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Another behemoth is entering the fray. So we have Walmart owned Flipkart, Facebook/Whatsapp backed Reliance JioMart & Amazon in a three way battle. And now TATA is joining in. Interesting times ahead :
Tata group poised to take on RIL, Amazon; you could soon order ‘everything’ using Tata super app
By ET Now
Updated Aug 24, 2020 | 09:44 IST
Tata group is all set to roll out a super app, which will put the salt-to-software conglomerate in competition with billionaire Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL and US-based online retail titan Amazon.
File photo: N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons
New Delhi: The Tata group is reportedly poised to unveil a “super app” by December or early next year, which will put the conglomerate in competition with rivals Amazon and Reliance Industries (RIL) in India—the world’s fastest growing e-commerce market.
The super app will provide food and grocery ordering, fashion and lifestyle, consumer durables, insurance and financial services, healthcare and bill payments. N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons—the holding company of the $113-billion group—told the Financial Times: “It will be a super app, a lot of apps in apps and so on . . . We have a very big opportunity.”
The development assumes significance following Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL raised $20 billion from private-equity firms and leading technology behemoths Facebook and Google in an attempt to expand its digital services arm Jio’s base. Worth mentioning here is that as per a Goldman Sachs May report, the online rerail will account for 2.5 per cent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, growing 15 times and touching $300 billion.
“The Tata Group, depending upon how you count, touches several hundred millions of consumers in India, if you take consumers who are walking in everyday into a Tata facility … How do we give a simple online experience connecting all of this, and at the same time a beautiful omnichannel experience? . . . That is the vision,” the London-based business daily quoted Chandrasekaran as saying.
At present, the details of Tata Group’s super app are not available. The Tata Group, which manages fashion shopping app Tata CLiQ, grocery e-store StarQuik and online electronics platform Croma, is believed to offer a bouquet of products and services within the app.
Last year, the salt-to-software conglomerate had launched a new entity to incubate new-age digital business called Tata Digital. Several news reports mentioned that Chandrasekaran had stated Tata Sons would infuse Rs 1,000 crore in the new vertical.
Super apps are popular in China where digital platforms owned by Tencent, Alibaba and Meituan-Dianping provided multiple products and services such as e-commerce, travel bookings, food delivery and ride bookings all within the same app. Many analysts are of the view that the concept of the super app is still at a nascent stage in India. Currently, a majority of online shoppers still use different apps across travel, food delivery and e-commerce other sectors.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that RIL and Facebook were toying with the idea of unveiling a multipurpose app, on the lines of Chinese super-app WeChat, by leveraging the WhatsApp platform and user base. The plan was to roll out a super app where buyers users would also be able to purchase staples through Reliance Retail stores, or shop at ajio.com, or make payments using JioMoney.
www.timesnownews.com
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Tata group poised to take on RIL, Amazon; you could soon order ‘everything’ using Tata super app
By ET Now
Updated Aug 24, 2020 | 09:44 IST
Tata group is all set to roll out a super app, which will put the salt-to-software conglomerate in competition with billionaire Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL and US-based online retail titan Amazon.
File photo: N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons
New Delhi: The Tata group is reportedly poised to unveil a “super app” by December or early next year, which will put the conglomerate in competition with rivals Amazon and Reliance Industries (RIL) in India—the world’s fastest growing e-commerce market.
The super app will provide food and grocery ordering, fashion and lifestyle, consumer durables, insurance and financial services, healthcare and bill payments. N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons—the holding company of the $113-billion group—told the Financial Times: “It will be a super app, a lot of apps in apps and so on . . . We have a very big opportunity.”
The development assumes significance following Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL raised $20 billion from private-equity firms and leading technology behemoths Facebook and Google in an attempt to expand its digital services arm Jio’s base. Worth mentioning here is that as per a Goldman Sachs May report, the online rerail will account for 2.5 per cent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, growing 15 times and touching $300 billion.
“The Tata Group, depending upon how you count, touches several hundred millions of consumers in India, if you take consumers who are walking in everyday into a Tata facility … How do we give a simple online experience connecting all of this, and at the same time a beautiful omnichannel experience? . . . That is the vision,” the London-based business daily quoted Chandrasekaran as saying.
At present, the details of Tata Group’s super app are not available. The Tata Group, which manages fashion shopping app Tata CLiQ, grocery e-store StarQuik and online electronics platform Croma, is believed to offer a bouquet of products and services within the app.
Last year, the salt-to-software conglomerate had launched a new entity to incubate new-age digital business called Tata Digital. Several news reports mentioned that Chandrasekaran had stated Tata Sons would infuse Rs 1,000 crore in the new vertical.
