OPINION, P2 MIND & GAMES In our ruined global moment, watching something busily transform trash into fleshy, sculptural fruit is a comfort Page 10 The quintessential andolanjeevi FE LINES There has been a trend ofwearing double or even triple masks. But do we really need two masks? Page 7 THE MUSHROOMS WILL SURVIVE US ACROSS THE AISLE , P CHIDAMBARAM VOL. XX NO. 15 The double mask SPOTLIGHT Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM THE STORYOF THEIR LIVES FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY NEW DELHI SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2021, 38 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 , WHAT'S INSIDE C H E N N A I , READ TO LEAD H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , Beating the burnout Break-less hours of remote work, neverending screen time and exhaustion are leading to mental fatigue and burnout in most professionals, pointing to the urgent need to embed well-being in the workplace culture ■ WORDS WORTH, P4 The story of WeWork Weideman’s book carefully and succinctly details the rise and fall of Adam Neumann ROHNIT PHORE L U C K N O W , ● Sub-4 metre sedan sales have halved since 2015 VIKRAM CHAUDHARY New Delhi, February 13 FE BUREAU New Delhi, February 13 FM Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha on Saturday M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E Not only sedans, compact sedans also lose speed Sitharaman hints at more reforms UNDETERRED BY RISKS posed bythe Covid-19 pandemic,the government has been undertaking reforms to ensurea sustained long-term growth path forthe country,finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday, indicating that more reforms will be pursued going ahead. Replying to a debate in the Lok Sabha, the minister said the Budget for FY22, with its enhanced allocation for capex, healthcare and the development of agriculture infrastructure, has set the stage for India to become selfreliant. It focused on sectors with high multiplier effect on the economy. “…reforms are going to lay a path for India to be one of the top economies of the world in the coming decades,”Sitharaman said. K O L K A T A , SUVS ACCELERATING LS PROCEEDINGS ● Says will lay path for India to be among top economies ■ LEISURE, P6 ODD & EVEN C H A N D I G A R H , Public figures are penning autobiographies long before their sunset years Page 5 PTI FMSPEAK THESUB-4METRE sedanisasegment unique to India — it was born out of a 2006 legislation thatallowedcarsunder4metres in length to qualify for lower excise duty. Quick to exploit Indians’craze for sedans at the time,TataMotorschoppedsome inches off the Indigo, and thus wasborntheIndigoCS(compact Sub-4 metre sedan sales (CY) (units) 4,66,781 5,00,000 4,56,551 3,98,944 4,10,086 4,00,000 3,38,159 3,00,000 2,13,874 2,00,000 1,00,000 0 2015 2016 2017 sedan),India’s first sub-4 metre sedan. Soon, Maruti Suzuki madethesegmentpopularwith the Swift Dzire,and global carmakers jumped in, from Hyundai (Xcent,Aura) to Honda (Amaze) and from Ford (Aspire) 2018 2019 2020 Source: SIAM; company data toVolkswagen(Ameo). However, from the peak of 4,56,551 units sold in CY2015, sub-4metresedansalesdropped tojust2,13,874unitsinCY2020. Continued on Page 12 ■ Government has been ■ Unless business creates ■ This government ■ Final utilisation of funds FE BUREAU New Delhi, February 13 FE BUREAU New Delhi, February 13 funds won’t be a constraint should there be a fresh surge in demand.Whilethegovernment has budgeted `73,000 crore for the NREGS for FY22,it will allocatemorefunds,ifrequired. VODAFONE IDEA HAS narrowed its net loss to `4,540.8 crore for the October-December 2020 quarter,primarily due to one-time gain of `1,697 crore, which includes gains made on sale of stake in Indus Towers. The company had reported a net loss of `7,203.4 crore in the preceding July-September period. The loss for the reported period is also much lower than Bloomberg estimates of a net loss of `5,879.70 crore. OIL AND NATURAL Gas Corporation (ONGC) reportedaprofitof`3,763.5croreonaconsolidated basis for the quarter ended December,31.1% less thantheprofitmadeinthesameperiodayearago, mainlyonthestate-runoilandgasproducingcompany’s lower crude price realisation and underrecoveriesinthegasbusiness.Thecompany’sboard, on Saturday,has approved creation of new subsidiaryformarketing and trading natural gas.The boardhasalsodecidedtopayaninterimdividendof `1.75oneachequityshareof`5. Continued on Page 12 Continued on Page 12 Continued on Page 12 working for the poor, the middle class and even small businesses doesn’t hesitate to acknowledge contribution of wealth creators to nation building The minister indicated the final utilisation of funds earmarked