M Damodaran

Known for his successful efforts in restructuring the erstwhile Unit Trust of India into UTI AMC and Specified Undertaking of UTI (SUUTI), Meleveetil Damodaran chaired Sebi from Feb 2005 to Feb 2008

Axis

The government has garnered about Rs 3,839 crore by selling a 1.5 per cent stake in Axis Bank, held through SUUTI.
Last week the government sold a 1.5 per cent stake in Axis Bank through the Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India (SUUTI).
The floor price for the offer was  Rs 830.63 per equity share.
"Government has received about Rs 3,839 crore from the sale of Axis Bank shares held by SUUTI," the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey tweeted.
Shares of Axis Bank closed at Rs 854.65, down 0.44 per cent against the previous close on BSE.
With the sale of the SUUTI stake, the disinvestment proceeds mopped up so far this fiscal increased to Rs 28,383 crore. The budget target from disinvestment in the current fiscal (Apr-March) is pegged at Rs 65,000 crore.

Axis Bank

According to the lender's exchange filing, the government, via SUUTI, will offload  46.5 million shares on November 10, and 11. The floor price for the offer shall be Rs 830.63

In May last year, the government sold of 1.95 per cent stake in Axis Bank held through SUUTI for a consideration of about Rs 4,000 crore

reliance industries, RIL

The plan is to sell about 8 lakh shares of RIL that will help the government garner around Rs 180 crore

Floor price set at Rs 680 a share; govt keeps option open to sell additional 0.74% stake

chart

It waited six months for the stock to touch Rs 600, and then took a call to offload stake. However, decision to lower stake in Axis Bank was taken last year

The Centre currently owns 4.71% in Axis Bank and 7.93% in ITC through SUUTI

Chart

As of mid-January, the government has garnered Rs 35,134.76 crore in disinvestment proceeds

Suuti sets ball rolling on Rs 60k-cr stake sale

This gave investment bankers just about 17 hours to reach out to institutional investors

SUUTI stake sale:Govt eases rules for bankers for ITC,L&T,Axis

However, the bankers will not be considered for managing the sale in these three companies

Will SUUTI leave Trishanku heaven?

The new request for proposal (RFP) says Suuti will pick a panel of six investment bankers for three years based on merit

Suuti stake: LIC faces investment cap hurdle

Centre rejects 6 others for conditional bids; no foreign entity in final shortlist

The new central public sector enterprise exchange-traded fund could also contain bank or insurance stocks in its basket

Eligibility for Suuti bankers eased

Government restricts conflict of interest clause to ITC, Axis Bank and L&amp;T

Eligibility criteria for Suuti bankers to be eased

Conflict of interest clause to be amended

Given their sizeable stake in some of the companies, the government is likely to fetch a nice premium to the market price

A man talks on his mobile phone as he walks past an ITC office building in Kolkata

Board of FMCG major likely to push for current institutional stakeholders

M Saraswathy and Samie Modak's front-page lead report, "Suuti stake: LIC faces investment cap hurdle" (July 14) has once again raised my curiosity about the benefits of so-called "disinvestment" by the government.Previous governments had made big claims - preceded by huge targets -about the sale of their stake in various public sector undertakings (PSU) and other industrial undertakings. This was ostensibly done to achieve the bigger objective of poll promise and the grandiose slogan that the "government has no business to be in business" and money raised from such sales got added to the government's coffers, supposedly helping reduce fiscal deficit. This pet slogan started with the P V Narsimha Rao regime soon after the historic policy shift of 1991 and has continued ever since.But does it really achieve what it is supposed to?In most cases, a majority of the government stake was picked up by the cash-rich government undertaking called the LIC. It was really a case of transfer of mone

Hindalco in talks to refinance Novelis' $5.3-billion loans

Enough liquidity seen in the next 12-15 months, faith returning in Indian equities, say experts

Last year, a revival plan of Rs 1.64 trillion was announced for BSNL, which was to be spent over four years

bsnl

Business Standard

RBI Monetary Policy: This will be the third time in 2023 that the MPC will announce its policy decision

Reserve Bank of India, RBI

Social media giant Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has started verified service in India at a monthly subscription price of Rs 699 for mobile apps, the company said on Wednesday.
Meta is planning to roll out verified service on the web in the coming months at a subscription price of Rs 599 per month.
"Meta Verified is available for direct purchase on Instagram or Facebook in India starting today. People can purchase a monthly subscription for Rs 699 on iOS and Android. In the coming months, we'll also introduce a web purchase option for Rs 599 a month," the company said in a statement.
For a verified account subscription, Facebook and Instagram users will need to verify their account with a government ID.
The verified account will provide impersonation protections and account support.
"We're expanding our test of Meta Verified to India after seeing good results from our early testing in several countries globally. We'll also continue honouring verified badges th

