Awards, Agra has Moradabad in the fourth round.
bagged the third position in the Economy Project Award
and the second for the successful creation and excellent In these cities, a total of 476 projects with a layout of Rs
operation of Micro Skill Development Centers. 9609 crore were selected under Smart City Mission Fund.

Similarly, in the Water Project Award, Varanasi got the Smart Cities Mission is a mission aimed at bringing about
first position for the environmental restoration (eco- a paradigm shift in the practice of urban development in
restoration) of the river Assi. Varanasi Smart City has also the country. This is completely a citizen-centric mission
ranked second under the Smart Cities City Leadership in which the Smart City is selected on the basis of public
Award. Varanasi was awarded jointly with Kalyan Dombivli participation and utility through its board.
in the Covid Innovation Award category.

J“OMBISSSTIHORNORUOGZHGAR”

In early July, the Yogi Adityanath Government filled over
5800 posts of jails warders, mounted police in the Prison
Department, and firemen in Fire Department, which have
been lying vacant for a long period of time. The selection
process was completed in a fair and transparent manner.
In 2017, when BJP came to power, Yogi Adityanath had
promised to give four lakh jobs in various government
departments. He fulfilled it in just four years and by the end
of 2021 – this figure would be 5 lakh as recruitment is under
process for approx 86,000 posts in various departments.
A glance at Employment Generation by the Yogi Government:
• Over 4 lakh youth employed within four years of Yogi
Adityanath’s regime.
• The Yogi government has given government jobs to more
than 1 lakh women so far, while 1.50 crore workers have been
linked with employment through MNREGA.
• More than 5 lakh youth have been given employment from
start-up units and more than 3 lakh youth from industrial
units.
• Over 25 lakh people have been linked with employment
through ODOP. As many as 1.80 crore people have got
employment in UP from more than 50 lakh MSME units.
• More than 5 lakh people have been given employment from
the new industrial policy of the state government. After skill
mapping of more than 40 lakh workers/labourers, they have
been linked to employment.

UP Govt procures 56.25 lakh MT paid only Rs. 17190.85 crores to the paddy
of wheat, an 8-fold rise from SP’s farmers in their regime. The Uttar Pradesh
tenure Government purchased around 214.56 lakh
metric tons of Kharif crop in the last four
In the Rabi Marketing Season 2021-2022, years whereas, during the SP government,
the Uttar Pradesh Government made the only 123.61 lakh MT of paddy was purchased.
highest ever purchase of wheat from the
largest number of farmers, in the history Govt outperforms previous
of the State. Wheat procurement in Uttar governments in cane payment
Pradesh has increased eight times in Yogi
Adityanath’s regime, going up from 7.97 lakh Among the biggest policy triumphs of the
MT in 2016 to 56.25 lakh MT, an all-time Yogi Government in Uttar Pradesh has
high record, in the ongoing season. been its resolve to transform the lives of
farmers and making them self-reliant and
Record procurement of paddy by prosperous.
UP Government
Ensuring a turnaround in UP’s Sugarcane
The Yogi government has also made a sector, the Government of Uttar Pradesh has
record of the highest ever payment to the made a record payment of Rs Rs.1,37,891
paddy farmers of the state in four years. crore to more than 45.74 lakh sugarcane
The current government made a payment of farmers. The payment is twice the amount
Rs. 37825.66 crores to the farmers against that was made by the former Bahujan Samaj
their kharif crop, while the SP Government, Party government and 1.5 times more than
the Samajwadi Party government.

Self employment opportunities on
the rise in UP

In a move to support the youths to get back
on their feet as the second wave of Covid-19
curbs in the State, Chief Minister Yogi
Adityanath dispensed a loan of Rs 2505.58
crore to more than 31,542 micro, small and
medium industries for expansion.

The state government is focusing on the
MSME sector to counter the devastation
wreaked by the covid pandemic and create
employment opportunities by increasing the
pace of industrial development.

UP government reaches 17.25
crore people through surveillance
committees

The constitution of surveillance committees
and using them as a potent weapon to
counter the second wave of corona has been

the highlight of the UP model of the Yogi government in Under this special ‘varasat’ campaign, around 22,000
Uttar Pradesh. These committees have been instrumental Lekhpals and nearly 2500 Kanunagos will be going to
in controlling the covid crisis in rural areas reaching the 1,08,992 revenue villages of the state and register the
vast population in a seamless manner. It must not be undisputed inheritance of the villagers who lost their lives
short of a record that the state machinery has reached due to Covid-19 in favour of legal heirs including their
the doorsteps of as many as over 17.25 crore people thus widows which will be immediately entered in the Khatauni.
covering most of the state populace.
The campaign will also benefit widows who do not have
Under the supervision of more than 4 lakh members of any means of livelihood or proper housing facilities. They
63,148 monitoring committees in rural areas alone, more will be provided agricultural and residential land leases.
than 65 lakh persons had been tested for corona. Those
found with symptoms were sent to higher medical facilities. Main hoon na – Yogi to orphaned children
Sanitisation and fogging are being done continuously to
prevent mosquito-borne diseases. Mohalla monitoring Main hoon na… that seems to be the promise of Chief
committees have also been mobilised in this work. Minister Yogi Adityanath as he took on the responsibility
of those children who lost their parents or guardians in
UP self-sufficient in Oxygen the corona pandemic. The government launched ‘Uttar
Pradesh Chief Minister Bal Seva Yojana’ under which
Oxygen, something that is always taken for granted, the government would take care of the upbringing and
became scarce during the pandemic. To tide over the crisis education of orphaned children.
and ensure that no such issue arises in the future, all the
districts in Uttar Pradesh are being made self-sufficient As per the provisions under the scheme, the government
and over 528 oxygen plants are being sanctioned of which would give financial assistance of Rs 4,000 per month to
138 are functional. the child’s guardian or caretaker till they attain adulthood.

As part of its mission to achieve self-sufficiency in The children below the age of 10 years, who do not have
the production of medical oxygen the Uttar Pradesh parents or family members, will be taken care of by the
government is currently working on war footing to get all State Government Children’s Homes. The minor girl
plants functional by August 15. child will be housed in the Kasturba Gandhi Girls Schools
(Residential) run by the Government of India or in the
Varassat campaign for Covid widows Government Children’s Homes (Girls) run by the State
Government.
The Uttar Pradesh Government has decided to re-launch
‘varasat’ campaign where the ‘Khatauni’ would be provided The State Government would also provide an amount of
to the legal heirs or the widows of the landowners who died Rs. 1,01,000 for the marriage of such girls.
due to the Covid-19 pandemic in a hassle-free manner.

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OUR FUTURE PERFECT INDIA

ANNURAG BATRA Integrity, insight, and inclusiveness are the three essential qualities
of leadership — Sadhguru
 [email protected]
IN EVERY WALK of life and in every sphere, be it in business, politics or
the corporate arena, the decisive difference comes from leadership. As
India turns 75 on 15 August 2021, we salute our leaders who had shown
us the way out of the morass of imperialism and colonization and the
resultant famines and misery.

India celebrates its independence amidst the dread of the third wave
of the coronavirus and the uncontainable Delta variant. We hope to be
better prepared than we were before, should the third wave of Covid
grip the country as is apprehended. The lessons learnt from the last wave
of the pandemic have come in handy for both the public and the private
sector in the battle against it. In the first wave of the pandemic and the
subsequent lockdown that followed, India’s food and essential services
supply chain remained amazingly efficient.

We find now, as our cover feature will tell you, that India’s logistics
market has not only had a robust growth, having increased at a CAGR
of 10.5 per cent since 2019, it is expected to grow at the same pace till
2025, led by technological advancements. The focus of our cover story
is innovations in supply chain management and how India compares
with the rest of the world in terms of innovation and processes. The
pandemic prompted adoption of digital interventions in supply chain
management, which gave a fillip to e-commerce transactions and
Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) companies over the past two years. We
highlight the challenges that lie ahead and the key issues that require
immediate attention.

The pandemic also brought into focus the achievements of the Digital
India Mission, as the AroygyaSetu and Co-WIN apps helped check the
spread of the infection and the process of rapid vaccination of citizens.
We look in depth into the Digital India Mission and its amazing impact
on the Indian economy and in reaching out to the under-served. In
a conversation with BW Businessworld, Additional Secretary in the
Union Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), Rajendra Kumar, says
India was poised to emerge as a global IT superpower.

Of course, we also bring to you all the features and columns that you
look forward to. On the eve of our Independence Day celebrations, we
invite you to pledge to keep yourselves and your communities safe from
infection. Let us all do our bit in our own small ways. Jai Hind!