Super apps are popular in China where digital platforms owned by Tencent, Alibaba and Meituan-Dianping provided multiple products and services such as e-commerce, travel bookings, food delivery and ride bookings all within the same app. Many analysts are of the view that the concept of the super app is still at a nascent stage in India. Currently, a majority of online shoppers still use different apps across travel, food delivery and e-commerce other sectors.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that RIL and Facebook were toying with the idea of unveiling a multipurpose app, on the lines of Chinese super-app WeChat, by leveraging the WhatsApp platform and user base. The plan was to roll out a super app where buyers users would also be able to purchase staples through Reliance Retail stores, or shop at ajio.com, or make payments using JioMoney.
Tata group poised to take on RIL, Amazon; you could soon order ‘everything’ using Tata super app
Tata group is all set to roll out a super app, which will put the salt-to-software conglomerate in competition with billionaire Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL and US-based online retail titan Amazon.
Boost To Make In India: Govt Plans To Offer Incentives To BHEL, L&T And Others For Manufacturing Import Substitutes
by IANS
Aug 19, 2020 03:21 PM
View attachment 17321
BHEL logo (Wikipedia)
The government proposes to incentivise operations of domestic equipment manufacturers such as BHEL, L&T, and Bharat Forge that results in manufacture of equipment that is currently being imported, particularly from countries such as China. Official sources said that a productivity-linked incentive (PLI) scheme involving phased manufacturing programme is being finalised for certain equipment used by the power sector. Once implemented, this would provide incentives to domestic companies on sales of equipment manufactured by them that is currently being imported.
In the electronics sector, the government already has a PLI scheme that extends an incentive of 4 to 6 per cent on incremental sales (over base year) of goods manufactured in India and covered under target segments.
Companies like BHEL have been identified for manufacture of equipment such as silicon solar wafers required for making solar cells that is largely imported in the country from China. Also, the company would scale up production of cold rolled grain oriented silicon (CRGO) steel, which is also largely imported from countries such as China, Korea and Japan. CRGO steel is used to manufacture the core of generators and transformers – a key power component that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy.
Similarly, new manufacturing lines of L&T based on import substitution would also be incentivised and so for other domestic equipment makers.
On its part, ministry of power proposes EA to support import substitution plan by creating a dedicated wing that will solely look at areas where domestic manufacturing needs to be stepped up as part of localisation of items currently being imported.
In the power sector, imports constitute 604 items, 392 of which are also made locally. Of the balance, local alternatives are available for 102 items, leaving 101 items that need to be made locally. It is for manufacture of these items, that the government would incentivise operations of Indian companies, companies registered in India and having majority beneficial ownership of an Indian or run by an Indian CEO.
In 2018-19, India’s total imports in conventional power sector were to the tune of Rs 75,000 crore out of which imports from China stood at over Rs 21,000 crore. In renewable segment, imports stood at $2.9 billion in FY19 with close to 70 per cent from China.
Along with import substitution for main power equipment, the PLI scheme for power sector is also expected to cover manufacture of solar cells and modules, 75 per cent of which are currently imported from China.
The PLIs for several sectors would be ready before the end of the 2020. The existing PLI for mobile manufacturing offers incentives to the tune of 4-6 per cent for incremental investment and sales over a period of five years to companies. Similar schemes could be worked out for new sectors but the quantum of benefit would depend on capital intensity of an industry.
Boost To Make In India: Govt Plans To Offer Incentives To BHEL, L&T And Others For Manufacturing Import Substitutes
The government proposes to incentivise operations of domestic equipment manufacturers such as BHEL, L&T, and Bharat Forge that results in manufacture of equipment that is currently being imported, particularly from countries such as Chinaswarajyamag.com
This is the measure I have been recommending for quite some time. Give big concession to those items which are imported. This will strengthen indigenization and check import. It will result into boost in economomy which will lead to strengthening of INR against USD which will help in achieving 5 tr USD economomy target probably by 2024.
Without fundamental restructuring these services companies won't be giving us any innovative products. They have no expertise in this. Better acquire some promising startup and start. Super app ? Give a normal one first.Another behemoth is entering the fray. So we have Walmart owned Flipkart, Facebook/Whatsapp backed Reliance JioMart & Amazon in a three way battle. And now TATA is joining in. Interesting times ahead :
Tata group poised to take on RIL, Amazon; you could soon order ‘everything’ using Tata super app
By ET Now
Updated Aug 24, 2020 | 09:44 IST
Tata group is all set to roll out a super app, which will put the salt-to-software conglomerate in competition with billionaire Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL and US-based online retail titan Amazon.