Meta, Meta India, Manish Chopra quits

Press Trust of India

Of the four scrips which underwent price band change, only Adani Green closed 0.75% down at Rs 985.45

Adani, Adani Group

paddy

The clear aligners market in India is experiencing an upward trajectory and is expected to reach a staggering $500 million or Rs 4,000 crore by 2023

India's clear aligners market on the rise, likely to reach $500 million

IANS

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Odisha railway tragedy, saying "all the empty safety claims" of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw have now been "exposed" and the government must bring to light the real reasons that caused this grave accident.
In his letter to Modi, Kharge hit out at the Railway minister for seeking a CBI probe, saying the law enforcement agency is meant to investigate crimes, not railway accidents.
"The people in charge  your goodself and Railway Minister Vaishnaw  do not want to admit that there are problems," the Congress chief said.
"The Railway Minister claims to have already found a root cause, but yet has requested the CBI to investigate. The CBI is meant to investigate crimes, not railway accidents. The CBI, or any other law enforcement agency, cannot fix accountability for technical, institutional and political failures," Kharge argued.
In addition, they lack the technical expertise in railway .

Mallikarjun Kharge, Karnataka elections, karnataka election results

A court in Varanasi on Monday convicted gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari in the murder of Congress leader Awadhesh Rai more than 30 years ago.
Awadhesh Rai, the brother of Congress leader Ajay Rai, was shot dead on August 3, 1991, at the gate of his Lahurabir residence. A case in the matter was registered against Mukhtar Ansari and others.
"Mukhtar has been convicted in the Awadhesh Rai murder case of 1991. The court will pronounce its judgment later in the day," a lawyer told reporters in Varanasi.
Reacting to the development, Ajay Rai said, "This is the end of our many years of waiting. I, my parents, Awadhesh's daughter and the whole family kept patience... Governments came and went and Mukhtar strengthened himself.
"But we did not give up. Because of our lawyers' efforts, today the court has found Mukhtar guilty in the murder case of my brother," Rai added.

Mukhtar Ansari

The Supreme Court on Monday granted three weeks interim bail to former police officer Pradeep Sharma, arrested in connection with the Antilia bomb scare case and the killing of businessman Mansukh Hiran, to file a fresh application seeking interim bail.
A vacation bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Rajesh Bindal granted the relief to Sharma after noting that his wife has to undergo surgery.
The top court said Sharma would be released on interim bail subject to conditions imposed by the trial court.
List on June 26, 2023. On that day petitioner shall furnish a medical report indicating therein the status of treatment of wife of the petitioner, the bench said.
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati opposed the grant of bail.
Earlier, Additional Solicitor General S V Raju had argued that Sharma was seeking interim bail without filing an interlocutory application (application in appeal already instituted).
The counsel appearing for Sharma had sought interim bail on humanitari

legal, law, judiciary, order

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said the pace of development has not gone down in the national capital, but the level of pollution has dipped in the last eight years.
Addressing a gathering at Thyagaraj Stadium on the occasion of World Environment Day, he asserted that both PM 2.5 and PM 10 levels "fell by 30 per cent" in 2022 compared to the figures in 2016.
Whenever development happens, it is accompanied with pollution due to felling of trees, road construction, kicking of dust, among others, he said.
"In Delhi, the pace of development has not gone down in the last eight years. Schools, hospitals and flyovers are being constructed. But, the pollution level has dipped in this period," Kejriwal said.
Sharing further data, he said in 2016, on 26 days, pollution level was 'very bad' when the city was "akin to a gas chamber" with grey skies and bad air. In 2022, only six such days were there, he said.
In 2016, on 109 days, pollution level was 'low with clear sky' and '

