the hindu delhi sunday, september 8, 2019 zomato lays ... · rahsbcobc life insurance last year but...
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THE HINDU DELHI
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 13EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
After the merger of 10 publicsector banks (PSBs) intofour, two of them will holdover 15% stake in two diff��erent insurance companies,individually.
According to insuranceregulations, a bank cannothold more than 15% stake inmore than one insurancecompany.
“Having more than 15%stake in an insurance company gives the status of the promoter to the entity. One entity cannot be a promoter oftwo insurance companies,” asenior insurance industry offi��cial said. “So, the bankshave to completely exit oneinsurance company or cutstake to 15%,” the offi��cial added. Two sets of mergerbound PSBs will hold stakes
in two diff��erent insurancecompanies, post the merger.One is Punjab NationalOriental Bank of CommerceUnited Bank of India combine and another is the Union BankAndhra BankCorporation Bank combine.
In the fi��rst combine bothPNB and OBC hold stakes intwo diff��erent insurers. PNB
has a 30% stake in PNB Metlife Life India InsuranceCompany while OBC holds23% in CanaraHSBCOBCLife Insurance. So, themerged entity — PNB — willhold over 15% stakes in boththe companies.
In the second combine,Union Bank holds 25% stakein Star Union DaiIchi Life In
surance Company whileAndhra Bank holds 30%stake in IndiaFirst Life Insurance Company. So, themerged entity — Union Bank— will have more than 15% inboth the life insurers.
However, bank offi��cialssaid they were not in a hurryto cut stake as that could impact valuations. Bankswould wait for an initial public off��ering (IPO) to offl��oadstakes.
“We are not in a hurry tosell stake. After the merger,when there is an IPO of oneof the companies, we will reduce stake,” said a top offi��cial from one of the mergerbound banks.
Banks will have to get thepermission of the InsuranceRegulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) — the insurance regula
tor — for holding over 15%stake in two insurers for awhile, that is, till the IPO.Bank mergers are expectedto be completed by March2020 and it is unlikely insurers would like to hit the capital markets, especially whenthe markets are choppy.
Interestingly, PNB Metlifewas planning an IPO lastyear but postponed its plansdue to market conditions.
OBC had also been planning to divest stake in CanaraHSBCOBC Life Insurancelast year but the plan wasshelved.
IDBI Bank, in which LIChas a majority stake, also hasan insurance arm in IDBIFederal Life Insurance inwhich it holds 48% stake.
The bank has now startedthe process of exiting the lifeinsurance company.
Merged PSBs must cut stake in insurersHowever, public sector lenders may wait for initial share off��erings to get better valuation
MANOJIT SAHA
Mumbai
Rider for merger: Banks must get IRDAI’s nod to hold over15% stake in two insurers till the IPO. * GETTYIMAGES/ISTOCK
The government on Saturday said it had constituted ahighlevel task force to identify infrastructure projectsfor ₹��100 lakhcrore worth investment to be made by202425 as India aims to become a $5trillion economy.
The task force, headed bythe Economic Aff��airs Secretary, will draw up a ‘nationalinfrastructure pipeline’ of₹��100 lakhcrore, the FinanceMinistry said in a statement.
This would include greenfi��eld and brownfi��eld projectscosting above ₹��100 croreeach.
The task force will comprise secretaries from diff��erent Ministries, senior offi��cials and the NITI AayogCEO. It will identify technically feasible and fi��nancially/economically viable infrastructure projects that can beinitiated in 201920.
List of projectsFurther, it has been asked tolist the projects that can beincluded in the pipeline foreach of the remaining fi��veyears between FY21 andFY25.
The task force, constitut
ed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will submit its report on the pipelinefor 201920 by October 31,2019 and on the indicativepipeline for 202125 by Decemberend, the Ministrysaid.
To achieve the target ofscaling India’s GDP to $5 trillion by 202425, the countryneeds to spend about $1.4trillion (₹��100 lakh crore)from the fi��scal 201920 to202425 on infrastructure, itadded.
In the past decade (fi��scal200817), India investedabout $1.1 trillion ininfrastructure.
Boosting investmentsThe challenge is to step upannual infrastructure investment so that lack of infrastructure does not become abinding constraint on thegrowth of the Indian economy, the Ministry said.
Prime Minister NarendraModi, in his IndependenceDay speech, had said that₹��100 lakh crore would be invested in infrastructure overthe next fi��ve years.
These will include socialand economic infrastructureprojects.