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CONTENTS

VOLUME 40, ISSUE 21 02-16 AUGUST 2021

SYNCHLROogNiISstEiDcsPhotographbyShutterstock

20 Jottings 52 Global Logistics Boom 32

Ghosts and Spirits of the Freedom Struggle; The global logistics industry is expected to The disruptions caused
Toyota’s Robot Car Wins Hearts at the outperform other businesses this year driven by the pandemic
Olympics; Bouquets for the Olympic Hero largely by ecommerce, pharma, and food are making logistics
and more processing sectors companies rethink their
strategy and adopt new-
22 Columns COLUMN: LOGISTICS age technologies like
IoT, artificial intelligence
Vikas Singh (p. 24); Nitish Mukherjee (p. 38 Vaibhav Khandelwal, and machine learning to
24); Amit Kapoor (p. 26); Jereninio Co-founder & CTO, Shadowfax improve efficiencies in
Almeida (p. 28); Jairam Eshwaran (p. 30); Technologies their operations. All this is
Ashutosh Garg (p. 62); Raghav Chandra working wonders for the
(p. 66); Manosh Joshi & Suhayl Abidi 40 Ramasubramaniam B, sector’s growth
(p.7 8); Sangeeta Maheshwari (p. 90) Co-founder & COO, BlackBuck
Cover design by DINESH S. BANDUNI
44 New-age Delivery 42 Rajesh Ramakrishnan, MD,
Perfetti van Melle India
Logistics players that are re-writing the
rules of logistics and supply chain manage- 50 Amandeep Singh Bhan, Sr
ment thanks to the boom in e-commerce VP, Moglix
and direct-to-consumer businesses

18 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

64 Interview

Dr Arvind Lal,
Executive Chairman,
Dr Lal PathLabs on
how the diagnostic
chain tackled
Covid-19, the
company’s
expansion plans and
ikey focus areas for
the healthcare
sector

Photograph by Ritesh Sharma

56 Sanjay Bhatia, Co- 80 Time to Regulate 84 Record FDI
founder & CEO, Freightwalla
The steady growth of the cryptocurrency India attracted a record $81.72
58 Sudarshan Shreenivas, market in India raises the need for a regulatory billion in foreign direct investment
Director, CARE Ratings & framework to govern investments during FY2020-21. What made that
Arunava Paul, Associate possible in a pandemic year?
Director 82 Edtech in Focus
86 In Conversation
60 Sameer Bhatnagar, Venture capitalists are making a beeline for
Partner - Transport & edtech startups in the country. What makes Ninad Karpe, Partner at 100X.VC on
Logistics, KPMG India them so hot? capital chasing ideas and accentu-
ated growth of technology industry
68 Mission digital 98 Last
88 BW Dialogue
Plan to bring together all citizen-cen- Word
tric services of both central and state Mahesh Chhabria, Managing
governments under a common Former SAIL Director at Kirloskar Industries on
integrated digital platform Chairman S.K. the changes his company went
Roongta on through during the pandemic, and
74 In Conversation institution building, much more
nation-building,
Additional Secretary in the Union the qualities a 94 Hottest Hatch?
Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity) leader requires to
Rajendra Kumar on measures to build institutions A review of Polo GT TSI BS6 which
safeguard data privacy and the online that last boasts a flat bottom and leather
rights of citizens, among other things wrapped chunky steering wheel and
plaid seats. Find out all you want to
know about the car

TOTAL NO. OF PAGES
INCLUDING COVER 100

Photograph by Bivash Banerjee

ThepagesinBW BusinessworldthatarelabelledBWiorPromotionscontainsponsoredcontent.Theyareentirelygeneratedbyanadvertiserorthe
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19 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

JOTTINGS

Ghosts and Spirits of colonial past, the circular Parliament
the Freedom Struggle building in the heart of New Delhi,
will quietly make way for a new and
A INDIA TURNS 75 amidst states, even as it cheers the medal all-Indian edifice. A triangular new
Covid protocols for the winners of the Tokyo Olympics on Parliament building will accommodate
second year in a row. As in Independence Day. the requirements of an evolving polity
2020, a masked up, sanitized of a 130 crore citizens. The expansive
India will maintain social distancing As the country commemorates new structure that will sprawl across
norms both in the capital and the the “spirit of the freedom struggle” 64,500 square metres and be able
this year, a long lasting edifice of our to house as many as 1,224 members
of Parliament, is expected to be
completed by October 2022.

So, the century-old round
monument with peacocks gallivanting
around its verdant grounds, will remain
a venue for many noisy Parliament
debates for another year, before
it fades into oblivion as a “national
archaeological asset”. The Parliament
House that Sir Edward Lutyens and
Herbert Baker designed and built
between 1921 and 1927, has been a
witness to a turbulent and decisive
chapter in India’s history. It quietly
completed a century on 12 February,
2021, since the Duke of Connaught laid
the foundation stone for it in 1921.

— Madhumita Chakraborty

BOUQUETS FOR THE OLYMPIC HERO

NEERAJ CHOPRA succeeds Abhinav Bindra as an individual champion to
win an Olympic gold for India. Bindra had brought home a gold medal for
his marksmanship from the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and Subedar Major
Neeraj Chopra won a gold for his 87.58 metres javelin throw in Tokyo. India’s
Olympic haul of seven medals (one gold, two silver and four bronze medals)
surpassed the 2012 record of six medals. So India is
overjoyed. The Haryana government has announced
a cash reward of Rs 6 crore and a class I category
state government job for the 23-year-old athlete.
The Punjab government has offered a cash reward of
Rs 2 crore for the champion and Manipur has offered
Chopra Rs 1 crore. The Board of Control for Cricket in
India (BCCI) and Edtech major BYJU’S have offered
rewards of Rs 1 crore each. The Indian Premier League
(IPL) franchise, Chennai Super Kings has declared
a reward of Rs 1 crore for the javelin thrower. Budget
airline IndiGo, has offered unlimited free travel for
a year and Anand Mahindra has promised to gift
Chopra the upcoming SUV XUV700.

— Avishek Banerjee

20 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

JAI HIND!
JAI BHARAT!

IN THAT LONG WALK since 1947, India’s

themes and slogans have changed from

‘Garibi Hatao’ to ‘AtmaNirbhar Bharat’.

The visions too have altered from reaching

a light bulb or a dirt path to the remotest

corner of the cournty to the Digital India

Mission, which strives to take internet

connectivity to the far corners of India.

The goals have changed as well, from

Ease of Doing Business and so, ushering in

investments to ensure employment and

industrial growth in the country, to “Ease of PhotographbyAnjisnuRaha

Living” for all Indians at every strata of society. and AtmaNirbhar Bharat, persist. Some small accolades

Across these 74 years but at a more accelerated pace in have flown in from across the seas like India’s improved

the recent past, the country has striven for and achieved rankings in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index,

industrialization, evolution of trade, commerce and the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index

sophisticated services, adoption of new-age technology and and in the Logistics Performance Index.

urban rejuvenation through the Smart Cities projects. Enough surely, for us to be able to lustily chant ‘Jai Hind!

As the tri-colour flies from atop Red Fort on 15 August, Jai Bharat!’ on the 75th anniversary of India’s independence

the commitments of the government under Prime Minister from British rule?

Narendra Modi to drive forward missions like Make in India — Poulami Chakraborty

TOYOTA’S ROBOT CAR WINS HEARTS AT THE OLYMPICS

TOYOTA MOTOR, the official sponsor for the first time during the Rugby 7s game between
at the Tokyo Olympics 2021, offered hosts Japan and Fiji. Before the match started, the tiny
several vehicles to be used at the Games Toyota car was seen entering the field with the rugby
for transport and other purposes. But ball neatly perched on top of it, thanks to a customized
one – the smallest among them – a catapult-like structure developed for the purpose.
remote-controlled four-wheeler, which
was seen serving the ball during rugby The vehicle moved about swiftly across the field,
games, has generated much interest flashing green lights. It became an instant hit
among viewers and social media with spectators, viewers, and social media as
platforms. The car, which appears it proved to be enough to get them excited.
to be the scale model of the The Japanese car marque appointed many
autonomous vehicle, Toyota driverless vehicles for a shuttle service
e-Palette, which was being for athletes and game officials. The
used as the official transport vehicles transported participants
for athletes and officials at the between venues and the Olympics
event, reminded many of village in a loop. The show-stopper,
the Volkswagen ID.4 scale the Toyota e-Palette BEV (battery
model used for the same electric vehicle) is fully autonomous
purpose during Euro 2021. and boasts of a range of 150 km at a
speed of about 20 km/h.
The tiny car was used
— Siddharth Shankar

21 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

COLUMN By Vikas Singh

Rising Market
is a ‘False

Positive’, and
Not a Proxy for

the Economy

T HE STOCK MARKET and the economy do not seem to agree anymore. a gush of global liquidity, propelled by
Watching the stock ticker, no one would believe that the economy is low-interest rates. A rising market often
overlooks, sometimes even ignores the
reeling from the pandemic, and its induced lockdown. In an uncertain broader economy; ‘experts’ fan the flame.
economic backdrop, despairing outlook, and several sluggish indicators Lazy money fuels risk-appetite, and plays
(revival green shoots notwithstanding), the stock markets are near an the pied piper to the greed of the retail in-
all-time high. vestor.

