Amritha Pillay

Stories by Amritha Pillay

Shareholder bonhomie at Naik's last AGM as an era draws to a close

Shareholder bonhomie at Naik's last AGM as an era draws to a close

Rediff.com   10 Aug 2023

At the annual general meeting (AGM) of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) on Wednesday, shareholders made the usual request to the top management for bonus shares. But this time, the setting was different. The man at the helm, outgoing group chairman AM Naik, 82, was heard assuring shareholders that he would join the chorus soon. There were laughs and chuckles at Naik's playful remark as he addressed the last AGM, nearly six decades after he joined L&T as a junior engineer and some 25 years at the top.

RIL pushes production timeline for battery packs by a year to 2024

RIL pushes production timeline for battery packs by a year to 2024

Rediff.com   9 Aug 2023

Reliance Industries (RIL) has reset its battery pack production timeline, shifting it from 2023 earlier to 2024, details shared in the oil-to-telecom conglomerate's latest annual report suggest. In the FY23 annual report released on Sunday, the company has listed the start of battery pack production in 2024. A year ago, at the company's annual general meeting (AGM), Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of RIL, had said, "We aim to start production of battery packs by 2023 and scale up to a fully integrated 5 GWh annual cell-to-pack manufacturing facility by 2024."

World entering a highly disruptive green energy era, says Mukesh Ambani

World entering a highly disruptive green energy era, says Mukesh Ambani

Rediff.com   7 Aug 2023

Reliance Industries (RIL's) annual report released on Sunday highlighted the company's focus on new energy solutions, with chairman and managing director (MD) Mukesh Ambani stating that the age of fossil fuels will not continue much longer. RIL has sought shareholders' approval to give Ambani another five-year term as MD till 2029 at nil salary. The recently demerged Jio Financial Services, which "will leverage the prowess of digital and retail businesses", was expected to be listed soon.

Competition for market share intensifies among cement companies in Q1

Competition for market share intensifies among cement companies in Q1

Rediff.com   7 Aug 2023

Cement manufacturers' show during the June 2023-ended quarter (Q1FY24) has indicated an intensified slugfest for market share. For instance, Dalmia Bharat (Cement) said it has lost market share in eastern India owing to lack of price discipline. Industry analysts also said that the seasonal weakness in cement prices for Q1 is showing up earlier than usual.

Strong Q1 likely for capital goods firms with low costs, healthy execution

Strong Q1 likely for capital goods firms with low costs, healthy execution

Rediff.com   28 Jul 2023

Capital goods companies are likely to report double-digit growth in sales and profit for the first quarter of the 2023-24 financial year (Q1FY24), according to analysts. The performance will ride on lower raw-material costs and healthy execution of orders. Sales by capital goods companies are likely to increase 13-20 per cent year-on-year (YoY), five domestic brokerage firms said.

Adani's Dharavi dream: Producing millionaires minus slumdog prefix

Adani's Dharavi dream: Producing millionaires minus slumdog prefix

Rediff.com   20 Jul 2023

Billionaire Gautam Adani on Wednesday shared a personal note on the development of Dharavi in Mumbai, days after the Maharashtra government issued a resolution to award the Dharavi redevelopment project to his conglomerate on July 14. In the note shared with the media, Adani said his first tryst with Dharavi in Mumbai was in the late 1970s, and the slum settlement continues to amaze and inspire the billionaire to date. "When this opportunity to renew Dharavi came calling, I seized it with both hands," he said.

India Inc's succession plan is seeing a gender shift

India Inc's succession plan is seeing a gender shift

Rediff.com   5 Oct 2020

Women leaders, succession planners and lawyers say doors in family businesses are opening but a stronger push is needed.

New hiring at RIL starts tapering; staff count declines

New hiring at RIL starts tapering; staff count declines

Rediff.com   23 Sep 2020

Experts attribute this trend to a combination of end of capital expenditure cycle, increased automation, RIL's preference for time-bound labour contracts, and telecom and retail's outsourced human resource model.

Women ride the ed-tech boom as opportunities click

Women ride the ed-tech boom as opportunities click

Rediff.com   21 Sep 2020

Experts point out teaching in its online avatar helps address women specific concerns, like care-giving responsibilities, lack of safe public and work spaces, and the inability to move to cities.

Period leave doesn't hamper work or affect employability

Period leave doesn't hamper work or affect employability

Rediff.com   2 Sep 2020

There was a worry that such a policy would hamper businesses, create resentment among the male staff and perhaps also discourage companies from employing women. However, this has proved to be misplaced.

Covid-19: India Inc going for antibody testing

Covid-19: India Inc going for antibody testing

Rediff.com   11 Aug 2020

Some of India's biggest employers are testing for antibodies to either comply with regulatory norms or gauge the effectiveness of precautionary measures.

Why did Mukesh Ambani's aide pledge 94% of RIL shares?

Why did Mukesh Ambani's aide pledge 94% of RIL shares?

Rediff.com   30 Jul 2020

In a curious move, Reliance Industries' (RIL) executive director and Mukesh Ambani's trusted aide PMS Prasad pledged 600,000 shares of the company last month, which is 93.75 per cent of the total shares he owns in RIL. Prasad owned a total of 640,000 RIL shares and his compensation stood at Rs 11.15 crore in FY20.

L&T board members take pay cut of up to 53%

L&T board members take pay cut of up to 53%

Rediff.com   21 Jul 2020

Chairman A M Naik said H2 of 2020-21 will herald better economic and business activity in terms of tendering, good liquidity, as well as revival of labour and supply chains.

Explained: How Chinese firms won some of India's recent PSU tenders

Explained: How Chinese firms won some of India's recent PSU tenders

Rediff.com   13 Jul 2020

India's sourcing from China may not necessarily be for cost-effectiveness alone but also for the lack of domestic qualified bidders, technology or other know-how.

Are signs of green shoots in economy really visible?

Are signs of green shoots in economy really visible?

Rediff.com   9 Jul 2020

While seven companies bagged orders worth Rs 42,000 crore, industry experts said most of this new order activity was a spillover, and fresh project finalisation remains weak.

'Defence is a permanent start-up'

'Defence is a permanent start-up'

Rediff.com   19 Jun 2020

'India should take up defence manufacturing in a more serious manner and encourage greater private participation.'

As demand soars, IOC cranks up refinery runs to over 80%

As demand soars, IOC cranks up refinery runs to over 80%

Rediff.com   11 Jun 2020

The demand for black oils and specialty products like fuel oil, bitumen, petcoke and sulphur has also shown marked improvement, facilitating increase of refineries throughput.

Curious case of 171 Mumbai scribes recovering after testing positive

Curious case of 171 Mumbai scribes recovering after testing positive

Rediff.com   29 Apr 2020

Of the 171 Mumbai scribes tested on April 15, 53 tested positive on April 20. Of the 53 tested positive, 31 were treated and discharged on April 26. A large number of positive cases and later a quick recovery within less than a week have baffled many. Amritha Pillay reports.

How RIL plans to become zero net debt company

How RIL plans to become zero net debt company

Rediff.com   28 Apr 2020

RIL's debt stood at Rs 3.06 trillion as of December 2019, against Rs 2.87 trillion in March 2019.

India Inc gears up for life after lockdown

India Inc gears up for life after lockdown

Rediff.com   11 Apr 2020

Experts say the focus is on preserving liquidity as there is uncertainty over the duration and impact of the 21-day nationwide lockdown imposed to check the spread of COVID-19.