OPINION, P2 MIND & GAMES A message loud and clear IDEA EXCHANGE SHOULD SOME SPECIES BE ALLOWED TO DIE OUT? Ashok Gajapathi Raju ‘If a special status-like package can be worked out, we should look at it... We must cooperate’ Page 4 As the list of endangered animals worldwide grows longer, society may soon be faced with an impossible decision: which ones to take off life support Page 10 ACROSS THE AISLE, P CHIDAMBARAM Vol II No. 359 Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM LEISURE FARM TRAVELS Discover heart-warming stories from the soil of India MUMBAI SUNDAY, MARCH 18, 2018 14 Pages, `8 FINANCIALEXPRESS ON SUNDAY PUBLISHED FROM:AHMEDABAD, BENGALURU, CHANDIGARH, CHENNAI, HYDERABAD, KOCHI, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NEW DELHI, PUNE MSP FOR FARM CROPS PM Modi iterates cost+50% plan There is a call for women-led development instead of women development. Some stories of women who have become catalysts of progress Page 7 ModionSaturdayreiteratedthe recent Budget announcement that minimum support prices (MSPs) for all notified crops would be at least 1.5 times their ‘cost’. Addressing the Krishi Unnati Mela 2018 at Pusa agri complex in the national capital, he said the Centre was actively engaging with the states to ensure that farmers take full benefit of MSPs (assorted price guaranteeschemesareoncards). However,ashespeltouthow the cost of cropswould be computed for determining the MSPs, Modi did not include paid-out land costs, but added DishTVareatloggerheadswith broadcasterStarIndia overrate revision of channels ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL),which beginsApril 7. IndustrysourcestoldFEthat StarIndia,whichhasbaggedthe international broadcast and Pakistan to skip WTO meeting in New Delhi PAKISTAN HAS decided to stay away from the World Trade Organisation meet in New Delhi next week in protest against alleged harassment of its diplomats in India, reports PTI. India last month invited Pakistan commerce minister Pervez Malik to participate in the informal WTO ministerial meeting scheduled to be held in New Delhi on March 19-20 and Islamabad had initially accepted the invitation. Sources in the foreign ministry in Islamabad said the situation has changed. PAGE 14 ODD & EVEN ROHNIT PHORE PM Narendra Modi and Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan at the Krishi Unnati Mela in New Delhi on Saturday PTI ‘interestonworkingcapital’.The government’s plan, it seems, is touseacostslightlyhigherthan the so-called A2+FL, but not as highasC2,whichincludesmore elements. However, the use of the A2+FL plus ‘interest on working capital’formula might not stoke food inflation much, analysts said. The PM said many people were spreading rumours regarding MSPs and creating a ‘gloomy atmosphere’. Several farmers’ organisations have called for calculating cost of crops with the C2 formula. Farmer leader VM Singh noted that in case of many crops, the MSPswere1.5timesA2+FLcost even in 2013.The PM said the cost of crops will include elements such as labour, rent for machinery,costofseedsandfertilisers, land revenue being given to state government, interest on working capital and rent of leased land. Continued on Page 11 BLOOMBERG March 17 CHINA’S PARLIAMENT UNANIMOUSLY reappointed Xi Jin- ping as president, while installing one of his most trusted allies as vice-president, highlighting how little public opposition remains to his rule. The rubber-stamp National People’s Congress voted 2,970-to-0 to give Xi a second five-year term Saturday, days afterrepealingaconstitutional provisionthatwould’vebarred himfromathird.Althoughlegislative dissent is rare — only four lawmakers withheld support for Xi’s first term in 2013 — no president has received a unanimous vote in at least a quarter-century. The legislature also confirmed Wang Qishan — a wellknown economic reformer who oversaw Xi’s signature anti-corruption campaign — as vice-president. Wang’s appointment was opposed by one lawmaker, who wasn’t identified. The votes cap months of Communist Party conclaves and pageantry that confirmed Xi’s status as arguably the world’s most powerful leader. Continued on Page 11 Is UPI a currency gaining traction? As chat and messaging apps enter the digital payments domain, existing mobile wallet players get a run for their money ANKITA RAI New Delhi, March 17 AS MOBILE WALLET compa- nies face the heat of Reserve Bank of India’s KYC norms, instant messaging apps have been leveraging