Economy Is Sluggish; Yet The Stock Market Is Surging Policymakers and market pundits
The glaring and disturbing disengagement between the celebratory market mood and brandish the market as a proxy for the
the despairing economy is baffling. economy. The commentary of the policy-
makers’ add credence to the excitement;
Absence of co-linearity between indices and the economy raises several questions heightening the exhilaration. The govern-
including composition and its construct. A Crux insight titled Growth And Market ment’s economic data is lost in the appen-
Movement highlights that the index is no longer the economic barometer. Forty years’ dix. It misleads the commons when the
data indicates that the indices and the economy have often not moved parallelly, never government and its instruments rejoice
in tandem. They are even detached in several cycles, mirroring the larger economic the ‘all time high’. So shrill is the noise that
cycles only in a few. most are taken in. Economists and finan-
cial pundits should be more diligent, and
De-licensing, market deregulation and other transformational policies and reforms push back when politicians push ahead.
like introduction of VAT, FDI, abolishing of price controls, GST, IBC etc. give gorilla
gains. Most retail investors are excited by the
stock tickers, dazzled by the bouncing of
The stock market is forward looking. The rising index indicates the economy could the stocks. The greed, compounded by
be in good health, and (but) in the future. lack of financial literacy, consumes them.
Many others face a grieving truth when
Markets Tell An Enthralling Tale; But Not The Full Story accounts are dusted. This hurts small in-
The Crux study has several other explanations for the non-linearity. Index is only a vestors. ‘This must concern us’, the Crux
tabulation of investors’ consensus view of the listed entities. Markets largely discount study concludes.
the unlisted, disregard the larger economic environment. Similarly, the index is skewed.
The pandemic and other disruptions like the GST, demonetization weakens the ‘unor- Formally Informal
ganised’ sector, and strengthens listed entities further. The index is skewed. About 40 The real economy’s health is about ad-
per cent of the Nifty consists of the BFSI sector, but its weight is no more than 15 per cent. equate consumption, optimum invest-
ment, rising employment opportunities,
Construction, agri, manufacturing and the auto sectors which feed and drive the efficient production and other related and
economy, employing over 70 per cent of the workforce are under-represented, some
even ‘invisible’ in the benchmark index.

The index has none of the new-age service providers. The market is surging on

22 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

ABSENCE OF CO-LINEARITY
BETWEEN INDICES AND THE
ECONOMY RAISES SEVERAL
QUESTIONS INCLUDING
COMPOSITION AND ITS CONSTRUCT.
A CRUX INSIGHT TITLED GROWTH
AND MARKET MOVEMENT
HIGHLIGHTS THAT THE INDEX IS NO
LONGER THE ECONOMIC BAROMETER.
FORTY YEARS’ DATA INDICATES THAT
THE INDICES AND THE ECONOMY
HAVE OFTEN NOT MOVED
PARALLELLY, NEVER IN TANDEM

aligned economic value drivers. A growing GDP is a sign of businesses doing well, and governance. Listing gives visibility to at-
expanding; and invariably increasing valuations of the listed entities. Stock market tract technology partners; and others. It
performance and the state of the economy must intertwine, with a deeper correlation. will enhance competitiveness, help them
expand and export.
India’s macroeconomy confounds even the most astute economy watcher. The ‘for-
mally informal’ economy is complex to fathom, difficult to comprehend. Micro trends China invested and nurtured small
are very intricate to measure meaningfully and even mystifying. The economy has meta- businesses, then unleashed them to con-
morphosed post the economic reforms and reshaped so often that the indices capture quer the world. There is much to learn
neither the micro shifts and spots adequately, nor its many macroeconomic drivers. and imbibe. The government must,
through its institutions invest minimal
Formalization Is A Long Term Positive. But Not Now or even ‘notional’ capital, (less than ten
It’s time will come. Efforts and the approach to ‘formalize’ has been misguided; the per cent) for about 25,000 medium
outcome is frightening. It has hurt, not healed. Formalization increases the tax base, enterprises and exit when they gather
but extracts other costs that the unorganized can neither pay nor afford. There is more tailwind.
to formalization than collecting taxes.
The goal should be to ease several regu-
About 50 million informal sector participants drive 65 per cent of the economy; latory roadblocks, eliminating Inspector
employ about 80 per cent of the labour force. They are neither robust, nor agile enough Raj and provide a safety-net. Not fund,
to transform and capitalize on the benefits of formalization. Our economy has neither not control, nor manage. Similarly the
the enabling ecosystem, nor a sustainable platform; not even a safety net. They will fail. government’s ‘skin in the game’ will in-
This will cascade into a larger and longer disruption, which could see about 20 per cent fuse trust and comfort for potential inves-
of the workers out of their jobs, with no hope of getting one in the future. It will scar the tors, partners and customers.
poor and the middle class for life.
Unemployment Denies, Deprives
The Crux study Formally Informal, conducted across 400 policymakers and prac- The PM appreciates that in a ‘jobless’
titioners articulates that the economy needs a realistic and more comprehensive index, growth environment, only medium en-
mirroring the real economy, presenting the factual. terprises can create jobs and engage the
educated and aspiring youth. They are
Several, even persistent attempts to create an SME index is still ‘work-in-progress’. the job ‘factory’, and most can emerge as
Design is faulty. Framework is tedious. The government has not incentivised. It has ‘unicorns’ and wealth creators if the gov-
instead imposed many rigid, several unnecessary regulations. The sector’s inherent ernment can nurture and invest in them.
challenges are ignored. Medium enterprises are opaque, lack governance. It discour-
ages investors. Similarly lack of reliable data dissuades both the supply and demand It’s an investment worth making.
market participants.
The author is an economist and columnist
Listing has several intangible benefits; many other growth drivers. For one, in a The views expressed are personal and do not
capital-starved ecosystem it eases access, lowers cost of capital. Listing de-risks pro-
moters, encourages entrepreneurships. Enterprises will engage better talent; deepen reflect those of BW Businessworld

Photograph: Shutterstock 23 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

DARK ROAST DOUBLE SHOT By Nitish Mukherjee

T an onslaught from competitors with deep pockets and greater
width and depth in distribution. Somehow, though they
HE COMPANY that I was heading, were very respectful and attentive in the conversations, they
had the communications mandate of did not show any bias for action on taking any pre-emptive
an indigenous ayurvedic goods manu- measures.
facturer, producing consumer goods
ranging from medicinal to personal Finally, one day a headline in the leading financial daily
care. It was a very respected brand, announced that new products from the multinational with
which was slowly transitioning the no- Ayurvedic natural formulations were ready to hit the shelves.
tion of Ayurveda from a native home- I was very agitated, sipping on a cocktail of mixed emotions
grown tradition of remedies to one of anxiety and a sense of vindication. I cancelled my morning
with scientific evidence of efficacy. Its schedule and set off early on the hour-and-a-half-long jour-
ney to the client’s office, to be in time when they started work.
The CEO, one of the most polished gentlemen that you could
come across, was surprised to see me but graciously seated me
down for a chat. Though restrained, I still communicated my
impatience with our utter equanimity in the face of alarming
competitive activity. He listened patiently and said that he

Laugh, So
That You May

Not Cry

success had clearly established the la- empathized with my agitation but would take a few minutes’
tent power and possibilities of natural break and then be back to finish the conversation.
product formulations and the multina-
tional consumer goods companies were Soon he was back and told me that the owner and Chair-
soon expected to enter the race, now man of the company who spent most of his time abroad,
that proof of concept had been clearly happened to be in town and the CEO had briefly mentioned
established. the context of my dropping in and asked him if he would like
to join the conversation. As he had agreed to meet, would I
The buzz was very strong that the like to share my views with him? I was a little taken aback,
largest FMCG company in India was because the gentleman in question was a very private person,
likely to launch Ayurveda based prod- rarely did he meet anyone other than his own team. I had
ucts in the very near future. As a con- never met him earlier either and the chance to meet him on
cerned partner I had raised this issue in a matter this important to his business seemed like a manna
our meetings with the CEO and mar- from heaven.
keting team, pushing them to think
through strategies of how to combat I walked into the room to see an avuncular gentleman, with
his face radiating the warmth of his smile. He was wearing a

24 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

crisp half sleeved white linen shirt and

seated behind an uncluttered highly

polished wooden table. Pleasantries

done he asked me what was on my

mind. Over the next few minutes, I

told him of what we knew of competi-

tive activity, their strengths, the pos-

sible threat to our business, the likely

consequences for us and the reasons

why I felt that we should be deeply

concerned. As I finished, I was taken

aback with the Chairman’s reaction. He

laughed heartily and turning around to

the CEO said, “I like this young man;

he is more worried about our busi-

ness than we are”. Then in a very ear-

nest manner he asked, “Are we ensur-

ing that we continue to make the best ship in a storm needs to focus on the ship. Worrying about

quality of products possible? Are our the storm can be a debilitating act that drains away time and

consumers happy with them and the energy that could be utilised for positive efforts. An agitated

benefit they receive?” The CEO nod- mind is not the best crucible for the best and bravest deci-

ded in the affirmative. The Chairman sions. This single act of leadership can improve the chances

turned his head and addressing me of success exponentially and define a culture that is positive,

said, “I understand your concern but as enabling and progressive.

long as we are focussed on the Light-heartedness is not a manifestation of

consumer and our products Light- irresponsibility; it is an antidote to the sarcoma
we will continue to do well. of anxiety. Levity and humour do not necessar-

Competition will do what it heartedness ily wean you away from the seriousness of your
will do, we don’t need to be situation, they can help you focus on that which is

anxious about that. Just im- is not a important. Undue worry and anxiety on the other
prove on what we do, every hand can set off a chain reaction that ends up in

day.” We spent some time to- manifestation of building a culture that breeds insecurity and tired-
gether sharing thoughts on irresponsibility; ness. Leaving you with less energy to do what is
some of the products that the it is an antidote really required. As the world moves in to the post-
company was about to launch to the sarcoma pandemic phase and its many challenges, leaders
and our readiness and then I would do well to centre their organisations on the
thanked them for their time tasks ahead while steering them away from the
and left. fear and insecurity of uncertainty that pervades

I paid for the Dark Roast of anxiety the mood of the times.
Double Shot, walked to the Many companies both local and multinational

far corner of the café, loos- entered the natural/ayurvedic products category

ened my tie and sank into the over the next many years. Some succeeded, some

soft cushions. I had to fully absorb the failed, some just mark their time but this company kept grow-

experience of the last few hours. I now ing in products, sales, geographies and is today in markets

realised why no one was infected with abroad selling the goodness of Ayurveda to the world.