Report for FY20 to be given by Oct. 31
Press Trust of India
New Delhi
To achieve $5 trillion in GDP by FY25, India needs to spend$1.4 trillion on infrastructure. * ARUNANGSU ROY CHOWDHURY
Panel set up to identifyinfra projects for ₹��100lakhcrore investment
More than two months afterPrime Minister NarendraModi and U.S. President Do-nald Trump announced inOsaka that U.S. Trade Repre-sentative Robert Lighthizerand Commerce Minister Piy-ush Goyal should meet andresolve the trade impasse,there has been no meetingthus far, but U.S.-India Busi-ness Council (UIBC) presi-dent Nisha Biswal says sheis hopeful they will meet be-fore Mr. Modi travels to theU.S. this month. Excerpts:
Why have the trade
representatives not been
able to meet despite the
leaders’ decisions during
two separate meetings in the
last three months?
■ I think it is a really busytime for the United States onthe trade front. We are alsoin the midst of an intense setof backandforths with China; you have the U.S.MexicoCanada Agreement before the Congress.
What has prevented thetrade representatives (TRs)from getting together is amatter of aligning schedules.
My understanding is bothleaders have expressed astrong commitment to havethe TRs to meet before PMModi’s visit to the U.S. (September 2128); I am hopefulthat will still happen.
Once they meet, what are the
concessions both sides must
give in order to break the ice?
■ I think the ‘landing zones’will be the things that American industry has identifi��ed,including concerns on tariff��son ICT, price controls onmedical devices, things thatthe USTR has identifi��ed likemarket access to agriculturalproducts, as well as issuesthe Indian side has highlighted, including the Section 232 tariff��s (tariff��s on steel andaluminum), the withdrawal of India’s GSPstatus, etc. I don’tthink that it is that
diffi��cult to fi��nd an agreementthat meets the core concernsand moves us beyond theseissues. Compared to tradenegotiations the world over,we have a fairly manageablebasket of issues. What is important is to establish thatwe can negotiate them.
How much is the danger of
the USTR launching a ‘301
investigation’ against India?
■ One should always bewatchful of that, but whenyou have two leaders with anexpress commitment to improve the economic partnership, there is a way forward;and I am fairly confi��dent ifthe two trade teams get together, they will come upwith a solution.
Have other issues like
regulations on ecommerce
been resolved?
■ I wouldn’t say that U.S. businesses are comfortablewith them, but they are somewhat reassured that thereis now a more inclusive andconsultative process to address these specifi��c issues.
The biggest issue is thatfor India to attract the kindof investment it needs, it hasto project policy stabilityand policy coherence. Everyone recognises that as India grows, its policy framework needs to evolve, but it
should be done in a way thatis stable and coherent. On ecommerce and data protection, India has indicated itwill take its time.
How should India position
itself to benefi��t from the
U.S.China trade fallout?
■ Moving supply chains is avery capitalintensive proposition, and India has yet tocreate incentives and effi��ciencies that would allowfi��rms to make that switch. Ifcompanies don’t see a predictability and reliability inthe tax structure, how willthey incur such large liabilities and how will they plan torecoup their investment?
Many countries are providing tax deferments fortime, land incentives, ensuring infrastructure and askilled labour pool.
It isn’t just India, but the U.S.
too has shown lack of policy
stability and coherence;
whether it is on sudden
tariff��s, sanctions on oil,
changes in immigration
laws…
■ At the USIBC, we havebeen consistently voicingour opposition to tariff��s.
Everyone loses in a tradewar. The frustration that hasto be dealt with though isthat if the U.S. is adhering toa low tariff�� and high standards regime, then theremust be a similar movementby our trading partners, elseresentment builds up in theU.S. that it is not a levelplaying fi��eld for our companiesglobally. And, that’s whythere is decreasing supportfor free trade agreements
(FTAs) domestically.
Is a U.S.India FTA likely?
■ I think to say it islikely overstating thecase, but it is impera
tive for both countries to move in
that directionfor U.S.Indiatrade to get towhere wewant it.
INTERVIEW | NISHA BISWAL
‘India, U.S. trade problems solvable’We have a fairly manageable basket of issues: UIBC chief
Suhasini Haidar <> India has to project
policy stability and
policy coherence to
attract investments
By the year 2030, CVs (curriculum vitae) will be passe, asthere will be numerous appsand tools capable of matchmaking for jobs.
Recent advances in deeptech learning are making itpossible for powerful algorithms to identify skills andcapabilities that are not explicitly described on a res
ume. That means technologies that are emerging todayalready make it possible tomore aptly match the rightwork to the right person regardless of their gender, ageor geographic location.