for the national rural employmentguaranteescheme (NREGS) may be lower than the revised estimate of `1,11,500 crore for FY21.Still,the allocationhasbeenkepthightoensure wealth, government has nothing to distribute to the poor earmarked for NREGS may be lower than revised estimate of `1,11,500 crore for FY21 Vi loss narrows to `4,540 cr ONGC profit falls 31% DEAL ON CARDS ByteDance in talks to sell Indian TikTok assets BLOOMBERG February 13 Talking terms '' BYTEDANCE LTD IS said to be QuickPicks Statehood to JK at appropriate time, says Amit Shah HOME MINISTER Amit Shah asserted in Lok Sabha on Saturday that the government has done more for Jammu and Kashmir since Article 370 was scrapped in August 2019 than those who ruled it for generations, even as he assured that the Centre will grant full statehood to the union territory at an appropriate time, reports PTI. Railways freight loading rises 8% to 46.27 MT in Feb THE INDIAN RAILWAYS achieved freight loading of 46.27 MTin the first 12 days of February, as compared to 42.87 MTfor the same period in 2020, a rise of 8% over last year, reports FE Bureau. Freight revenue of IR in the first 12 days of February 2021 stood at `4,571 cr as compared to `43,65 cr for the same period in 202021, an increase of almost 5%. “Railways achieved this turnaround due to an extraordinary set of new initiatives,” a statement said. exploring a sale of the India operations of TikTok to rival unicorn Glance, in an attempt to resuscitate the once-thriving short video sharing app that’s been banned indefinitely in the country. The discussions have been initiated by Japan’s SoftBank conglomerate, according to people familiar with the talks, who declined to be identified because the talks are private as wellasearlyandcomplex.SoftBank is a backer of Glance’s parent as well as TikTok’s Chinese parent,ByteDance. Thediscussionsinvolvefour sides,the people said.The talks are between SoftBank, ByteDance and Glance and any deal will need a final seal of approval from Indian authorities.Indiabannedthousandsof Chineseapps,includingTikTok, lastyearfollowing intense hostilityontheIndia-Chinaborder. ■ May sell to Bengalurubased Glance Some brands Sonu Sood endorses ● Bags several brands after philanthropy VENKATA SUSMITA BISWAS Mumbai, February 13 OFTHETOP ninepostsonBolly- andtakenote,ropinghimasan endorserin 2020 and 2021. AutomotivebrandslikeJeep, laundrydetergentbrandWoosh, maker of personal computers Acer and most recently,leading smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi,have leveraged Sood for the goodwill he has earned over the past year to promote their brands.His endorsement kitty has grown fatter, including brandslikeSpiceMoney,Shyam Steel, Lenskart, Oyo, ISM To get blemish free skin use NO SCARS. It helps to reduce ■ SoftBank is a backer of Glance’s parent InMobi as well as TikTok’s Chinese parent ByteDance and remove, scars and marks. ■ India likely to insist that user data and tech stay within its borders SoftBank and ByteDance didn’trespondtoemailsseeking comment outside of business hours. A Glance spokesman declinedto comment. If the talks progress, the Indian government will insist that user data and technology of TikTok stay within its borders,said the people familiar. Messiah Sonu Sood darling of brands too wood actor Sonu Sood’s Instagram feed, seven are photos or videos on behalf of brands. In comparison, for leading actor RanveerSingh,onlythreeoutof thetopninepostslinktobrands. A simplistic comparison as itmaybe,itisatestamenttothe popularity of Sood as a brand ambassador.His efforts to help migrantsandneedysectionsof society during the pandemic havemadeseveralbrandssitup '' don’t bother for scars any more. EduTech,mfineandMPL. The actor’s humanitarian workduringtheinitialmonthsof thepandemicin2020madehim a messiah of sorts for stranded migrant workers.Known for his roles as the bad guyon the silver screen, Sood was even awarded theSpecialHumanitarianAction Award by the United Nations Development Programme in September last year.Sood went on to launch a job portal for migrant workers who lost jobs calledPravasiRojgar(nowGoodWorker) and distributed smartphonestoaidstudentsinavillage in Haryana.“Compared to other celebrities,Soodwasseenhelping peopleonthegroundduringthe pandemic earning the epithet ‘People’sHero’. Continued on Page 12 100r% ue P rian a Veget ap So Get dazzling Glamour with... PREMIUM QUALITY SOAP Long Lasting Premium Quality Soap Nothing makes a woman more beautiful than the belief that she is beautiful. This belief paves the way to real beauty inside which reflects outside. NO SCARS BEAUTY SOAP helps making your skin look soft and radiant. 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