Indonesians Haven'T Learnt Their Lessons

The most striking thing about Ranbaxy's annual general meeting of June 8 at its factory and registered office in Mohali, near Chandigarh, was the strong smell of disinfectant. And the hurriedly erected shamiana with several rows of empty chairs and disinterested shareholders didn't quite jell with the importance of the occasion.

On the dais sat Parvinder Singh, the man who built Ranbaxy from a Rs 36-crore turnover minor to a Rs 1,400-crore pharma major over the last 17 years. Heavily supported by cushions, his frail health was obvious, but he patiently addressed a lone shareholder's concern about the company's investments in various overseas subsidiaries and another on clinical trials for recently developed molecules.

It was a desultory meeting and it was no wonder that the 57-year-old Singh chose the conference room at what insiders call the "mother plant" (it's the firm's first plant) half-an-hour later to make the announcement of the day to the group of visiting journalists. We knew what was coming, but we dutifully took notes all the same. Singh was steppi