A recent study by DellTechnologies, in partnershipwith the Californiabased, Institute for the Future (IFTF),explored how collaborativeartifi��cial intelligence, multi
modal interfaces, extendedreality, and secure distributed ledgers would intersectwith evolving social and economic forces to shape howwe prepare for, fi��nd jobs and
work in 2030. New softwaresystems can help create aricher picture of an applicant by extrapolating relevant skills related to theirhobbies and experience, andthrough applying contextualinformation about how otherworkers from the same educational institution or learning pathway have fared inthe position, the study said.
Advancements in technol
ogy will require new skillsand capabilities for workersto excel in the 2030 work environment. The changes towork and learning in thenext 10 years would be enabled by the maturation andproliferation of today’semerging technologies,which would give birth tonew industries, jobs, skills,places of work and workingpatterns, the study said.
‘By 2030, CVs will be out and tech will play matchmaker’Technologies will connect ‘right job to right person’, shows DellIFTF study
Mini Tejaswi
Bengaluru<> New software can
extrapolate an
applicant’s relevant
skills related to her
hobbies and work
experience
In the backdrop of the current economic slowdown severely hurting the auto industry, among others, TataMotors CEO and managingdirector Guenter Butschekhas said that the demand environment would remain volatile for some more time.
“Today’s situation is farmore complex,” Mr. Butschek told auto componentmakers at the Auto Component Manufacturers Association of India’s annual general meeting held in Delhi.
‘About to collapse’“The Indian opportunity isabout to collapse due to loweconomic activity, leading to
subdued demand, initiallytriggered by the liquidity crisis and the increased axleload regulation,” he said.“Customers are confusedand need education to takeinformed decisions. Weneed to take these challenges as opportunities and ex
plore feasible options for us/the industry, because that isthe need of the hour,” headded.
He said the company’sstandard operating processes had to drive supply chaineffi��ciencies and with the useof ‘analytics and Industry4.0’, the company ought totarget higher productivity,effi��ciency and eff��ectivenessin operations across the entire value chain.
“We have to be careful, toprotect our future investments. The winners wouldbe the ones who are able toleverage investments in platform developments by enabling modularity and highereconomies of scale,” the Tata Motors MD said.
Demand environment to remainvolatile, says Tata Motors’ MD‘Buyers confused, need help to take informed decisions’
Special Correspondent
MUMBAI
Guenter Butschek
Zomato has laid off�� 541 direct employees, mostlyfrom its headquarters inthe Delhi NCR working inthe support services department. With this, thefood aggregator has cut itsworkforce by 10%.
A Zomato spokespersonsaid: “Over the last fewmonths, our technologyproducts and platformshave improved signifi��cantly. While the business hasgrown consistently, thishas led to an overall reduction in direct orderrelatedsupport queries.
“We have dramaticallyimproved the speed of service resolution, so thatnow only 7.5% of our orders need support [downfrom 15% in March].”
Zomato laysoff�� 541 directemployees
Special Correspondent
MUMBAI
Cafe chain operator Coff��eeDay Enterprises (CDE) onSaturday announced theappointment of IDFC Securities as an adviser toidentify strategic optionsand advise it on refi��nancing of existing debt.
“The company, in itsmeeting of the executivecommittee, has appointedIDFC securities as the adviser of company and itssubsidiaries for identifyingthe strategic options forCoff��ee Day EnterprisesLtd., including divestmentof its holding in Coff��ee DayGlobal Ltd. and any othergroup company (otherthan SICAL Logistics Ltd.),”Coff��ee Day Enterprises saidin a regulatory fi��ling.
IDFC Sec. toadvise Coff��eeDay on strategy
Press Trust of India
New Delhi
S&T Engineers of Coimbatore and Yeong Chin Machinery (YCM) Industries ofTaiwan will jointly invest₹��24 crore in the fi��rst phaseto make and supply CNCvertical machining centres.
D. Shanmugasundaram,MD, S&T, told The Hindu theinvestment would be increased to ₹��100 crore in thenext three years dependingon the market response.
The details of the jointventure are being workedout. “We (S&T) will havemarketing rights across thecountry for the machiningcentres produced,” he said.
The plant is likely to becommissioned here in January. To start with, it will ma
nufacture three models ofthe machine and will expand to seven models. Theplant will have capacity toproduce 100 machinesthough the proposal is tomake 15 machines a year inthe fi��rst phase, Mr. Shanmugasundaram said. Somecomponents will be imported from Taiwan and in acouple of years, the entiremachinery will be madehere. The cost of the machines will be considerablyless when made in Indiacompared to importingthem from Taiwan.
A statement said underthe agreement signed, YCMand S&T Engineers willshare fi��nancial and technological resources to leveragethe best of both companies.
S&T, Yeong Chin to makeCNC machining centresFirms to invest ₹��24 cr. in fi��rst phase
M. Soundariya Preetha
COIMBATORE