View attachment 17401
File photo: N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons
New Delhi: The Tata group is reportedly poised to unveil a “super app” by December or early next year, which will put the conglomerate in competition with rivals Amazon and Reliance Industries (RIL) in India—the world’s fastest growing e-commerce market.
The super app will provide food and grocery ordering, fashion and lifestyle, consumer durables, insurance and financial services, healthcare and bill payments. N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons—the holding company of the $113-billion group—told the Financial Times: “It will be a super app, a lot of apps in apps and so on . . . We have a very big opportunity.”
The development assumes significance following Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL raised $20 billion from private-equity firms and leading technology behemoths Facebook and Google in an attempt to expand its digital services arm Jio’s base. Worth mentioning here is that as per a Goldman Sachs May report, the online rerail will account for 2.5 per cent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, growing 15 times and touching $300 billion.
“The Tata Group, depending upon how you count, touches several hundred millions of consumers in India, if you take consumers who are walking in everyday into a Tata facility … How do we give a simple online experience connecting all of this, and at the same time a beautiful omnichannel experience? . . . That is the vision,” the London-based business daily quoted Chandrasekaran as saying.
At present, the details of Tata Group’s super app are not available. The Tata Group, which manages fashion shopping app Tata CLiQ, grocery e-store StarQuik and online electronics platform Croma, is believed to offer a bouquet of products and services within the app.
Last year, the salt-to-software conglomerate had launched a new entity to incubate new-age digital business called Tata Digital. Several news reports mentioned that Chandrasekaran had stated Tata Sons would infuse Rs 1,000 crore in the new vertical.
Super apps are popular in China where digital platforms owned by Tencent, Alibaba and Meituan-Dianping provided multiple products and services such as e-commerce, travel bookings, food delivery and ride bookings all within the same app. Many analysts are of the view that the concept of the super app is still at a nascent stage in India. Currently, a majority of online shoppers still use different apps across travel, food delivery and e-commerce other sectors.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that RIL and Facebook were toying with the idea of unveiling a multipurpose app, on the lines of Chinese super-app WeChat, by leveraging the WhatsApp platform and user base. The plan was to roll out a super app where buyers users would also be able to purchase staples through Reliance Retail stores, or shop at ajio.com, or make payments using JioMoney.
.Tata group poised to take on RIL, Amazon; you could soon order ‘everything’ using Tata super app
Tata group is all set to roll out a super app, which will put the salt-to-software conglomerate in competition with billionaire Mukesh Ambani-controlled RIL and US-based online retail titan Amazon.
Apple to launch online store in India in September
Tech giant Apple is all set to launch its first online store in India next month, Bloomberg reported. This would officially mark its first-party presence in the country, with the Mumbai store still under development and set to debut in 2021. Currently, the iPhone maker sells its products in India via third-party sellers.
This development follows the government's decision last year to ease foreign investment rules in sectors like coal mining, contract manufacturing and single-brand retail trading. As part of the relaxations, the Centre had said that retail trading through e-commerce can be undertaken prior to opening of brick and mortar stores, subject to the condition that companies open brick and mortar stores within two years from date of start of online retail.
India being one of the biggest smartphone markets in the world, several companies including Apple have had their eyes set on the opportunities available here.
The report noted that online store will be up and running in time for the festive season and Diwali. The company's plan to launch its online store in India between January and March was disrupted due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Additionally, the Silicon Valley tech major is also looking to set up a second brick-and-mortar store in India's IT city Bengaluru. The company's outlet at the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai is set to be its first physical store in India.
www.moneycontrol.com
Tech giant Apple is all set to launch its first online store in India next month, Bloomberg reported. This would officially mark its first-party presence in the country, with the Mumbai store still under development and set to debut in 2021. Currently, the iPhone maker sells its products in India via third-party sellers.
This development follows the government's decision last year to ease foreign investment rules in sectors like coal mining, contract manufacturing and single-brand retail trading. As part of the relaxations, the Centre had said that retail trading through e-commerce can be undertaken prior to opening of brick and mortar stores, subject to the condition that companies open brick and mortar stores within two years from date of start of online retail.
India being one of the biggest smartphone markets in the world, several companies including Apple have had their eyes set on the opportunities available here.
The report noted that online store will be up and running in time for the festive season and Diwali. The company's plan to launch its online store in India between January and March was disrupted due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Additionally, the Silicon Valley tech major is also looking to set up a second brick-and-mortar store in India's IT city Bengaluru. The company's outlet at the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai is set to be its first physical store in India.
Apple to launch online store in India in September: Report
This would officially mark Apple's first-party presence in India, with the Mumbai store still under development and set to debut only in 2021.