my anxiety over the last few months. It

came right from the top. The ability to You can DM me on LinkedIn or write in to darkroastdou-

focus on your purpose and not be buf- [email protected]

feted in your belief of its power. Avoid-

ing agitation and apprehensions that The author is a board member, advisor, coach & mentor
can sap your energy. The captain of a The views expressed are personal

Photograph by Shutterstock 25 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

ARTHASHASTRA By Amit Kapoor
I N THE RECENT PAST, the term
“gig economy” has become a ing a common platform where they can It must be noted that gig workers
buzzword in the business space. carry out transactions. are not employees, and hence, all the
The way it disrupted tradition- labour protection laws do not apply to
al norms of working and en- Shopping websites that platform them. The ambiguous employment
hanced consumer experience, third party sellers are, therefore, plat- relationship entails that platforms de-
form businesses. But so are apps like ploy algorithms to set remuneration,
Uber and Ola, who do not sell anything

has attracted the attention of but match cab drivers with users look- with workers having no say in the mat-

policymakers as well. However, ing for a cab. Hence, platforms facili- ter,butitiscouchedindemand-supply

the attention is not completely posi- tate various types of transactions, but mechanisms. This is not the case with

tive. The oft-alleged issues of unfair the point at which the platform econo- high-skilledgigworkersorothertypes

terms of work and lack of social secu- my meets the gig economy is when gig of platforms. Secondly, although the

rity have also been points of focus, and work is facilitated by these platforms, gig economy regards the workers and

ignited discussions on how to regulate as in the case of cab-hailing. As digital platforms as equal partners, the ac-

the gig economy and protect workers’ technology has taken over all forms countability for services is not shared

rights. of businesses, a large part of the gig byplatforms.Theseareonlyafewways

However, the gig economy is heter- economyisnowoccupiedbyplatform- in which platforms leverage the am-

ogenousinnature,andcanbeconfused enabled gig work. biguous employment relationship to

with other overlapping concepts like Even within platform-enabled gig exploit the tilted power equations.

Regulating
The Gig
Economy

platform economy, sharing economy, work, there are both high-skilled gig Hence, the first step to regulating
etc. The rise in popularity of business- workers like freelance writers and the gig economy is to define the em-
es like Uber, Zomato and Upwork has coders seeking project-based work ployment relationship within it. The
made the gig economy synonymous through online job portals and low- employment relationship so framed
with platform businesses, but the two skilled workers engaged in cab driv- should clearly state the level of account-
need to be distinguished from each ing or delivery services. When the gig ability shared between the two parties,
other. In order to regulate the gig econ- economy is critiqued in relation to its the level of control each stakeholder
omy, it is essential to first define it. In workers, the discussion is usually about exercises in pricing/remuneration de-
simple terms, the gig economy involves the second category – the blue-collar cisions, the type of control platforms
workers earning income from taking workers. All the issues concerning can exercise over the gig workers, and
up gigs or single projects or tasks, blue-collar gig workers can be easily so on. So, platforms cannot term their
instead of serving a company as em- boiled down to the imbalance of power workers as gig workers, if they do not fit
ployees. On the other hand, platform between them and the platforms they the definition.
businesses are businesses that act as a engage with. Since low-skilled workers
bridge between the seller and consum- are in high supply in the labour market, Once the outlines of the gig economy
ers. Also known as aggregators, they do they are more disposable and have a are more clearly drawn, then only can
not own the commodities they sell, and low bargaining power. regulators proceed to deciding which
instead, reduce the transaction cost for regulatory tools to use.
both sellers and consumers by provid-
The author is Chair, Institute for Competitiveness and visiting scholar, Stanford University

26 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

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COLUMN By Jeroninio Almeida

M Y LAST COLUMN in NGOs over the years including this re- who have much more impact to show
BW was titled Mac- port in Time Magazine in 2010. http:// with meagre funding, than many big
kenzie Scott – Noble, content.time.com/time/world/arti- non-profits. I also mentioned William
Mindful Intent; Shal- cle/0,8599,2036307,00.html Kamkwamba and Prof. Ruchira Gupta’s
low Mindless Charity. www.1millionmeals.org who has deliv-
Mackenzie, I found A recent report in The Wire https:// ered many more meals during the Co-
your intent noble because I loved your science.thewire.in/health/everyone- rona Lockdown than the big well-funded
thought-leadership in your Seeding is-funding-oxygen-that-is-a-problem/ non-profits.
by Ceding blog on www.medium.com. shows that much of the aid given by
However, the research done by your team Philanthropists was mindlessly squan- l Please go beyond writing a cheque
was shallow as they researched only mer- dered on oxygen-concentrators during to truly practising “Philanthropy for So-
cenary fundraising non-profits that are the Covid second wave. Some funds were cial Justice” where you ensure account-
highly visible due to their huge PR ma- siphoned off as big NGO cartels, with ability, by checking long and lasting sus-
chinery and Social-Media marketing. millions of dollars in funding bought tainable impact on the ground and not
“Imagine struggling with being home- concentrators at exorbitant rates, while just trust the fancy fudged reports with
less and someone comes with a camera small/micro non-profits bought the glossy pictures and creative posters that
in your face give you a meal and you have same concentrators for half the price. non-profits post on social media.
to take it. Imagine that feeling. Please, With their big-funding and buying-pow-
stop doing that. If you go help someone, er they should have bought concentra- l Please stop funding intermediary-
tors at lower prices than the small/micro fundraising-agencies for service delivery
that yields temporary low-impact results

An Open Letter
to MacKenzie

and all
Philanthropists

do it with kindness and not with your non-profits. and guide your teams’ teams to directly
ego.” ~ This quote attributed to Jim Car- I can go on but will conclude here by find and work with the small/micro non-
rey holds true not only for individuals profits, who can deliver sustainable long
who do lip-service charity but also for appealing to all philanthropists with and lasting rights-based empowerment
many mercenary fundraising non-profit these three humble requests. at the grassroots.
racketeers who have little impact but use
heart-rending photos to raise funds. l Please don’t just give money to Mackenzie this is an open letter to
cool-sounding big-brand non-profits. you, Melinda, Warren Buffett and other
The bigger the non-profit, the higher Kindly brief your teams to find the small/ philanthropists to request you to mentor
their administration/marketing cost and medium non-profits that are deliver- your research team to conduct in-depth
lower the impact or Return-on-Invest- ing high impact at the grassroots with due diligence with seriousness-of-intent.
ment, where your philanthropic-aid has little, low or no funding. Last year with I am happy to coach them pro bono and
gone to waste. International Non-Profits Book-A-Smile Foundation I met seven give them data of small/micro non-prof-
like UNICEF and others have even been Covid Heroes like Biju Puskaran, Nisha its that have 10x impact to show in com-
exposed for using pictures of children Vishvakarma, Prince Mulla, Rizwan parison with non-profits that you give
who were not part of their social-impact Bendigeri, Dr Shung Ming Chiu, Su- huge funds to.
programmes. I have personally blown lendra Kumar Mahato, Abodh Kumar
the whistle on several international
The author is the moJOsh inspirator, a management & OD consultant & business leadership & life coach

28 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

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ANECDOTES By Jayaram Easwaran

ANECDOTES time. Take it out and wear it properly,”
SHAPE shouted the Sr. Manager. One could
hear a pin drop in that large hall! The
CULTURE terrified junior officer quickly removed
the ID card from the pocket. “Sorry
I T’S THE ANECDOTES and stories, that employees tell each other, that truly Sir, I just returned after washing my
reveal and shape workplace culture. face.”

CULTURE IS HOW PEOPLE BEHAVE “Don’t make excuses. If this happens
Organizations spend loads of money and effort in defining their culture. Little do again, I will sack you,” shouted the Sr.
they realize that it is the anecdotes and stories that employees tell one another, Manager.
that truly reveal and shape workplace culture!
Employees believe these anecdotes more than they do the vision, mission and An employee reported the episode to
policy statements. And it is from these anecdotes that employees take their cues on the CEO who after due investigations
what is acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. CEO’s must understand that they are instructed the Sr. Manager to go to the
defined by what they do and not by what they say and that the anecdotes reflect that. employee’s seat in the large hall, and
To reshape culture, they need to behave differently and thus facilitate emergence of apologize to him.
new anecdotes.
Let’s now examine two real events. Employees, proud that the company
always walked the talk, often repeated
THE TECHNOLOGY COMPANY this story. Not surprising that this com-
This company placed great emphasis on its core values of upholding individual dig- pany always ranked high in best-places-
nity and respect, and employees were encouraged to report any breach. One day a Sr. to-work surveys.
Manager noticed that a junior officer had placed his ID card and lanyard in the top
pocket of his shirt. THE ENGINEERING SERVICES CO.
This Rs 10,000 crore listed company
“Who the hell do you think you are? The ID card must be clearly visible all the started off as a family-run entity twenty
years ago.

The MD and Founder, keen to triple
revenues in five years, lured a reputed
HR Head from his largest competitor.
The HR Head leveraged his network and
brought in some outstanding talent. But
the MD had his set of old loyalists and the
professionals soon left the company.

“Why are all these people leaving us?”
asked a concerned MD.

A large poster behind the MD, which
read, ‘A true leader must have an open
door policy,’ possibly encouraged the HR
Head to speak up.

