OPINION, P2 MIND & GAMES The pressure society places on today’s kids to learn more skills at ever younger ages can feel overwhelming, if not totally bonkers Page 10 Besides economy, freedom is sliding FE LNES Wine-producing regions likeThailand & Indonesia could soon replace the world’s best vineyards Page 6 ARE EXPENSIVE ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN A RIP-OFF? ACROSS THE AISLE , P CHIDAMBARAM Wine country shift LEISURE Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL XV NO. 39 ANISH KAPOOR FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY AHMEDABAD SUNDAY, MARCH 7, 2021, 14 Pages, `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 ■ SPOTLIGHT, P7 Bend it like grandma Age is no bar when it comes to starting one’s own business and becoming selfsufficient, as some senior citizens have proved. Ahead of Women’s Day, we look at a few ‘super grandmoms’ from across the country who are successfully running and mentoring their own ventures ■ WORDS WORTH, P4 Of democracy & dissent Is democracy dead was one of the hot issues at the recent Jaipur Litfest ODD & EVEN ROHNIT PHORE C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , ‘In India,we seem to have descended into a nasty nationalist blame game’ Page 5 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 , M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E CONSUMER FRIENDLY Fresh spectrum purchase to further delay tariff hike ● Jio, Bharti to focus on market share gains first, increasing pain for Vodafone Idea TELECOM TALE Though Vodafone Idea's spectrum holding is good after the merger in 2018, it is likely to face constraint in network investment due to delay in tariff hikes Prior to the auctions, Vodafone Idea had said that it would not wait for other telecom players to raise tariffs FE BUREAU New Delhi, March 6 Bharti's tariffs are around 1520% higher than Jio's and it has said in the past that it would only raise tariffs ifJio does it first THE RECENT SPECTRUM auc- tionswhichsawRelianceJioand BhartiAirtelemergingasmajor buyers and fortifying their holdings,is likely to delay tariff hikes further, thus increasing the pain for Vodafone Idea. Vodafone Idea spent the least andboughttheleastintheauctions and though its overall spectrumholdingisgooddueto the merger in 2018, its constraint regarding network investment would continue in theeventofdelayintariffhikes. Most analysts feel that since Jio has increased its capacity with the fresh buys from the auction,its first focus would be selling it by gaining more subscribers. As it is the company is trailing BhartiAirtel for the past several months intermsofnetsubscriberaddi- Anaylysts say Bharti's spectrum acquisitions in sub 1GHz in Maharashtra and MP and focus on B-circles reflect its focus on gaining market share tion. Bharti Airtel has also acquired fresh spectrum in B circles, where its marketshare is currently weak, so it would also focus on scaling up here rather than go for tariff hikes. As it is Bharti's tariffs are around 15-20% higher than Jio's and it has stated in the past that it would only raise tariffs if Jio does it first. "Reliance Jio’s hefty spectrum spends of `57,122.65 crore and Bharti's approach of acquiringmorespectruminits Jio is keen to raise tariffs, but in the near term, its focuswould be gaining subscribers weaker markets do not bode wellforthetariffenvironment. Jiomayprioritisesellingexcess capacity created due to its spectrum purchase, thus delaying tariff hikes. Further, with Bharti acquiring over 50% spectrum B-circleswhere itsmarketshareislow,itsfocus on market share gains is clear,” brokerage Jefferieswrote in its report upon conclusion of the spectrum.“Given that Jio has the highest tower and fiber on network, spectrum purchase will enhance its capacity. Jio is likelyto focus on selling excess capacity as marginal cost of unitdata/voiceisnegligiblefor telcos.Moreover,BhartiAirtel’s spectrum acquisitions in sub 1GHz in Maharashtra and MP — the keymarkets ofVodafone Idea — and focus on B-circles reflect its focus on gaining share,”it added. The view is shared by BofA Securities,whichsaid,“Theinitiative for tariff hike should largely come from Vodafone Idea as it is the most in need of it. Jio management is unlikely to take a knee-jerk reaction of raising tariffs just because it spent more in auctions; while in medium-term Jio is keen to raise tariffs, we believe in the near term, its focus could be gaining subscribers. Both Jio and Bharti, in our view, will focus on improving their marketshareintheneartermgiven theirstrongerbalancesheetsas compared toVodafone Idea.” Prior to the auctions,Vodafone Idea management had said that it would not wait for other telecom players to raise tariffs and would increase the same when it feels the time is right. Continued on Page 11 Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama receives the first dose of vaccine in Dharamshala on Saturday COVID SURGE Step up vaccination, Centre tells states PRESS TRUST OF INDIA New Delhi, March 6 THE CENTRE HAS asked states and Union territories witnessing surge in new Covid-19 cases and high active caseload to continue with the strategy of “test, track and treat” that hadyielded rich dividendsearlier and accelerate vaccination for priority population groups in districts reporting higher infections on mission mode. In a meeting held on