No Rs 2,000 note printed in FY20; Rs 500 in circulation sharply increases
The number and value of Rs 2,000 notes in circulation declined during the year ended March 2020, even as the Rs 500 notes in circulation sharply increased, as per the RBI’s Annual Report. It disclosed that Rs 2,000 notes were not printed in 2019-20, while 1,200 crore pieces of Rs 500 notes were printed. The central bank printed 5 crore Rs 2,000 notes in 2018-19.
While 32,910 lakh pieces valued at Rs Rs 6,58,199 crore of Rs 2,000 notes were in circulation in March 2019, the numbers declined to 27,398 lakh and Rs 547,952 crore in March 2020. Now Rs 2,000 notes constitute only 22.6 per cent of the total value, as against 37.3 per cent in 2018 and 31.2 per cent in 2019.
On the other hand, the value of Rs 500 notes spurted sharply to Rs 14.72 lakh crore in March 2020 from Rs 10.75 lakh crore a year ago. The number of Rs 500 notes also rose from 215,176 lakh pieces in 2019 to 294,475 lakh pieces. Significantly, Rs 500 notes constitute 60.8 per cent of the total value of bank notes in India, up from 51 per cent last year.
“The indent of banknotes for 2019-20 was lower by 13.1 per cent than that of a year ago,” the RBI said. The supply of banknotes during 2019-20 was also lower by 23.3 per cent than in the previous year mainly due to the disruptions caused by the outbreak of COVID-19 and the ensuing lockdown, it said. The value and volume of notes in circulation increased by 14.7 per cent and 6.6 per cent, respectively, during FY20.
indianexpress.com
The number and value of Rs 2,000 notes in circulation declined during the year ended March 2020, even as the Rs 500 notes in circulation sharply increased, as per the RBI’s Annual Report. It disclosed that Rs 2,000 notes were not printed in 2019-20, while 1,200 crore pieces of Rs 500 notes were printed. The central bank printed 5 crore Rs 2,000 notes in 2018-19.
While 32,910 lakh pieces valued at Rs Rs 6,58,199 crore of Rs 2,000 notes were in circulation in March 2019, the numbers declined to 27,398 lakh and Rs 547,952 crore in March 2020. Now Rs 2,000 notes constitute only 22.6 per cent of the total value, as against 37.3 per cent in 2018 and 31.2 per cent in 2019.
On the other hand, the value of Rs 500 notes spurted sharply to Rs 14.72 lakh crore in March 2020 from Rs 10.75 lakh crore a year ago. The number of Rs 500 notes also rose from 215,176 lakh pieces in 2019 to 294,475 lakh pieces. Significantly, Rs 500 notes constitute 60.8 per cent of the total value of bank notes in India, up from 51 per cent last year.
“The indent of banknotes for 2019-20 was lower by 13.1 per cent than that of a year ago,” the RBI said. The supply of banknotes during 2019-20 was also lower by 23.3 per cent than in the previous year mainly due to the disruptions caused by the outbreak of COVID-19 and the ensuing lockdown, it said. The value and volume of notes in circulation increased by 14.7 per cent and 6.6 per cent, respectively, during FY20.
No Rs 2,000 note printed in FY20; Rs 500 in circulation sharply increases
It disclosed that Rs 2,000 notes were not printed in 2019-20, while 1,200 crore pieces of Rs 500 notes were printed. The central bank printed 5 crore Rs 2,000 notes in 2018-19.
indianexpress.com
One of the fundamental problems with our entrepreneur class. They still haven't got out of their wretched rent seeking mentality & these are the A listers we're talking about here.
Mahindra has no qualms signing a ToT with an Israeli start up ( presumably) while it's itself sits on huge resources that the Israeli start up can only fantasize about while Goenka is trying to make a virtue out of a necessity. This is the absolute state of our industrialists.
@Milspec ; @Nilgiri ; @Ashwin ; @Falcon ; @Bali78 ; @Gautam
NDHM will radically transform health care
With the launch of the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) on August 15, India has ushered in a new era of technology-enabled health care delivery. The prime minister’s vision of an Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) can only be realised by a “Swasth Bharat”, which, in turn, requires data integration and standardisation as critical health ecosystem enablers.
NDHM is built on the principles of ensuring greater inclusivity, efficiency and transparency in the health sector. For patients, the mission aims to simplify access to their records and enables them to share digitally-stored comprehensive health profiles with providers for treatment and follow-up purposes. Currently, people find it difficult to maintain long trails of paper-based records for health interventions like immunisation, especially over long periods of time, or when they move from one part of the country to another. Yet, these records are critical for monitoring an individual’s health status and ensuring continuity in treatment.