“Sir, there is a perception that there
are many old timers here who don’t con-
tribute much and yet earn the highest
salaries.”

The MD’s reply was terse; “It’s my pre-
rogative whether I feed grass to my race
horses or pistachio’s to my mules.”

The HR Head resigned soon.Employ-
ees have a new slogan, “An open-door
policy does little for a closed mind.”

Revenues are now down to a third!

The writer is a consultant and an Independent
Board Director at Jindal Stainless Ltd and author

of the best selling book - Inside the C- Suite

30 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

SEPTEMBER 2021

AUGUST 30, 2021

SUPPLY CHAIN India’s logistics market is expected to

INDIA’S grow at a CAGR of 10.5 per cent from now

LOGISTIC until 2025 spurred by faster adoption of

MARKET modern technologies, e-enabled fleet, and

warehouse management solutions. All this is

also attracting big money L

SYNCHRO

By Team BW

AD IT NOT BEEN for the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the
logistics and supply chain industry — the backbone of global trade and services
— would not have moved in a hurry to engineer the adoption of IoT, machine
learning, and artificial intelligence in their day-to-day operations.

“The disruptions caused by Covid-19 are making global companies rethink
their supply chain strategy. Two major areas that are likely to see great traction
are improved visibility across supply chains (both for cargo shipments and docu-
mentation) and drawing a balance between just-in-time and just-in-case,” says
Sanjay Bhatia, Co-founder & CEO at Freightwalla, a digital freight forwarder.

Photograph by Shutterstock 32 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

Although Bhatia says that India has a long
way to go to catch up with the latest market
trends whilst catering to the evolving needs of
overseas buyers, the technological transfor-
mation of India’s logistics and supply chain
industry is well and truly underway.

As per a recent ‘white paper’, logistics com-
panies in India and elsewhere have already

LNOISGEISDTICSembarkeduponacceleratedinclusionoftech-
nology in key areas of logistics and supply
chain management. These include use of IoT
in fleet as well as warehouse management, use
of robotics in inventory management, adop-
tion of real-time, satellite-based tracking of

SUPPLY CHAIN
INDIA’S
LOGISTIC
MARKET

“BlackBuck is addressing the fragmentation
challenge by digitally bringing both the
shippers and the truckers to a common

platform” Ramasubramaniam B, Co-founder &
COO, BlackBuck

goods and fleet and use of electric ve- the Asia Pacific (APAC) region are con- of Business, India, SAARC region and
hicles (EV) in select areas. sidering IoT (37 per cent), warehouse SEA, HERE Technologies says, “With
automation (33 per cent), and electric the emerging technologies within
However, some players are moving vehicles (32 per cent) as key invest- transportation and logistics space
faster than others, and have set their ment priorities in the next two years. and the resultant market disruptions,
own priorities as far as technology As for Indian companies, 38 per cent customer expectation is continuously
adoption is concerned. A recent study will be ploughing more investments evolving. This inevitably positions the
by HERE Technologies shows that in IoT, while 29 per cent are showing industry for exponential growth in the
about a third of logistics companies in high interest in warehouse automation coming years.”
and 10 per cent in electric vehicles.
“The disruptions In June, a NITI Aayog report ti-
caused by Abhijit Sengupta, Director & Head tled ‘Fast Tracking Freight in India: A
Roadmap for Clean and Cost-Effective
Covid-19 are Goods Transport’ revealed that India
making global has the potential to reduce its logis-
tics cost by as much as 4 per cent of its
companies gross domestic product (GDP) while
rethink their achieving savings of 10 gigatonnes of
supply chain cumulative CO2 emissions between
strategy” Sanjay 2020 and 2050.
Bhatia, Co-founder
& CEO, Freightwalla “Freight transportation is a critical
backbone of India’s growing economy,
and now more than ever, it’s important
to make this transport system more
cost-effective, efficient, and cleaner.
Efficient freight transport will also play
an essential role in realising the ben-
efits of existing government initiatives
such as Make in India, Aatmanirbhar
Bharat, and Digital India,” said Sud-
hendu J. Sinha, Adviser, Transport and
Electric Mobility, NITI Aayog.

NEW-AGE PLAYERS

Signs of change are already evident. Fe-
dEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx and

34 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2020

the world’s largest express transporta- with Amicus Capital and Ananta Capi- when Guild Capital and impact inves-
tion company, and India’s Delhivery, a
leading logistics and supply chain ser- tal have just announced a $12 million tor Omidyar Network India backed the
vices company, recently entered into a
partnership aimed at optimising gains (about Rs 85 crore) Series B funding company with a $4 million (Rs 29.45
in the logistics market. This is how it
is expected to work. FedEx will make for logistics and warehousing solutions crore at the time) infusion.
a $100 million (Rs 740 crore) equity
investment in Delhivery and enter into provider Pickrr Technologies. Exist- In fact, most of the listed logistics
a long-term commercial agreement.
While FedEx Express will focus on in- ing investors Omidyar Network India companies have seen a big uptick in
ternational export and import services
Delhivery will, in addition to FedEx, and Guild Capital also participated in their stock prices recently due to grow-
sell FedEx Express international prod-
ucts and services here locally. this round. The funding will help the ing investor interest.

As per reports, FedEx will also trans- company continue to drive product de-
fer some of its assets belonging to its
domestic business in the country to velopment and expand its network of BETTING ON GROWTH
Delhivery. In fact, Delhivery, one of
the leading e-logistics companies in fulfilment centres across the country, Why are global, local, and every other
the country, is set to launch its initial
public offering (IPO). Experts estimate according to a statement. kind of investors betting big on Indian
its valuation at $4 billion as it plans
to offload 10-15 per cent for around What is Pickrr and how does it logistics and supply-chain networks?
$500-600 million (roughly Rs 3,500-
Rs 4,200 crore). work? Pickrr’s platform helps e-com- Vaibhav Khandelwal, Co-founder &

In May Delhivery had raised $277 merce businesses simplify shipping CTO, Shadowfax Technologies says,
million, expected to be the final fund-
ing before the proposed IPO later in and/or returns. It dispatches, manages “The development of robust, more ad-
2021. Delhivery disclosed in the regu-
latory filings that it had raised $277 and tracks orders (or returns) through vanced transportation management
million from a clutch of global inves-
tors including Boston-headquartered a single dashboard. It works with lead- systems have redefined the way sup-
Fidelity, Singapore’s sovereign wealth
fund GIC, Abu Dhabi’s Chimera, and ing shipping partners across India ply chains are working now. Increased
U.K.’s Baillie Gifford.
like Blue Dart, Ecom Express, DTDC, visibility, enhanced connectivity,
There are several such exam-
ples from the recent past FedEx, Delhivery, India Post, Shad- streamlined data storage and assured
where millions of dol-
lars have been invested owfax, among others. Pickrr raised its safety all make it much more efficient.
by global and local in-
vestors in e-logistics first-ever institutional round last year Brands these days are making efforts
firms.
to get closer to their customers and re-
BSE-listed India
Infoline or IIFL, a duce the overall delivery time, thereby
diversified financial
services firm along catalysing the growth of micro-ware-

housing centres.”

Sudarshan Shreenivas, Director,

CARE Ratings echoes Khandelwal.

“The pandemic provided a boost to

“Since the the online market.
Since the convention-

conventional al stores were closed

stores were closed consumers moved
online to buy goods
consumers moved creating a surge in
online to buy goods demand for last mile
creating a surge delivery services.
in demand for Thus, the B2C seg-

last mile delivery ment of the supply

services” Sudarshan chain/express deliv-
ery flourished. Ac-
Shreenivas, Director, cordingly, the need for
CARE Ratings warehouses increased

mainly near to the

consumer.”

The upcoming players in the

market are realising all this and

proactively bridging the gap be-

tween what was and what can

be. With increased government

focus on digitisation, it is easier

now to focus on consumer behav-

35 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

SUPPLY CHAIN delivering a holistic 360 degree view reforms and the interest from the en-
of the business. It is imperative to look terprises, use of digital intervention
INDIA’S at supply chains in their entirety, and for last-mile deliveries is going to be
LOGISTIC not as a standalone but as an end-to- very high.
MARKET end ecosystem in itself, say experts.
THE LONG ROAD AHEAD
iour, and data sharing. Consequently, The demand for robotics goods-
the logistics industry is getting leaner, to-person (G2P) services is also set While all these developments are posi-
efficient, and a lot more collaborative to expand rapidly. Automation is en- tive, there is still a long road ahead.
across the chain. hancing productivity and improving
storage density within warehouses, Logistics in India is still largely per-
TECH AS A DISRUPTER helping brands in better utilisation ceived as a traditional business that
of space. With the immense poten- is done in a set way. Moreover, there
Technology has always been the big- tial that technology could bring into are challenges arising from lack of in-
gest disrupter in any industry and the the value chain, there will be a lot of frastructure and an unorganised net-
logistics space is no different. From innovations happening in intra-city work which means fragmented hubs
last-mile delivery and sustainabil- logistics. With the recent government and warehouses. Also, since most of
ity solutions to automated pickup at the logistics infrastructure remains
warehouses and predictive optimisa- “The development restricted to the urban areas, the hin-
tion software, technology is making a of robust, more terlands are left largely neglected.
huge difference in the logistics sector. advanced
AI and digital technologies play a cru- transportation The irregularities at the lower levels
cial role in saving time, reducing costs, management of the supply chain amplify while they
increasing productivity, and helping systems have reach higher stages, thus creating a
companies in providing near-to-pre- wide gap between what the consumer
cise delivery time. redefined the way wants and what companies supply. A
supply chains are lot of players have to also recognise that
Startups are quick to recognise this
and are addressing the gaps head on. working now”
Ramasubramaniam B, Co-founder & Vaibhav Khandelwal,
COO, BlackBuck notes,“BlackBuck is
addressing the fragmentation chal- Co-founder &
lenge by digitally bringing both the CTO, Shadowfax
shippers and the truckers to a com-
mon platform, creating trust amongst Technologies
them and providing them access to
pan-India trucking network rights at
their fingertips.”

