OPINION, P2 SPOTLIGHT ACROSS THE AISLE , P CHIDAMBARAM Despite the pandemic, art has thrived, and its consumption has undergone changes. Art curation has also got a new meaning amid the digital boom. Does this set a new paradigm for creative collaborations? Page 5 Precious resource in peril WORDSWORTH ART CURATION IN THE PANDEMIC Vol XVIII, No.32 Of Nehru & debates The ex-PM’s communications with leaders of his time remind us how India still grapples with festering issues P4 LEISURE Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM THE MURAL MAKERS FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2021, 12 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 , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , TELECOM TARIFFS Bharti, Vi likely to hike postpaid rates QuickPicks Communist party bashes US democracy CHINA'S COMMUNIST Party has taken US democracy to task, criticising a global democracy summit being hosted by US President Joe Biden next week, reports AP. P11 ODD & EVEN ● Telcos not at risk as pricing plays very limited role in purchase decisions in this segment KIRAN RATHEE New Delhi, December 4 AFTER HIKING PREPAID tariffs, telecom operators may look at raising rates in the postpaid segment also shortly.It makes sense for Bharti Airtel and VodafoneIdeatoraisetariffsin ROHNIT PHORE IDEA WHOSE TIME HAS COME ■ Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea have a meaningful presence in postpaid segment ■ Moreover, customer stickiness is high in the postpaid segment the postpaid segment because they have a meaningful presence here. Further, customer stickiness is high in the postpaid segment and pricing plays a very limited role in the purchasingdecision,so raising tariffs does notlead to a churn, ■ Hence, rate hike makes sense for these 2 telcos ■ Postpaid market is worth around `22,000 cr in revenue terms; it forms 15% of sector revenues as per estimates something which is a possibility in the prepaid segment. Bharti Airtel had hiked tariffs in the postpaid segment for corporate users in July and also tweaked its family plan. Continued on Page 11 Farmers form panel for talks with government THE SAMYUKTA KISAN Mor- cha (SKM) on Saturday formed a five-member panel for dialogue with the government on their pending demands, including MSP, compensation to kin of farmers who died during the movement against the agri laws and withdrawal of cases against the protesters,farmer leader Rakesh Tikait said Saturday.Tikait said that the next meeting of the Morcha will take place on December 7 to decide the future course of the movement. SKM leaders said they will not move from the Singhu Borderhere until cases filed against farmers arewithdrawn and demanded an assurance in writing. PTI READ TO LEAD H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , Unhealthy speculation on crypto: FM PRESS TRUST OF INDIA New Delhi, December 4 ASSERTINGTHATA lotofspecu- lation is taking place on cryptocurrencies, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said these speculations are not “healthy at all”. Her comments come against the backdropofthegovernmentpreparingtocomeoutwithlegislation to regulate cryptocurrencies. Speaking at the HT Leadership Summit, she said there is certainly a well consulted bill which is coming in Parliament aftertheCabinetnod.“Thereisa lot of speculation...that’s not healthyatall,”shesaidinareply toaquestionifshethinksthata lot of unregulated speculation is taking place on crypto. On economic growth, SitharamansaidtheGDPnumber this year would be very encouraging and India would emerge as the fastest growing large economy in the world. With regard to food inflation, she said, there are supply constraints because of floods in some parts of the countryleading to price rise of perishable products. She, however, hoped that prices of those commodities in short supply would cool down by January. On edible oil, she said, enough and more imports have been allowed and that should take care of the spike in prices. 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 Two more Omicron cases in India A 72-YEAR-OLD MAN has been found infected with the Omicron variant of coronavirus in Jamnagar city of Gujarat, days after he arrived in the state from Zimbabwe, a high-risk country, the health department said on Saturday. In Maharashtra,a manwho travelled to Mumbai from South Africa via Dubai and Delhi was found positive for Omicron, said the state health department director. This takes tally of Omicron cases to four in the country. Two persons were earlier found infectedwith this strain in Karnataka. PTI Aworker sanitises the premises of the Taj Mahal in Agra, on Saturday PTI Local brands drive smartwatch demand ● Growth high with record level shipments FE BUREAU New Delhi, December 4 SMARTWATCH SHIPMENTS IN Indiahittheirhighest-evertally of about 4.4 million units during the July-September quarter thiscalendaryearaslocalbrands intensified market penetration withmultiplelaunchoffersand discounts.Thefallintheaverage selling prices of smartwatches also helpeddrive the rally. According to Counterpoint Research, India’s smartwatch India smartwatch market: Share of top 5 brands (in %) Q3 2020 4 Others 12 9 (in %) Q3 2021 25 24 17 30 21 7 5 24 Others 22 Source: India Smartwatch Shipments Model Tracker, Q3 2021; Counterpoint Research market registered its highest ever shipments in Q3 2021 to post a record Q-o-Q growth of 159%. On an annual basis, the growthwas 293%. Top three brands contributedtoalmosttwo-thirdsof the total marketwith Counterpointattributingthegrowthto promotionsacrossvariousplatformsalongwithnewlaunches, which contributed to around 28% of the total market in terms of shipments. Counterpoint’s senior research analyst Anshika Jain told FE,“Q3 is a crucial period for smartwatch players as this is the time when they witness highest growth. Continued on Page 11 “ Gao Miyan Malhar Yaa Bhimpalasi, Cough Syrup Hai Toh Alvida T Khansi “ HYDERABAD Public art during pandemic has helped society ease dayto-day pressure on people P7 /TorexSyrup COUGH SYRUP HAI TO ALVIDA KHANSI For more information, please contact : +91 97792 14455, +91 73199 35154 (Whatsapp) / care@torquepharma.com HYDERABAD