Undoubtedly, the availability of health care infrastructure and service delivery needs to be strengthened across the country. However, technological empowerment and digitisation can most certainly enable more effective and efficient utilisation of existing facilities. The days of people standing in long queues at health facilities carrying multiple medical reports will become a thing of the past in this digital- and patient-friendly ecosystem, empowered by world-class technologies. Access to patient records will now be just a click away for doctors.
Of course, participation and sharing of data are voluntary and all efforts have been made to keep the rights of citizens at the core of the mission’s design and objectives. It is understood that maintaining security, confidentiality and privacy of health-related information is vital. The mission’s health and data policies have, therefore, been formulated to ensure privacy and data security. The digital identity of patients will be shared with certified doctors only after they provide their informed consent. The NDHM architecture, by default, ensures that health data is encrypted, and that there is no opportunity for anyone to access the records or modify them without the explicit consent of the concerned individual. Patients can determine the time period for which they grant consent and can also revoke consent anytime they wish to.
Under NDHM, all Indians can get access to a unique and easy-to-remember health ID carrying details of their health and treatment history. Through this ID, individuals will not only be able to search for verified hospitals and laboratories, but can also evaluate the quality of services, on the basis of feedback shared by others. This feature can greatly enhance the accountability of health service providers as well as promote the delivery of high-quality services to patients.
In addition to individuals, all doctors, hospitals, diagnostic laboratories, and pharmacies will also be given a digital identity. This, in turn, will enable a single and standardised process for completing their identification, certification and audit formalities, allowing providers to focus on the actual delivery of health services, instead of expending time and resources on undertaking administrative procedures on multiple occasions through different channels. Of course, similar to the mechanism for patients, participation in NDHM will be voluntary for providers as well; however, needless to say, the more participation there is, the stronger and more integrated the health ecosystem will become. Participation for health care providers and establishments under NDHM will also be completely free of cost and the use of Aadhaar for health ID will not be mandated.
Apart from the multiple benefits for patients and health care providers, NDHM will offer services such as telemedicine as part of its digital suite. The utilisation of telemedicine has gone up significantly in India following the Covid-19 outbreak; however, there are opportunities to provide services for a range of health conditions by connecting doctors with citizens even in the most rural and remote parts of the country, beyond the Covid-19 era as well. By being able to access quality health care advice remotely, travel costs will be saved for patients in several parts of the country and ultimately help to reduce out-of-pocket expenditures, which currently account for nearly two-thirds of the total health expenditure in India.
NDHM is initially being rolled out in six Union territories — Chandigarh, Pondicherry, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Ladakh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep. The rest of the country will follow soon. Technology is a powerful disruptor that has revolutionised and accelerated the growth of a large number of sectors such as banking. Through the adoption of digital technologies, NDHM will empower the health sector to cater to the country’s large population in a far more efficient manner, through the standardisation of health records, the creation of a unique health identity, doorstep delivery of quality medicines at affordable prices as well as tele-consultations with verified medical professionals.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that with the launch of NDHM, we are witnessing a new beginning for India’s health sector. It is a visionary reform that has the potential to radically transform health care delivery in the country.
www.hindustantimes.com
With the launch of the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) on August 15, India has ushered in a new era of technology-enabled health care delivery. The prime minister’s vision of an Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) can only be realised by a “Swasth Bharat”, which, in turn, requires data integration and standardisation as critical health ecosystem enablers.
NDHM is built on the principles of ensuring greater inclusivity, efficiency and transparency in the health sector. For patients, the mission aims to simplify access to their records and enables them to share digitally-stored comprehensive health profiles with providers for treatment and follow-up purposes. Currently, people find it difficult to maintain long trails of paper-based records for health interventions like immunisation, especially over long periods of time, or when they move from one part of the country to another. Yet, these records are critical for monitoring an individual’s health status and ensuring continuity in treatment.
Undoubtedly, the availability of health care infrastructure and service delivery needs to be strengthened across the country. However, technological empowerment and digitisation can most certainly enable more effective and efficient utilisation of existing facilities. The days of people standing in long queues at health facilities carrying multiple medical reports will become a thing of the past in this digital- and patient-friendly ecosystem, empowered by world-class technologies. Access to patient records will now be just a click away for doctors.
Of course, participation and sharing of data are voluntary and all efforts have been made to keep the rights of citizens at the core of the mission’s design and objectives. It is understood that maintaining security, confidentiality and privacy of health-related information is vital. The mission’s health and data policies have, therefore, been formulated to ensure privacy and data security. The digital identity of patients will be shared with certified doctors only after they provide their informed consent. The NDHM architecture, by default, ensures that health data is encrypted, and that there is no opportunity for anyone to access the records or modify them without the explicit consent of the concerned individual. Patients can determine the time period for which they grant consent and can also revoke consent anytime they wish to.