The idea of specialising in inte-
grated, digital and AI driven supply
chains and logistics may be new to
India but they are getting adopted by
new-age e-logistics players because go-
ing digital is the logical step forward.
Experts say that technology stored and
deployed in the cloud also makes real-
time tracking easier and faster for all
parties connected to the modern-day
supply chain and logistics business.
While the internet of things (IoT) pro-
vides deeper insights into individual
processes, AI looks at the aggregate,

36 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

investments are needed “We are constantly international companies as
to adapt and change the upgrading our technology providers. There
processes and that these are industry players that are
measures will pay back technologies and already catering to these de-
handsomely in the long have come up mands.
run.
with automated “We have offerings such
Khandelwal notes, warehousing, order as proprietary line-haul net-
“Most of these inde- work, last-mile distribution
pendent players have a management and using automated and intel-
very small fleet size and fulfilment centre ligent information systems,
carry most of the freight network capabilities enabling
in the area they are pre- services” cash-on-delivery (COD), pre-
sent. Over the last couple T.A. Krishnan, CEO, paid and reverse pick-up. We
of years, we are seeing a are constantly upgrading our
slight shift towards com- Ecom Express technologies and have come
panies preferring the or- up with automated ware-
ganised sector for their ognising these problems and looking housing, order management
freight movements.” to bridge the gaps. To optimise fuel and fulfilment centre ser-
consumption, the companies might vices,” notes T. A. Krishnan,
Small logistics start- go for consolidated shipments reduc- CEO, Ecom Express.
ups have to step up their ing the number of carriers which, in
game if they wish to com- turn, might have an impact on delivery A slew of measures and
pete with the larger com- schedules and timelines. Moreover, initiatives announced by the
panies. The established having trained and experienced pro- government, both directly
brands already have the fessionals to manage the new-age sup- and indirectly, are serving
resources and the abil- ply chain seamlessly is the need of the to give a fillip to the logistics
ity to absorb risks of the hour. Digital technologies have evolved industry.
trade whereas most lo- faster than ever in the last few years.
gistics startups or even To begin with, the in-
those companies that According to experts, in order to troduction of GST and the
have been around for a while have bridge the gaps in processes and tech- rationalised tax slabs have
neither. While some platforms have nology India can also adopt good prac- served to make life easier for majority
adopted modern processes like enter- tices from other countries or rope in of the players in this industry by drasti-
prise resource planning (ERP) and cally reducing paperwork.
electronic data interchange (EDI), The government is also making a
the sector as a whole still has a long conscious effort to introduce multi-
way to go. modal logistics parks across the coun-
try. These parks, which will be spread
In addition, there are a lot of ground- over 100 acres, will provide warehouse
level realities that companies have to facilities including cold storage.
contend with. For instance, rising fuel Further, the introduction of the e-
costs are increasing the transportation way Bill will eliminate checking at state
costs for the logistics companies. Then, boundary posts increasing the overall
these companies need to invest strate- turnaround time.
gically to train the workforce and make The Vahan and Sarathi platforms
them future-ready so that they can ef- that facilitate online vehicle registra-
ficiently cope with any challenges that tion and driving license issuance re-
may come in their way of conducting spectively, too, will help the industry by
and managing the business continuity. eliminating delays and standardising
The workforce also needs to be trained the processes.
in areas like conduct, presentation, With the government pushing for
and customer service to improve their digitisation, green economy, an ‘At-
journey and enhance customer experi- manirbhar Bharat’ and Make in India
ence and satisfaction. products, the trajectory for the logistics
economy can only be upwards.
A lot of logistics companies are rec-

37 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

SUPPLY CHAIN Innovation
COLUMN driving
service
By Vaibhav excellence in
Khandelwal logistics

T Food, ecommerce, Last mile delivery: UAVs caused quite a stir
and even B2B logistics with their ability to eliminate human contact in
HE GROWTH THAT thelogis- continue to evolve into short distance deliveries. However, the debate on
tics industry has witnessed in faster deliveries and the ethics and regulation of using UAVs in India
lower costs thanks to has been rather strongly against their use.
technology
Distances and traffic can shape customer ex-
perience in last mile delivery. And route optimi-

the past few years has been sation changes that. It creates a smoother experi-

tremendous. The pandemic ence for the delivery partner as well.

have proved particularly challenging despite the increased vol- Data Analytics & AI: In Indian logistics, we often encounter

ume-share logistics has seen. The increase in demand has come theuniqueproblemofnon-standardisedaddresses.ApplyingAI

in from newer geographies, and newer channels, with brands andusingreversegeocodingtomapthemtomakedeliveriesfast-

needing to reach the end-customer directly. er and more accessible has been a major breakthrough. Analytics

Thisgrowthhasbeenaccompaniedbycustomerexpectations havefurtherenabledlogisticsplayerstoensurethebestallocation

on delivery speed and experience. Food, ecommerce, and even of fleet, which impacts delivery speed and customer delight.

B2B logistics continue to evolve into faster deliveries and lower AI and ML tools are also being used to integrate workflows

costs. A lasrge chunk of this evolution is powered by technology. usingintuitiveAPIsandhavingAIconfigurethebackendensur-

The level of accuracy we’re able to witness in demand forecasting ing a smoother customer experience.

and route optimisation and the simplification of multi- Elastic logistics: The demand
tiered tasks through intuitive APIs, is surges during sale periods, and a fast
growing share of ecommerce has led
SHADOWFAXunprecedented to say the least.
In the past couple of years, we’ve to a greater need for logistics solu-
tions that can be scaled up and down
TECHNOLOGIESexperienced game-changing develop- with minimal lead times. The pandemic year
forced the supply chain to come up with alternatives to large-
ments particularly in these areas:
Warehousing: The steady growth

of ecommerce and direct-to-consumer scale and fixed models in order to match the markets opening up,

brands has led to a shift from the large scale warehousing mod- and closing down as the number of cases fluctuated.

els. On-demand, small-format warehousing that is seamlessly While not purely a technological intervention, elastic logistics

integrated with different channels of demand, is driving growth isdefinitelydrivenbydataandsupportedbyautomations.Ithas

for a range of businesses. been an agent of growth and expansion for ecommerce and D2C

Demandforecasting: Drivenbymachinelearningandpow- brands in particular.

erful algorithms that analyse a fairly large quantum of data, de- It is an exciting time to be on the tech side of logistics and see

mand forecasting has been a harbinger of real change for ecom- how technologies are becoming instrumental in creating access

merce and direct-to-consumer brands in recent times. It has and expanding the reach of logistics solutions that are economi-

helped logistics networks prepare for surges and balance out cal, scalable, and that enable entrepreneurship across mediums

lean periods, and it has helped brands position their stocks in and geographies.

proximity to the key demand centres, massively reducing the

delivery time and creating unparalleled customer satisfaction. The author is co-founder & CTO, Shadowfax Technologies

38 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

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SUPPLY CHAIN Digitising
COLUMN the Indian
trucking
By Ramasubra- industry
maniam B

L Due to its fragmented Attur in Tamil Nadu, a trucker’s ability to
nature, road manage fueling along the way / at a far-off
OGISTICS IS ONE of the transportation in India destination, toll payments, returns loads,
suffers from poor price freight payments, etc. is limited and they,
realisation, higher costs therefore, are dependent on the driver and
and poor service levels few select intermediaries to get these things

largest industries across done through offline means. Creating a net-

the world and in India it work of all ecosystem players — fuel stations

contributes almost 14 per cent to the GDP. Road transporta- and oil marketing companies, toll booths, brokers, shippers,

tion is a significant component, with almost 45 per cent share banks and unifying all on to a digital platform will power the

of the overall logistics spend in the country. entire ecosystem leading to transparency and ease of doing

However, the road transportation sector is highly frag- business, eventually resulting in consolidation and the sector

mented on both demand and supply sides (not just in India getting more and more organised.

but across the world) and has negligible technology penetra-

tion, leading to a long chain with multiple intermediaries. EASIER SAID THAN DONE

This is eventually resulting in information asymmetry, poor However, digitising a trucker in our country who has been

price realisation for truckers and higher costs and poor ser- conducting the business in the most

vice levels for shippers. BLACKBUCK traditional way possible for decades is
With low entry barriers on the supply easier said than done. The reach to the
truckers covering a landscape of more
side and on the other hand, most of the
shippers following a cost-sensitive ap- than 600 districts in India, then per-
proach, this sector has been a challeng- suasion and education to shift them

ing one to disrupt for long. to digital means, replicating the trust (that they have

built with their offline partners over decades) and taking

POISED FOR A TRANSFORMATION it notches above with a far-reaching network digitally and

However, with fast-changing consumer behaviour and mod- simplifying all the steps involved, addressing the language

ern trade + e-commerce and digitisation across businesses and skill barriers to make it easier for the truckers — all these

gaining momentum, this sector is poised to witness a para- are challenging areas, also need investments but critical to

digm shift. Especially digitisation, buoyed by the increasing make digitisation happen in this sector.

