OPINION, P2 MIND & GAMES It depends on what you mean by 'secret' and also 'success' Page 10 No expectations, no disappointment FE LINES The year 2021 promises to be an exciting one for space exploration, with many missions Page 6 IS THERE A SECRETTO SUCCESS ON INSTAGRAM? ACROSS THE AISLE , P CHIDAMBARAM A space odyssey WORDSWORTH Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL. XX NO. 13 AMISH & BHAVNAROY FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY NEW DELHI SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 2021, 20 Pages, `10 (Patna `11, Raipur `10) P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , READ TO LEAD H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K A T A , L U C K N O W , FARMERS’ PROTEST Offer to put farm laws in abeyance stands: PM WHAT'S INSIDE ● Modi says at all-party meeting that govt a phone call away for talks ■ SPOTLIGHT, P7 Fly on the wall Internet suspended at 3 protest sites FE BUREAU New Delhi, January 30 Data privacy is no new concern, with controversy surrounding some platform every now and then. How do social commerce entrepreneurs deal with the issue? THE MINISTRY OF home PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA ■ FOOTLOOSE P8 Points and miles travel deals It’s a buyers’ market for airlines, hotels and credit card awards ODD & EVEN ‘Dharma is erroneously translated as religion in India’ Page 4 ROHNIT PHORE Modi on Saturday assured the Opposition parties of his government's resolve to find a resolution to the over twomonths-old farmers' protest. Speaking at the customaryallparty meeting ahead of the Budgetsessionthatstartsfrom Monday, Modi said the Centre’s offer to put on hold the three contentious agriculturemarketing laws for 12-18 monthsstillholds.Thegovernment iswilling to hold another round of talks with the agitating farmer unions,he added. Sharing the details of the meeting chaired by Modi and attended by defence minister Rajnath Singh, parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi said,“The PM assured that the Centreisapproachingthefarmersissuewithanopenmind.He Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait addresses farmers at Ghazipur border in New Delhi on Saturday said the Centre’s stand is the same as it was on January 22, thelastmeetingbetweenfarmers and the Centre. Modiji reiteratedwhatTomarjihadsaid— thathe(NarendraSinghTomar) is a phone call away for talks,” Joshi quoted Modi. The Opposition had boycotted President’s address to Parliament, citing the government’s ‘mishandling’ of the protest.The government wants to the Budget session to be smooth, given the need for important legislative work and thepassageoftheBudget,which is keyto economicrevival. Exasperated over the obdu- PTI racy displayed by the agitating farmer unions despite the conciliatory offer to put the three farm laws in abeyance for 1218months,theCentreonJanuary 22 hardened its stance and conveyed to the unions that it can’t yield any more, causing further uncertainty over when and how the strike will end. With the farmer groups clinging to the maximalist position thatnothinglessthantheabrogation of the laws would be acceptable to them, both sides could not even decide on the date of the next round of talks. Continued on Page 20 affairs has temporarily suspended internet services at the Singhu, Ghazipur, and Tikri borders,where farmers have been protesting against thenewagrilaws,anofficial said on Saturday. Apart from the three bordersofDelhi,internet services will remain suspended in their adjoining areas too, effective from 11 pm of January 29 to 11 pm of January 31,the official said. The decision hasbeen taken to "maintain public safety and averting publicemergency"under Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules 2017,the official said. — PTI M U M B A I , ICICI BANK ON Saturday Myntra changes logo after complaint calls signage offensive FASHION E-TAILER Myntra is changing its logo following a complaint by a Mumbai-based activist who alleged that the brand's signage was offensive towards women, reports PTI. When contacted, Myntra confirmed the development. The logo is being changed across Myntra's website, app and packaging material. The complaint had been lodged last month by Avesta Foundation's Naaz Patel. PAGE 11 Gandhi statue vandalised in US; India demands action UNKNOWN MISCREANTS have vandalised, broken and ripped from the base a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in a park in California, evoking a strong response from India, which sought a thorough investigation and appropriate action against those responsible for the “despicable act”, reports PTI. The 6-ft tall statue of Gandhi, in the Central Park of the City of Davis in Northern California, appeared to have been sawed off at the ankles and half its face was