Under NDHM, all Indians can get access to a unique and easy-to-remember health ID carrying details of their health and treatment history. Through this ID, individuals will not only be able to search for verified hospitals and laboratories, but can also evaluate the quality of services, on the basis of feedback shared by others. This feature can greatly enhance the accountability of health service providers as well as promote the delivery of high-quality services to patients.
In addition to individuals, all doctors, hospitals, diagnostic laboratories, and pharmacies will also be given a digital identity. This, in turn, will enable a single and standardised process for completing their identification, certification and audit formalities, allowing providers to focus on the actual delivery of health services, instead of expending time and resources on undertaking administrative procedures on multiple occasions through different channels. Of course, similar to the mechanism for patients, participation in NDHM will be voluntary for providers as well; however, needless to say, the more participation there is, the stronger and more integrated the health ecosystem will become. Participation for health care providers and establishments under NDHM will also be completely free of cost and the use of Aadhaar for health ID will not be mandated.
Apart from the multiple benefits for patients and health care providers, NDHM will offer services such as telemedicine as part of its digital suite. The utilisation of telemedicine has gone up significantly in India following the Covid-19 outbreak; however, there are opportunities to provide services for a range of health conditions by connecting doctors with citizens even in the most rural and remote parts of the country, beyond the Covid-19 era as well. By being able to access quality health care advice remotely, travel costs will be saved for patients in several parts of the country and ultimately help to reduce out-of-pocket expenditures, which currently account for nearly two-thirds of the total health expenditure in India.
NDHM is initially being rolled out in six Union territories — Chandigarh, Pondicherry, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Ladakh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep. The rest of the country will follow soon. Technology is a powerful disruptor that has revolutionised and accelerated the growth of a large number of sectors such as banking. Through the adoption of digital technologies, NDHM will empower the health sector to cater to the country’s large population in a far more efficient manner, through the standardisation of health records, the creation of a unique health identity, doorstep delivery of quality medicines at affordable prices as well as tele-consultations with verified medical professionals.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that with the launch of NDHM, we are witnessing a new beginning for India’s health sector. It is a visionary reform that has the potential to radically transform health care delivery in the country.
NDHM will radically transform health care
The creation of a digital health identity card will help patients, without compromising on their privacy
Disdain for ground-up engineering. Not just among elites, more and more I see this notion among educated common folks.
Future Enterprises board meets tomorrow to seal Reliance Retail deal
By Sagar Malviya, ET Bureau
Last Updated: Aug 28, 2020, 11:31 AM IST
The acquisition could give Reliance Retail sway over a network of nearly 1,800 stores & bring in Rs 26,000 crore in additional sales that will help RIL control more than a third of India’s organised retail market.
MUMBAI: The board of Future Enterprises will meet on Saturday to finalise the sale of the group’s retail business to Reliance Retail. The all-cash deal will see the Mukesh Ambani company take on Future Group’s debt and liabilities, and pick up a minority stake in the latter’s FMCG arm.
According to the terms of the deal, valued at about Rs 29,000-30,000 crore, Future Group will merge five listed units across grocery, apparel, supply chain and the consumer business into Future Enterprises Ltd (FEL), which currently houses the group’s retail back-end infrastructure. FEL will then hive off all retail assets and sell them to RIL as a single unit, according to two people familiar with the matter.
“Reliance will pay about Rs 13,000 crore to Future Group for clearing debt, another Rs 7,000 crore for its liabilities (including payments to landlords and vendors), and Rs 6,000-7,000 crore to the promoter group,” said one of the persons. In addition, Reliance will pick up 14-16% stake in Future Enterprises for 3,000 crore through a preferential allotment by the latter.
Future Enterprises will house the residual businesses, primarily the FMCG products of Future Consumer, textile mills and the insurance arm. FEL will have a long-term supply agreement with Reliance Retail for apparel and groceries. Reliance Industries and Future Group did not respond to queries till press time Thursday.
Leg Up for Reliance Retail in Groceries, Apparel
Shares of the flagship Future Retail rose 10% on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on Thursday while Future Consumer, Future Enterprise and Future Lifestyle shares surged 5% each. Founded in 1987 as the erstwhile Manz Wear and later Pantaloon Retail, the Future Group used aggressive pricing to become a retail juggernaut over the past two decades, but is now burdened with net debt of Rs 12,989 crore. Almost the entire shareholding of the promoters is pledged with lenders.
For Reliance Industries, which clocked revenues of Rs 1.63 lakh crore in the retail business last fiscal, the deal could mean a significant share in the groceries and apparel segments, where it hasn’t made a dent, as it has in electronics. “This will make Reliance the market leader by a long mile, putting pressure on rivals. In telecom and digital, it is hard to displace the market leader, but in retail, higher store count doesn’t guarantee success. Retail in India is still very fragmented or local, and having more successful stores matter instead of an absolute number of outlets,” said Devangshu Dutta, founder of Third Eyesight, a strategy consulting firm.