AAP, Arvind Kejriwal

Odisha triple train crash

Diversified business conglomerate Refex Group, which is engaged in refrigerant gases, ash, and coal handling, has pledged to plant one lakh trees across Tamil Nadu over the next few years under its 'Trees for Life' initiative, the company said on Monday.
Commemorating 'World Environment Day' being observed on June 5 every year, the group has committed towards planting 10,000 trees this year, in partnership with the Government of Tamil Nadu and the Greater Chennai Corporation.
Nearly 2,000 tree saplings were planted as part of launching the initiative in the city today, a company statement said.
"By using resources in a responsible and efficient manner, we can help conserve them for our future generations. In addition to infusing sustainable practices into our operations, our sustainability strategies also aim to arrest climate change and lead to ecosystem restoration. The 'Trees for Life' project is one such initiative," Refex Group Managing Director Anil Jain said.
Minister for Yo

tree plantation drive

The Karnataka government on Monday issued orders for the implementation of 'Shakti' scheme under which women can avail free travel in state-run buses with certain conditions, including reservation of 50 per cent seats for men, from June 11.
The Congress in its election manifesto had promised free rides for women in government buses and said this was one of the five poll guarantees that would come into effect the day it comes to power in the state.
According to the order, the beneficiaries of the scheme should be a domicile of Karnataka. Along with women, transgenders can also make use of the 'Shakti' scheme.
The beneficiaries of this scheme can travel only within the state and not in any inter-state buses.
All luxury buses such as Rajahamsa, Non-AC sleeper, Vajra, Vayu Vajra, Airavat, Airavat Club Class, Airavat Gold Class, Ambari, Ambari Dream Class, Ambari Utsav Fly Bus, EV Power Plus have been excluded from the purview of the scheme.
The government said the benefits of the sche

Siddaramaiah, karnataka assembly polls

Are you sending your child abroad for higher education? If yes, these pointers can help you avoid high TCS charges

Education, study material

The rescue operation in Balasore triple train tragedy has been completed and many discharged also, but the major challenge before the Odisha government is the identification of dead bodies

Odisha train crash

Indian industry has made commendable progress in becoming energy efficient and less carbon intensive

Ajay Shankar, Former Secretary, DIPP

Reliance launched the Bluetooth tracker JioTag as an alternative to Apple's AirTag in India. The JioTag is priced at Rs 2199, but it is currently available at Rs 749.

JioTag

BS Rich Content

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Thursday took a swipe at Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the killing of people in police custody and asked whether he was worried over such incidents.
Sibal's dig at Shah came a day after gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari's aide Sanjeev Maheshwari Jeeva was shot dead on the premises of a Lucknow court. A policeman and a two-year-old girl were injured in the incident.
In a tweet, Sibal said, "How and Why: 41 people have been killed in police custody in UP(2017-2022). Recently: Jiva shot dead in Lucknow court in police custody.Atiq and Ashraf shot dead while in police custody. Tullu Tajpuria shot dead in Tihar. Amit ji: Are you not worried? We are!"
In Wednesday's incident, the alleged assailant, identified as Vijay Yadav (24), was caught on the spot after the shooting took place right outside a courtroom at around 4 pm. Eyewitnesses said the assailant was dressed as a lawyer and fired around six shots.
The assailant opened fire when Jeeva, who was .

Kapil Sibal

The pricing will play a crucial role in terms of the challenge Triumph can pose to the market leader, Royal Enfield

Bajaj Auto, Triumph Motorcycles to firm up partnership agreement soon

He said, "There cannot be a cutoff edge in politics. Congress is a party, which gives opportunity to the youth. Congress runs with experienced elderly leaders and youth"

Suuti

BS BFSI Insight Summit 2022: Sebi ex-chief Damodaran to inaugurate the expo

Govt gets Rs 3,839 cr from Axis Bank stake sale; disinvestment kitty swells

Axis Bank dips nearly 4% as govt initiates SUUTI's 1.55% stake sale via OFS

Govt to exit Axis Bank with 1.55% stake sale, expects to garner Rs 4,000 cr

Govt looks to sell shares of Reliance Industries held through SUUTI

Govt to sell nearly 2% SUUTI stake in Axis Bank, may get Rs 3,969 cr

Govt may lower SUUTI stake in Axis Bank by 0.7% to raise up to Rs 1,300 cr

Govt to sell Rs 8,000-cr SUUTI stake to meet revised FY20 divestment target

Centre keeps SUUTI as backup in case divestment target falls short

Veil of secrecy around Suuti stake sale

Govt eases rules for SUUTI

Centre relaxes selection criteria for Suuti bankers

Only four banks in the fray for Suuti mandate

Different route for SUUTI stake sale?

Eligibility for Suuti bankers eased

Eligibility criteria for Suuti bankers to be eased

Suuti sale: Government spoilt for choice

Suuti stake in ITC may go to insurance firms

Letters: Are the benefits tangible?

Market ready to soak Suuti sale