smartphone penetration across all classes and geographies Of course, more steps are required to make the sector not just

and the central government mandated electronic tolling, efficientbuthealthyaswellandwithmanylogisticsplayersdoing

e-way bills and other initiatives, will certainly accelerate the their bit to address these challenges and encouraging policy

transformation of this sector. interventions by the government, we are possibly heralding the

Consider the case of intercity trucking — an estimated 3.5 most defining period for the trucking sector in India!

million-plus trucks are on the roads owned by more than 1.5

million owners mostly located in remote villages. Sitting in The author Co-founder & COO,
a remote location such as Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan or BlackBuck

40 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

RECOGNISING THE BEST IN WELLBEING #WellbeingSummit

PRESENTS SEPTEMBER

SECOND EDITION 2021

WELLBEING N O M I NAT E N OW
bit.ly/BWWBSA2020
SUMMIT & AWARDS 2020

IN A S S O C IAT IO N W ITH

JURY CHAIR JURY MEMBERS

Prof. Dr. N.K Chadha Durgesh Sharma

President, International Career Coach Association, USA Managing Director
President, India Career Development Association CBC Corporation India
President, Indian Association of Positive Psychology
Former Professor & Head, Department of Psychology
University of Delhi

Sangita Reddy Paul Dupuis Leena Munjal Bala Kishore

Joint Managing Director Managing Director & CEO, Chief Digital Officer Author
Apollo Hospitals Enterprises Randstad India Sears Holdings Corporation How to Improve
Author, Rule of 5 Your Concentration
President, FICCI

Deanne Panday Dr Shikha Sharma Kavita Devgan Dr. J.L. Meena Bhupendra Kumar Rana

Fitness Expert & Renowned Nutritionist & Founder Author, Acclaimed Nutritionist & General Manager Founding CEO
Health Coach Dr Shikha’s Nutri Health Holistic health Consultant Hospital Networking & Quality Assurance Quality & Accreditation Institute

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SUPPLY CHAIN Building an
COLUMN integrated
supply
By Rajesh chain
Ramakrishnan

T The confectionery cent month-on-month growth since February
segment was forced 2020. We attribute this growth to the robust
HE CONFECTIONERY cat- to look at the online supply chain that we have been able to develop
egory in India, which is one channel much more in the last 14 months, from order processing
aggressively in the wake and inventory management to tracking and
of the pandemic delivery. Some of our efforts include:

of the widest distributed SUPPLY CHAIN SEGMENTATION

categories, has largely been Through demand review, analysis and product

an impulse driven category. It has traditionally not had a very & channel specific proactive planning, we have been able to

highlevelofsalienceinthee-commercechannel,whichhaslim- ensure differentiated strategy for each platform. This helped us

itedthein-homestockingandin-homeconsumption.However, in ensuring our readiness for timely new launches and improve

the pandemic resulted in the temporary shutting down of retail our response mechanism. With the channel specific differenti-

stores, and this resulted in us exploring the online channel in a atedapproach,westartedthereductionandmergingofmultiple

much more aggressive manner. depot locations optimize of warehouses and service points.

As the market leader in the confectionery industry, Perfetti

van Melle has always endeavored to understand and anticipate LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY

the needs of the consumer and play a more meaningful role in Demand planning: At PVMI, we have leveraged technology to

their lives. To ensure the visibility and availability of our products, aid us in predictive sales analytics using statistical

we crafted a holistic e-commerce strategy which in- forecasting methods through modeler and de-
cluded having the right portfolio, creat- mand forecasting tools. With enhanced organi-
zation wide focus on improving the accuracy,
PERFETTIing consumer relevant communication we have been able to improve the accuracies by

on the right platforms, and developing 20-25% vs pre COVID-19 levels.
Distribution planning: We use dedicated
VAN MELLEan integrated supply chain to reach our
tools and algorithms customized for PVMI
products at the right time to the right place. requirements to help us in providing an op-
Some of the key initiatives include: timum distribution plan from our 3 main go-

INDIABuilding category specific occasions like

Halloween and Valentine’s Day; owning rel-

evant platform-led events; and consumer downs to 29 depots across India. This helps us in robust replen-

relevantnewproductinnovations,packaging innovations at ishment and timely delivery of stocks to the depots.

upgraded price points. Storage and handling: Due diligence on storage and handling

Wecreatedexcitingpropositionstodriveshoppers’awareness of high value packs is extremely critical for our operations and

aboutthepresenceofthecategoryacrossplatforms.Bypartner- products. As most of our products have a 12-month shelf life, we

ing with ecommerce marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart, Big- ensure that monthly stock takes and stock movement to other

Basket,GrofersandMilkBasket,PVMInotonlyaddedtoitstop codes gets done on a regular basis to plan future production.

line but also created saliency for the category. The business saw

46 per cent increase in the purchase of products through ecom- The author is Managing Director,
merce channels as opposed to 2019 and the brand has seen 13 per Perfetti van Melle India

42 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021



SUPPLY CHAIN A slew of new-age, tech-
enabled logistic players
NEW AGE are riding on the booming
DELIVERY e-Commerce and Direct-
to-Consumer businesses
while re-writing the rules of
logistics and supply-chain
management
By Navneel Maji

NEW AGE

BOOMDELIVERY
T HE PANDEMIC-INDUCED LOCKDOWN not only Whilethesee-logisticcompanieswork
forced the adoption of e-behaviour for consumers in the background, several of the D2C
(more time spent online—education, shopping, bank- playershavebecomerecognisablebrands
ing, groceries, gaming, video, and what not) it also for the new-gen online shoppers. Brands
accelerated the adoption of machine learning and ar- like Wow Skin Science, Mama Earth,
tificial intelligence in the supply chain management in Lenskart, SUGAR Cosmetics, BoAT,
the past 18-months. And that perhaps is the key reason Go Noise, Licious, and Country Delight,
amongothersareclockingmindboggling
behind the boom in e-commerce transactions and the growth thanks to the e-logistics players
who are silently enabling a boom in
growth of Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) companies in D2C, e-commerce and Internet-based
businesses.
the past two years. How? We will just explain.
Before we get to the operational
Chancesareyoumayormaynothaveheardthefollowingnames—Pickrr,ClickPost, advantages of the e-logistic players, it is
important to understand how the D2C
Shiprocket,Shyplite,Ezyslips,Delhivery,orEshopbox.Haveyou?Thesearethenew-age, companies work in tandem with the
e-logistic companies.
tech-enabled logistics and delivery platforms behind the rapid growth of e-commerce

and D2C companies today, say experts. These ventures are connecting the e-shoppers

toe-businessesmuchmoreefficiently,quickly,andatfarlessercoststhanthetraditional

logistic players thanks to machine learning, AI algorithm and various other modern

technologies

44 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

HOW DOES IT WORK? who are actively engaging with D2C E-LOGISTIC BOOM
to order cosmetics, clothing, gadgets,
There are more than 800 of these appliances, consumables to everything Take the logistics start-up Pickrr for
Direct-to-Consumer or D2C companies possible. They shop instantly and then example. It started as a logistics service
actively operating in the country today. demandthespoilsoftheirshoppingeven provider only to evolve into a “growth
Of these, over 100 D2C players have quickly. In fact, today’s e-shopper wants enabler” for D2C brands. Here we are
together raised in excess of $ 2 billion in the products delivered within hours usingPickrrasanexampletoexplainhow
the past couple of years alone. They sell (between4hoursto24hours;sometimes the process works.
virtually (through their website or app) a little more) and not in weeks. This
and also through popular e-commerce is made possible by e-logistic players Says, Rhitiman Majumder, Pickrr’s
websites like Amazon, Flipkart, etc. like Pickrr, Shiprocket, Eshopbox, and Co-Founder and CEO: “Pickrr has
Often, they have no physical stores. But others. served D2C brands to reduce their RTO
they tend to deliver to all major cities (return-to-origin) rates by 3-4 per cent
and towns. How? In comes these new- Well, the lockdown-induced closure and their overall logistics costs by 20-
age, tech-enabled logistics and delivery of physical stores post-pandemic 30 per cent.” This is very important to
platforms. contributed much to the mushrooming better understand their success stories.
of D2C companies and in turn their RTOisaboutsendingaproductfromthe
Of the 640 million Internet users partners, the e-logistic players. customer back to the seller’s address on
in India, nearly half are millennials request by the customer (if the customer

Photographs by Shutterstock 45 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