theirpopularity and stickiness to expand into payments. Facebookowned WhatsApp recently launched its UPI-based payment feature and a separate WhatsApp Business app. It is nottheonlyplayertotreadthis path; lastyearwe sawHike and Truecaller joining the UPI bandwagonwith P2P(peer-topeer) offerings, with Hike also offering services such as Ola Cab and Auto, bus tickets and bill payments. Conversely, Google has also announced a chat feature foritsUPI-basedpayment app, Tez,to take on Whatsapp. “We believe every transaction between people happens after a conversation, whether it’s over a call or SMS.The idea behind Truecaller Pay was to create a solution that seamlessly integrates transactions withconversationsonaunified platform,” says Alan Mamedi, digitalrightsforIPLforthenext five years by bidding an astronomical `16,347.50 crore, has this year demanded a hike in channel rates that is higher than the usual. But DTH operatorsBharti Airtel and Dish TV are not willing to give in to the demand, arguing that DISAGREEMENT ■ This year, Star India demands hike in channel rates that are higher than the usual ■ DTH operators Bharti Airtel, Dish TV not willing to give in to demand ■ Operators argue industry revenues wouldn't justify hike; say unwilling to pass on hike to consumers industry revenues would not justify the hike and they are unwilling to pass on the hike to consumers. Irked by their stance, Star Indiahadearlierthismonthrun a ticker on Airtel DTH that the channels might go off air if the operator does not renew the contract.ThisledBhartiAirtelto move the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal on March 8.The TDSAT has stayed any disconnection till the matter is disposed by it, thus providing relief to the DTH operators. Continued on Page 11 Tata Motors misses the high road Xi gets new term as China’s president QuickPicks ANUSHREE BHATTACHARYYA New Delhi, March 17 MAJOR DIRECT-TO-HOME OPERATORS Bharti Airtel and FE BUREAU New Delhi, March 17 PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA ● DTH players, Star spar over channel rate hike; viewers could pay more co-founder and CEO, Truecaller. The platform has more than150millionusersinIndia. Globally, WeChat in China, alsoknownasthebellwetherof the mobile messaging space, has built a whole ecosystem of services around itself. What’s more, Facebook Messenger also announced a tie-up with PayPal forP2Ppayments in the US last year. ` 1,000 Send money The closer payments is to your engagement platform, the higher the possibility of adoption. Messaging apps have very high engagement levels.For example,WhatsApp currently has over 200 million monthly active users in India. “WhatsApp is the most integrated solution on smartphones.Datasuggestsasmany as 80% of Indian SMEs think that WhatsApp helps them communicatewith customers. With payment features being added, WhatsApp has the potential to disrupt the mobile pay market,” says Shrenik Gandhi, co-founder, White Rivers Media. Continued on Page 11 ` 1,000 Receive money ON TUESDAY THE ‘MESSENGER’ OF PAYMENTS ● Lack of a winning model slows passenger vehicle business DEEPAK KUMAR Mumbai, March 17 NO ONE CAN blame Tata Motors for not trying. Since early 2016, the automaker has launched four new-generation models—Tiago,Tigor,Hexa and Nexon—of which two have In the slow lane Tata Motors passenger vehicle business 15 14.12 12 9 6 3 0 Total domestic volumes (RHS) Market share (%) 400,000 1,67,208 AGENTS OF CHANGE ● Indicates use of cost a bit higher than A2+FL, asks farmers to reduce the use of urea A match spoiler ahead of IPL 3,71,350 SPOTLIGHT Page 8 READ TO LEAD 320,000 240,000 160,000 6.16 80,000 FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 FY16 FY17 FY18* *For the period of April-January shown good promise.The compactcar,Tiago,hasbeenthebest bet so far,slipping in and out of the list of top 10 models in the 0 Source: SIAM country since its launch. Compact SUV Nexon is the other car getting positive reviews.Unfortunately,eventhesetwomodels have not been enough to move the needle forthe company. Automakers need at least oneortworunawaysuccessesto hit the high road, and Tata Motors hasn’t been able to produceevenoneinthepastfiveto six years. While it’s bestseller Tiago clocks a respectable 6,000-7,000unitspermonth,it is still some distance awayfrom challengingothercompactslike Maruti’s successful Swift (15,000 units) or its Celerio (8,000-10,000) or Hyundai’s i10 (12,000). Continued on Page 11