severed. PAGE 3 Net interest income Provisions Net profit GROWTH MOMENTUM Demand for warehousing to remain strong in 2021 RISHI RANJAN KALA New Delhi, January 30 THE INDIAN WAREHOUSING and logistics industry had an admirablerunlastyearasCovid19forcedbusinessestofocuson continuity plans and supply chain constraints.The growth momentum is expected to continue in 2021 as sectors like ecommerce,FMCGandpharmaceuticals look to penetrate deeperinto tierII and III cities. Logisticsplayersandanalysts areconvincedaboutthesector’s performance as they say that ecommercefirmswillcontinueto pushforcost-efficientandswift last-mile delivery. Besides, the 300 (Million sq ft) 2019 250 2020 200 2021 150 100 50 0 41 22 48 Supply 278 205 36 26 230 48 Absorption Stock Industrial & warehousing space scenario growingdemandforcoldchains, andwithIndiavyingtobeamanufacturinghub,therequirement forlargeautomatedwarehouses andomni-channellogisticssolutionswillcontinuetogrow.Asper SavillsIndia,industrialandware- housing space absorption is expected to grow 83% y-o-y to 47.7 m sq ft in 2021,driven by robust growth in e-commerce andmanufacturing. Continued on Page 20 % chg 4,940 4,146 31.64 (in %) 19.15 Change Gross NPA 1.49 0.63 3.77 3.67 10 5.95 4.38 NIM Net NPA 2,742 2,083 16 (` crore) Q3FY21 9,912 8,545 reported a 19% year-on-year (y-o-y) rise in its net profit at `4,940 crore in the December quarter (Q3FY21) on the back of healthyinterest income and improved asset quality. Sequentially,its net profit rose 16%. The operating profit of the lender increased 17% y-oy and 7% quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) to `8,820 crore. The interestincome(NII)increased 16% y-o-y and 6% q-o-q to `9,912 crore. Provisions for the lender increased 32% y-oyto `2,742 crore,but declined 8% sequentially. Sandeep Batra, executive director (ED), ICICI Bank, said the continued pickup in economic activity and tailwinds from the festive season combined with the bank’s digital initiatives and extensive franchisereflectedinanincreasein disbursements across retail products during Q3- 2021. Credit card spends also have reached pre-Covid levels in Decemberthanks to increased spends in categories such as health & wellness, electronics Q3FY20 « QuickPicks Report card 157 bps bps 86 bps Source: BSE and e-commerce,he added. During Q3FY21, the bank has changed its provisioning policy on non-performing assets (NPA) to make it more conservative. As part of the revised policy, the bank has made contingency provision of `3,012 crore for borrower accounts not classified as NPAs as per Supreme Court (SC) direction. Continued on Page 20 ● IHCL CEO & MD Puneet Chhatwal talks about incentives to boost sector IVINDER GILL New Delhi, January 30 “Umeed pe duniya kayam hai, but hope is not a strategy,”says IHCL CEO and MD Puneet Chhatwal, who is also head of the Hotel Association of India and chairman of the CII national committee on tourism and hospitality,when Puneet Chhatwal, IHCL CEO and MD we ask him what expectations he has from the Budget. Speakingwith Sunday FE on theoccasionofthelaunchofThe Connaught underIHCL’s Seleqtions portfolio in New Delhi on Friday evening, Chhatwal said they have made several representations to the government P U N E ‘Revival of animal spirits with 11% growth next fiscal’ PRESS TRUST OF INDIA New Delhi, January 30 CHIEFECONOMICADVISER KV Subramanian on Saturdaysaid the country would witness revival of'animal spirits'of privateenterpriseswiththeeconomy staging a 'V-shaped' 11% growth in the next fiscal year beginningApril.The Economic Survey 2020-21 presented in Parliament on Friday expects the growth rate to rebound sharply from an estimated record contraction of 7.7% in the current financial year on account of the impact of the pandemic. "I think next year with an 11% growth rate,that is anticipated.Private sector moves in when they see opportunities," Subramaniansaid,whenasked about the revival of 'animal spirits' in private investment. The expression ‘animal spirit’ was coined by celebrated economist John Maynard Keynes to refer to investors’ confidence in taking action in terms of investment. Subramanian also made a caseforstrongcounter-cyclical measures to encourage private investment. Observing that there are business cycles in the ICICI Bank net profit ‘Budget an opportunity for up 19% at `4,940 cr the govt to support tourism’ FE BUREAU Mumbai, January 30 D E L H I , CEASPEAK INDUSTRY EXPECTATIONS Q3 PERFORMANCE N E W ❝ India needs to make efforts to get rating upgrade in line with fundamentals — KRISHNAMURTHY V SUBRAMANIAN , CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISER economy and there are peaks and troughs, he said when the economy is doing really well, privatesectorisalsodoingvery well and it's time for the government to step back and consolidate its fiscal position. “But when the economy is not doing well, it's in a trough. The private sector, therefore, is notdoingverywell.Thevoidthat is left on consumption, investment, etc, the government moves in and fills that void,” he told PTI in an interview. Continued on Page 20 COVID-19 SII to launch 2nd vaccine in June GEETA NAIR Pune, January 30 for relief to the tourism industry.