SUPPLY CHAIN

NEW AGE
DELIVERY

is not satisfied or products fail to fulfill ofe-shoppingistheeaseofbuyingandthe and 50-plus channel partners and ship
thepromiseasadvertisedorforanyother ease of returns. through 20-plus logistics providers
reasons). The costs involved to bring directly. In fact, Pickrr claims to be India’s
the product to the customer and then Pickrr’s platform helps e-commerce firstvirtualcourierservicefore-commerce
back on return-order are now losses to businesses simplify shipping and/or sellers, resellers, online sellers, SMEs
the seller. But it is an extremely crucial the returns. It dispatches, manages and and D2C brands who want a seamless
aspect of e-shopping today—buying tracksorders(orreturns)throughasingle shipping experience.
quickly, trying/sampling the product, dashboard.Itworkswithleadingshipping
and its return. A large part of the success partnersacrossIndialikeBlueDart,Ecom Another example is Gurgaon-based
Express, DTDC, FedEx, Delhivery, India Eshopbox. It caters to more than 50 D2C
high growth brands like Canon, Being
Post,Shadowfaxamongothers. Human,Bioworld,andothers.Ithasbeen
Pickrr is backed by global working to provide a full-service solution
impact investors like Omidyar to store inventory at warehouses near
Networks, Guild Capital, customersandshiporderswithimproved
Marquee angels, and global transittimesandshippingcosts.Inreturn
businessveterans.Thecompany for the optimisation, Eshopbox charges a
says its SaaS (Software as a monthlysubscriptionfeeofRs15,000for
Service)platformactsasavirtual allowingusageofitsplatformandservices
logistics arm for its clients and inclusive of order processing and storage
recommends the most efficient charges.Thereturnoninvestmentislikely
delivery partner that can take togrowoncemorebrandscomeonboard.
care of all the hassles including Currently,Eshopboxisclockinganannual
picking up the product and recurring revenue (ARR) upwards of $3
shipping it to any destination. million.
Pickrr’sautomatedsolutionslet
sellersintegrateseamlesslywith “Traditionalsupplychainmanagement
their online shops on Shopify, is rapidly becoming obsolete,” says
WooCommerce, Amazon Mayur Karwa, Co-Founder & Director,
Eshopbox because more supply chain
“With relaxed FDI regulations and a favourable functions are quickly getting automated.
regulatory environment, ease of starting a “Companies must either invest or
business is further attracting the investor outsource in order to move ahead,” he
community to fund these innovative startups” adds. Access to digital tools provide
Harsha Razdan, Partner and Head, Consumer visibility into real-time supply chain data
Markets and Internet Business, KPMG in India and automating end-to-end workflows
dramaticallyreducestheneedforhuman

46 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021

CELEBRATING #YoungEntrepreneur
INDIA'S MOST
JURY MEMBERS
ENTERPRISING
YOUNG LEADERS

SEPTEMBER, 2021

NOMINATE NOW

bit.ly/BWYESA2021

Last Date to Nominate
August 30, 2021

Sandeep Naik Sanjeev Aggarwal Anupriya Acharya Prashanth Prakash

Managing Director Founder & Chief Executive Officer Partner

Head of India and Asia Pacific Senior Managing Director South Asia Accel Partners

General Atlantic Helion PUBLICIS GROUPE

Preeti Vyas Anup Jain Rajesh Srivastava Dr Annurag Batra

Chairwoman & Managing Partner Chairman and Managing Director Chairman & Editor-In-Chief

Chief Creative Officer Orios Venture Partners Rabo Equity Advisors BW Businessworld &

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PRESENTS

JURY CHAIR

Sudhir Sethi

Founder & Chairman
Chiratae Ventures India Advisors

2021

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

For Nominations: For more Information: Devika Kundu Sengupta
[email protected]
Afifa Sheikh Nitish Rampal +91 98716 54991
afi[email protected] [email protected]
+91 88609 77503 +91 98189 89815

SUPPLY CHAIN duration, automating the packing-to- personal care brand Super Smelly
NEW AGE pickup-to-delivery while showcasing recordedasharpincreaseinrevenueand
DELIVERY everythinginareal-timedashboard.This a whopping growth of 174 per cent in the
obviously gives these e-delivery players a firsttwoquartersof2020. Widelyknown
intervention, Karwa adds. significant upper hand. And everyone D2C name, Mamaearth, recently closed
Agrees Harsha Razdan, Partner and gains – the consumer gets their favourite a $50 million funding, valuing it at $730
products delivered quickly, eTailers millionandthusbecomingoneofthemost
Head, Consumer Markets and Internet can track and analyse demand, supply, valued new-age D2C brands. Ayurveda
Business, KPMG in India. “The D2C feedback, etc. And it becomes a win-win brand Upakarma Ayurveda, clocked a
model has become a model adopted for all. 100 per cent YOY rise in turnover for the
by many companies to address the past three years are among scores of such
changing consumer demands during Shiprocket is another such player mega-growth story in the D2C segment
Covid-19; with a demand surge for D2C clocking over 214 per cent year-on- powered by the new-age virtual logistics
models, companies across the globe are year (YoY) increase in the number of and supply-chain management start-up
rushingtostreamlinetheirsupplychains D2C sellers on its platform. In fact, firms.
Shiprocket claims a 107 per cent
increase in YOY volume of shipments. Digital India initiatives, roll out and
“As opposed to February 2020, there expansion of GST network, and soon

“Companies must either invest or outsource to
get access to digital tools that provide visibility
into real-time supply chain data, automating
end-to-end workflows and dramatically
reducing the need for human intervention.”
Mayur Karwa, Co-Founder & Director, Eshopbox

to secure immediate operations,” says was more than a 273 per cent increase to be out National Logistics Policy are
Razdan. One of the causes of inefficiency in the volume of shipments done YOY some of the key developments that will
in the traditional supply chain is having by D2C women sellers. Shiprocket further fuel growth. “With relaxed FDI
differentbusinessunitsinthelinearchain also observed that a majority of the regulations and a favourable regulatory
that are making decisions in isolation. D2C orders came in through social environment,easeofstartingabusinessis
Lack of centralised data further adds to media platforms including Facebook, furtherattractingtheinvestorcommunity
their inefficiencies. WhatsApp, and Instagram,” says Saahil tofundtheseinnovativestartups,”Razdan
Goel, CEO & Co-Founder, Shiprocket. of KPMG adds.
In comes these new-age, tech- “The Shiprocket’s platform currently
enabled smart e-logistics start-ups. has more than one lakh sellers onboard In fact, Delhivery, one of the leading
Their AI-backed algorithm isolates and and processes over five million e-logistic companies is set to launch its
decentralises units and removes them shipments per month.” initial public offering (IPO). Experts peg
from the entire supply-chain equation its valuation at $4 billion as it plans to
and brings everything in order—from D2C GROWTH PROSPECTS offload a 10-15 per cent stake for around
order getting placed online, locating By relying on the D2C business model, $500-600 million (roughly Rs 3,500-
shipments, timing the shortest delivery Rs 4,200 crore). In fact, most of the
listed logistic companies have seen a big
uptickintheirstockpricesrecentlydueto
growing investor interest.

The smart e-enabled new-age
tech logistics, shipping and data
management logistics start-ups are
the next big thing for sure. With the
resounding success of the D2C category,
more players would be encouraged to
seek alliances with these start-ups in
order to multiply revenue.

48 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021



SUPPLY CHAIN Value
COLUMN Creation in
Procurement
By Amandeep
Singh Bhan

H Procurement suppliers and customers to ensure smooth and
organisations in India transparent flow of value. A case study on the
ERE IS THE BIGGEST sup- will have to assume value that can be unlocked through such col-
ply chain paradox. Any a much bigger role in laboration is the COWIN platform for Covid-19
value engineering in a vaccination which is serving as an integrated
post-pandemic world digital public good for vaccine makers, hospi-
tals, cold chains, and logistics partners involved
in the exercise.

consignment remains sta-

tionary for 80 per cent of the Enabling low-cost innovation by sourcing

time in the supply chain journey. When a consignment remains mission critical components

motionless,itappearsnotinthemarketwheretheendcustomer Procurement organisations will have to leverage sourcing of

iswaitingtoaccessit,butindifferentwarehousesanddataman- components and sub-assemblies to make low-cost innovation a

agementsystems. ThisistheKeynesian“unintendedaccumula- reality.Therolloutoflow-costinnovativegoodshasthepotential

tionofinventories”thathasnegativeconsequencesoncashflow, to invite the interest of large OEMs to make in India for the rest

cash conversion cycles, and inflation of warehousing real estate of the world. A great example of such affordable innovation is

rentals and logistics. It also results in wastage of utility and lost the low cost air ventilator recently developed by the IIT Kan-

sales opportunities. pur consortium; a life-saving product for patients in the face of

Covid-19.

Ease of doing business through the lens of procurement agil-

ity in the supply chain MOGLIX Enabling agile infrastructure creation at scale
One of the chief reasons behind this inertia Thirty-five per cent of infrastructure projects in India
is to be found in the digital divide facing pro- incur cost overruns. Securing on-time procurement
curement. Typically procurement organisa- of materials, machine tools, and consumables will be

tions that operate with offline processes take critical to ensuring ontime completion of infra project targets.

anywhere between two to three hours to complete a procurement A major success story that should inspire EPC companies

transaction, whereas those that operate with digital procure- to embrace digital transformation of procurement to fast

ment platforms take three to five minutes. track infra projects is the fast completion of 217 projects over

Coming out of the pandemic procurement organisations in the last year under the auspices of the National Infrastructure

Indiawillhavetoassumeamuchbiggerroleinvalueengineering Pipeline.

than being caught up in routine tasks. These include: collabora-

tion across the end-to-end value chain; enabling low-cost inno- The future of supply chain and procurement in India

vation; and ensuring faster completion of industrial projects. Procurement systems create a favourable feedback loop that

percolates to the downstream supply chain by enabling faster go-to-

End-to-end collaboration across value chain market.Easeofprocurementwillbeintegraltounlockingdemandat

There are several industries where more than 50per cent of the alllevelsinthesupplychainforenablingfasterreboundofeconomic

total value of the goods is sourced from suppliers. Procurement growth.

organisations will have to ensure seamless integration of their

data systems of their own end-to-end processes with those of The author Senior Vice President, Moglix

50 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 02 - 16 August 2021