According to Euromonitor, India’s retail market size is about $635 billion (Rs 42 lakh crore) that is split 59:41 between grocery and other categories such as apparel, footwear and electronics.
Wide Control
The acquisition could give Reliance Retail sway over a network of nearly 1,800 stores and bring in Rs 26,000 crore in additional sales that will help Reliance Industries control more than a third of India’s organised retail market.
At present, Reliance Retail’s store network within the pure-play retail business is skewed towards the consumer electronics segment that accounts for nearly three-fourths of its overall store count and generates a fourth of the revenues at Rs 45,000 crore.
In comparison, the grocery segment with 800 stores makes up just 7% of its store network but accounts for a fifth of its sales at Rs 34,600 crore, indicating the potential clout that RIL could achieve by adding the grocery stores of Future Retail.
Fashion and lifestyle retail stores account for 20% of all Reliance Retail outlets but contribute 8% of overall sales at Rs 13,500 crore. Future Lifestyle manages about 400 stores across formats such as Central, Brand Factory and nearly three dozen apparel brands such as Lee Cooper, Clarks and Indigo Nation.
economictimes.indiatimes.com
By Sagar Malviya, ET Bureau
Last Updated: Aug 28, 2020, 11:31 AM IST
Synopsis
The acquisition could give Reliance Retail sway over a network of nearly 1,800 stores & bring in Rs 26,000 crore in additional sales that will help RIL control more than a third of India’s organised retail market.
MUMBAI: The board of Future Enterprises will meet on Saturday to finalise the sale of the group’s retail business to Reliance Retail. The all-cash deal will see the Mukesh Ambani company take on Future Group’s debt and liabilities, and pick up a minority stake in the latter’s FMCG arm.
According to the terms of the deal, valued at about Rs 29,000-30,000 crore, Future Group will merge five listed units across grocery, apparel, supply chain and the consumer business into Future Enterprises Ltd (FEL), which currently houses the group’s retail back-end infrastructure. FEL will then hive off all retail assets and sell them to RIL as a single unit, according to two people familiar with the matter.
“Reliance will pay about Rs 13,000 crore to Future Group for clearing debt, another Rs 7,000 crore for its liabilities (including payments to landlords and vendors), and Rs 6,000-7,000 crore to the promoter group,” said one of the persons. In addition, Reliance will pick up 14-16% stake in Future Enterprises for 3,000 crore through a preferential allotment by the latter.
Future Enterprises will house the residual businesses, primarily the FMCG products of Future Consumer, textile mills and the insurance arm. FEL will have a long-term supply agreement with Reliance Retail for apparel and groceries. Reliance Industries and Future Group did not respond to queries till press time Thursday.
Leg Up for Reliance Retail in Groceries, Apparel
Shares of the flagship Future Retail rose 10% on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on Thursday while Future Consumer, Future Enterprise and Future Lifestyle shares surged 5% each. Founded in 1987 as the erstwhile Manz Wear and later Pantaloon Retail, the Future Group used aggressive pricing to become a retail juggernaut over the past two decades, but is now burdened with net debt of Rs 12,989 crore. Almost the entire shareholding of the promoters is pledged with lenders.
For Reliance Industries, which clocked revenues of Rs 1.63 lakh crore in the retail business last fiscal, the deal could mean a significant share in the groceries and apparel segments, where it hasn’t made a dent, as it has in electronics. “This will make Reliance the market leader by a long mile, putting pressure on rivals. In telecom and digital, it is hard to displace the market leader, but in retail, higher store count doesn’t guarantee success. Retail in India is still very fragmented or local, and having more successful stores matter instead of an absolute number of outlets,” said Devangshu Dutta, founder of Third Eyesight, a strategy consulting firm.
According to Euromonitor, India’s retail market size is about $635 billion (Rs 42 lakh crore) that is split 59:41 between grocery and other categories such as apparel, footwear and electronics.
Wide Control
The acquisition could give Reliance Retail sway over a network of nearly 1,800 stores and bring in Rs 26,000 crore in additional sales that will help Reliance Industries control more than a third of India’s organised retail market.
At present, Reliance Retail’s store network within the pure-play retail business is skewed towards the consumer electronics segment that accounts for nearly three-fourths of its overall store count and generates a fourth of the revenues at Rs 45,000 crore.
In comparison, the grocery segment with 800 stores makes up just 7% of its store network but accounts for a fifth of its sales at Rs 34,600 crore, indicating the potential clout that RIL could achieve by adding the grocery stores of Future Retail.