Saturday,theyhavebeenaskedtocollaborate with private hospitals to open up vaccination timetableforaminimumof15days and maximum of 28 days at a time.They have been asked to increase the share of RT-PCR tests in districts dependent on high levels of antigen testing, refocus on surveillance and stringentcontainmentofthose areaswhichareseeingclusterof cases and carry out an average close contact tracing of minimumof20personsperpositive case. Union health secretary RajeshBhushanandNITIAayog member (health) VK Paul on Saturdayinteractedwithhealth secretaries and mission directorsoftheNationalHealthMission of Haryana, Andhra Pradesh,Odisha,Goa,Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Delhi and Chandigarh. Continued on Page 11 QuickPicks Fin panel chose predictability in tax devolution to states: Singh THE 15TH FINANCE Commission opted for continuity and predictability and hence retained the share of tax devolution to states at 41% of the total pool, its chairman NK Singh said on Saturday, reports PTI. The Commission weighed all the options considering that the fiscal space of both states and the Centre has shrunk due to pandemic. PAGE 3 '' don’t bother for scars any more. '' US COMPLAINT MOVING ON FB under probe for racial bias Warehousing on recovery path REUTERS March 6 down shook up the warehousing industry, throwing supply lines into disarray, the sector’s growth story remains intact as growing demand from segments like e-commerce, retail andFMCGisleadingcompanies to concentrate on supply chain riskmitigationandresilience,as well as fasterlast-mile delivery. Arecentstudybyconsulting firm Praxis Global Alliance said thatinpre-Covidtimes,Grade-A and B warehouse in India grew at 18% CAGR over FY 20182020. Going ahead, e-com- A US AGENCY investigating Facebook for racial bias in hiring and promotions has designated the probe as ‘systemic’, attorneys for three job applicantsandamanagerwhoclaim the company discriminated against them,told Reuters. A ‘systemic’ probe means the agency,the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, suspects company policies may be contributing to widespread discrimination. The EEOC typicallyresolves disputesthroughmediationor allowing complainants to sue employers.Butagencyofficials designateafewcases‘systemic’, enabling investigators to rope in specialists to analyse companydataandpotentiallybring a broader lawsuit representing entire classes of workers. Facebook operations programme manager Oscar Veneszee Jrand two applicants denied jobs brought a charge last July to the EEOC, and a third rejected applicant joined the case in December. They have alleged Facebook discriminates against Black candidates and employees byrelying on subjective evaluations and promoting problematic racial stereotypes. The designation of the EEOC’s probe has not been previously reported. The EEOC has not brought allegationsagainstFacebook.Its investigation, which may last monthsmore,maynotresultin findings of wrongdoing. The agencydeclined to comment. Continued on Page 11 RISHI RANJAN KALA New Delhi, March 6 EVEN AS COVID and the lock- Grade A&B warehouse supply grew at ~18% CAGR over FY18-20 Grade A&B warehouse supply in 7 key industries (M sqft) CAGR 18% 198 FY18 274 232 FY19 FY20 Source: Praxis Global Alliance merceandretailareexpectedto pushdemandforGrade-AandB warehouses,whichareexpected to grow at a much faster pace between FY2018 and 2025. It forecasts that demand for Grade-Awarehousingislikelyto grow at a CAGR of 25% from 107 million sq ft (MSF) to 325 MSF between FY20 to FY25, whiledemandforGrade-Bwarehouses will grow at 20% CAGR from 167 MSFto 419 MSFduringtheperiodunderreview. PraxisGlobalAlliance’sreport projects that warehousing stock for e-commerce is likelyto grow from56MSFinFY20to227MSF inFY25,whileretailwarehousing isexpectedtogrowfromcloseto 60MSFtoaround205MSFduringthesameperiod. To get blemish free skin use NO SCARS. It helps to reduce and remove, scars and marks. Continued on Page 11 ENGAGING CONSUMERS New retail rules: E-commerce shifting to interactive comm ● Platforms with integrated content, discoverability, purchase could be the future FE BUREAU New Delhi, March 6 WITH DEEP-POCKETED play- ers betting big on e-commerce,the sectoris bracing for more competition.Adeluge of cheap smartphones is pushing more Indians to go online and the usual tactics of offering affordable deals, discounts and convenience of cash on GAME CHANGER Content-led platforms like Facebook andYouTube record a daily active user base of 135-175 million delivery may not work anymore. The future of e-commerce needs to be‘interactive’, say analysts at Zinnov. To put it simply,companies will have to curate a blended model — embedding content to drive consumer engagement, allowing easy discoverability of products and sup- 100r% ue P rian a Veget ap So Flipkart is launching ideas, videos and games in its quest for higher engagement Facebook has announced Facebook Shops, a feature for businesses to create their digital storefront porting a network of influencers and communityparticipation.If firms are able to play the cards right,they can grab a bigger share of the e-commerce market, estimated to touch a significant $200 billion by 2026. Continued on Page 11 PREMIUM QUALITY SOAP Get dazzling Glamour with... PTI 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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