“The Budget is an opportunity for the government to do something to support a sector that is the largest multiplicator of jobs, especially in the unorganised sector,” he says. “I look at it under three pillars — policy, taxation and stimulus.BypolicyImeanhow you treat tourism. Is it infrastructure oris it getting industrystatus? Bytaxation,the perception is that all hotels are five stars, so we face heavy taxes. By stimulus I mean to generate demand and incentivise travel,perhaps byreducing taxes,”he says. VACCINE MAKER SERUM InstituteofIndia(SII)willbelaunching its second Covid-19 vaccine in June 2021.Adar Poonawalla, CEOandED,SII,saidhehopedto launch the vaccine,to be called Covovax,byJune2021.Afterthe Oxford-AstraZeneca Covishield vaccine,this will be the second vaccinefromSIIandathirdvaccine for India.“Our partnership for a Covid-19 vaccine with Novavaxhaspublishedexcellent efficacyresults.Wehaveapplied to start trials in India,” PoonawallatweetedonSaturday. Full interview on Page 5 Continued on Page 20 Bill to ban cryptocurrencies likely during Budget session INDIAPLANSTO introduce a bill seeking to prohibit all private cryptocurrencies inthecountryduringtheBudgetsession of Parliament that began Friday. The proposed law will provide a framework forthe creation of an official digital currencyto beissued bythe Reserve Bankof India and allow certain exceptions to promote blockchain, the underlying technology of cryptocurrency and its uses,according to a bulletin of the lower house of parliament. The central bank is looking into the need for a digital version of the fiat currency and how to implement it. India’s monetary policy regulator had in2018bannedcryptotransactionsaftera string of frauds in the months following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s sudden decision to ban 80% of the nation’s currency. Cryptocurrency exchanges responded with a lawsuit in the Supreme Court in September and won respite in March2020. —BLOOMBERG Brands leverage chemistry among celeb couples ● Real-life celebrity pairs make sense for brands in terms of visibility as well as fees VENKATA SUSMITA BISWAS Mumbai, January 30 EVER SINCE BOLLYWOOD heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor mentioned in an interview that his marriage to Alia Bhatt was delayed because of the pandemic, there has been a renewed interest in seeing the couple together on screen. In thelatestFlipkartFashionad (a brand they endorse together), the duo showcases the e-commerce portal’swide collection. This is not the first time the Bollywood actors have appeared together in an ad campaign. In 2019, Flipkart FashionandLayssignedKapoor andBhatttogetherforadvertising campaigns when the two were working on their first movie together,Brahmastra. The duo are not the only off-screen celebrity couple to be roped in by brands as a pair. Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone endorsed Jio during IPL 2020 and Lloyd air-conditioners in 2019. Manyavar most famously roped in Anushka Sharma to promote PAIR PLAY ■ Ranveer Singh and ■ In 2019, Flipkart Deepika Padukone Fashion and Lays signed Ranbir Kapoor endorsed Jio during Alia Bhatt together for IPL 2020 and Lloyd air-conditioners advertising in 2019 campaigns ■ Manyavar roped in Anushka Sharma along with cricketer Virat Kohli who was already endorsing the brand ■ A star of the stature of Kohli charges about `5-6 crore per day as his endorsement fee, and the rate for a pair could be in the range of `8-12 crore its women’s line of clothing alongwith cricketerViratKohli (who was already associated with the brand and endorsing the menswear line) just ahead of the couple’s wedding.After the two gotmarried,Manyavar returned to the couple’s ‘love saga’one year later. The Manyavarads seta new New Delhi benchmark in brand endorsements. Using well-known actors who share a chemistry to portray themselves adds texture to an otherwise plain script. “That two celebrities happentoberelatedisthecontext that the customeris aware about.This allows the brand to create the kind of imageryand vibe that each of their fans would love, but one that both their fans would remember,in some ways,” says Sunil P, associate vice president – client services,Dentsu Webchutney. Creating a story that can bringoutthedynamicbetween a pair makes an ad stand out and not get lost among the clutterofbrandendorsements. Continued on Page 20