Fashion and lifestyle retail stores account for 20% of all Reliance Retail outlets but contribute 8% of overall sales at Rs 13,500 crore. Future Lifestyle manages about 400 stores across formats such as Central, Brand Factory and nearly three dozen apparel brands such as Lee Cooper, Clarks and Indigo Nation.
Future Enterprises board meets tomorrow to seal Reliance Retail deal
The acquisition could give Reliance Retail sway over a network of nearly 1,800 stores & bring in Rs 26,000 crore in additional sales that will help RIL control more than a third of Indias organised retail market.
Rupee posts biggest weekly gain against US dollar in 20 months
The Indian rupee rose to its highest level in nearly six months on Friday, gaining for a third straight session as foreign investors piled into domestic equity markets. The partially convertible rupee ended today at 73.40 per dollar, up 0.6%. The rupee had closed at 73.81 in the previous session. During the session, the rupee rose to 73.28 earlier, its highest level since March 5.
During today's session, rupee traded in a range of 73.28 to 73.87 per US dollar.
The rupee rose nearly 2% for the week, its biggest weekly gain since the week ending December 21, 2018. The currency had been trading in a tight range until this week with traders saying that Reserve Bank of India was seen regularly buying dollars via state-run banks to prevent a sharp appreciation in the rupee.
"The rupee strengthened as nationalized banks stepped away from bid. While the central bank buys USD aggressively, it steps off from time to time to let the USD-INR pair align with the broad USD trend," said Abhishek Goenka, founder and CEO of IFA Global.
Rahul Gupta, Head of Research- Currency, Emkay Global Financial Services, said that sharp gains in the rupee-USD pair has been very "unexpected and traders are in shock, with every major support being tested."
"Initially, RBI was protecting 74.50 zone but its absence has led to a free fall. Globally, risk sentiments have strengthened on aggressive stimulus by Fed and there has been sharp inflows into local stocks," he said.
Dollar inflows into the stock market and gains in other Asian peers have helped fuel the rupee's strength. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have bought $6.2 billion worth of shares so far in this month. Indian stock market benchmark Sensex is up about 5% so far this month.
And analysts say that US Federal Reserve's recent policy shift could further boost inflows, said traders.
The RBI is however expected to keep intervening intermittently and continue building its forex reserves, which are up $60 billion at $535.35 billion since the start of the fiscal year in April. (With Agency Inputs)
www.livemint.com
The Indian rupee rose to its highest level in nearly six months on Friday, gaining for a third straight session as foreign investors piled into domestic equity markets. The partially convertible rupee ended today at 73.40 per dollar, up 0.6%. The rupee had closed at 73.81 in the previous session. During the session, the rupee rose to 73.28 earlier, its highest level since March 5.
During today's session, rupee traded in a range of 73.28 to 73.87 per US dollar.
The rupee rose nearly 2% for the week, its biggest weekly gain since the week ending December 21, 2018. The currency had been trading in a tight range until this week with traders saying that Reserve Bank of India was seen regularly buying dollars via state-run banks to prevent a sharp appreciation in the rupee.
"The rupee strengthened as nationalized banks stepped away from bid. While the central bank buys USD aggressively, it steps off from time to time to let the USD-INR pair align with the broad USD trend," said Abhishek Goenka, founder and CEO of IFA Global.
Rahul Gupta, Head of Research- Currency, Emkay Global Financial Services, said that sharp gains in the rupee-USD pair has been very "unexpected and traders are in shock, with every major support being tested."
"Initially, RBI was protecting 74.50 zone but its absence has led to a free fall. Globally, risk sentiments have strengthened on aggressive stimulus by Fed and there has been sharp inflows into local stocks," he said.
Dollar inflows into the stock market and gains in other Asian peers have helped fuel the rupee's strength. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have bought $6.2 billion worth of shares so far in this month. Indian stock market benchmark Sensex is up about 5% so far this month.
And analysts say that US Federal Reserve's recent policy shift could further boost inflows, said traders.
The RBI is however expected to keep intervening intermittently and continue building its forex reserves, which are up $60 billion at $535.35 billion since the start of the fiscal year in April. (With Agency Inputs)
Rupee posts biggest weekly gain against US dollar in 20 months
Rupee today rose to near 6-month high against US dollar.Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have bought $6.2 billion worth of Indian shares so far in this month
www.livemint.com
Defying trade tensions, Chinese buyers snap up Indian steel - Times of India
India Business News: India’s steel exports more than doubled between April and July to hit their highest level in at least six years, boosted by a surge of Chinese buying
timesofindia.indiatimes.com