BACK PAGE, P24 COMPANIES, P4 INTERNATIONAL, P7 WPL AT $150 MN ON DEBUT ROLLOUT FOR BUSINESSES ALLEGATIONS AGAINST NSA IPL business enterprise value increases to $11.2 billion in 2023 WhatsApp users can now book appointments, pay businesses within app China accuses US of hacking Huawei servers since 2009 NEW DELHI, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2023 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL XLIX NO. 175, 40 PAGES, `12.00 (PATNA & RAIPUR `12.00) P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 66,800.84 ▼ 796.00 NIFTY: 19,901.40 ▼ 231.90 NIKKEI 225: 33,023.78 ▼ 218.81 HANG SENG: 17,885.60 ▼ 111.57 `/$: 83.08 ▲ 0.19 `/€: 88.88 ▼ 0.01 BRENT: $93.43 ▼ $0.91 GOLD: `59,113 ▲ `18 IN THE NEWS MODI INVITES BIDEN AS CHIEF GUEST FOR REPUBLIC DAY PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA Modi has invited US President Joe Biden as the chief guest for Republic Day celebrations on January 26 next year, US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said on Wednesday. Modi extended the invitation during their bilateral meeting on September 8. ■ PAGE 23 MANIPALACQUIRES AMRI HOSPITALS FOR `2,450 CRORE MANIPAL HOSPITALS, THE country's secondlargest hospital chain, on Wednesday said it has acquired 84% stake in AMRI Hospitals, with Emami group divesting its majority stake for around `2,450 crore, reports Mithun Dasgupta. ■ PAGE 5 MEATELLS INDIANS IN CANADATO EXERCISE CAUTION THE CENTRE ON Wednesday urged Indian nationals in Canada, especially students, to exercise "utmost caution" as ties deteriorated after each nation expelled diplomats in an escalating row over the murder of a Sikh separatist leader. ■ PAGE 2 NPS COMMITTEE WEIGHING PENSION GUARANTEE THE COMMITTEE ON the National Pension System (NPS) may suggest ways to address the demand for a guaranteed pension under the NPS for government staff at a decent level, without burdening the exchequer too much, reports Prasanta Sahu. ■ PAGE 2 OLA ELECTRIC AIMS AT IPO FILING BY OCTOBER-END Ola Electric plans to file regulatory papers for its up to $700 million IPO before the end of October as the e-scooter maker fast-tracks its listing move. Ola Electric has asked external advisers on the IPO to give "utmost priority" to meet a five-week deadline. ■ PAGE 22 FE S P E C I A L S ‘GenAI is now mainstream tech’ RUPEE NEARS RECORD LOW INTRADAY LOK SABHA SCRIPTS HISTORY Akasa to fly less but stick to quality, says CEO Fed keeps Indian markets on edge SIDDHANT MISHRA Mumbai, September 20 EQUITIES SOLD OFF sharply on Wednesdayeven as the rupeeweakenedtoanearrecordlowinintraday trades and bond yields fell slightly as the markets nervously awaited a decision from the US Federal Reserve’s on policy rates. “While the Fed is expected to pause,forthe secondtime,thecommentary could be hawkish and that’s probably prompted some investors to take risk off the table,” said a senior fund manager. Falling for the second straight session, the BSE Sensex tumbled 796 points or 1.18% to settle at 66,800.84; intra-daythe gauge had tanked 868.7 points The broader NSE Nifty lost 231.90 points or 1.15% to end belowthe psychological 20,000 mark at 19,901.40. The rupee closed at 83.0725 against the dollar,stronger than on Mondayafterhitting83.27inintradaytrades.Dealers said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) supplied dollars, stopping the currency from hitting a record low. Besides, the sentiment also improvedaftercrudeoilpriceseased. In the past few sessions the depreciatingrupeehaspromptedimporters to purchase dollars,dealers said. Continued on Page 22 Sept 18, 2023 67,596.8 Bharti Airtel -20.8 (-2.6) MUKESH JAGOTA New Delhi, September 20 SAMSUNG INDIA WILL soon receive around`500croreas incentive forFY21 — stuck foroverayear — under the smartphone production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, official sources said. Sources said that though the electronics major had claimed incentive of around `900 crore, after reconciling invoices, it has been found that the company is entitled for payment of around `500 crore. “The matter has now been settled. The company will be getting around `500 crore,” an official requesting anonymity said. When contacted, a Samsung India spokesperson said, “We are currently in advanced stage of discussions with government of India ontheincentivepayout.Samsungis a committed partner of India for over26years.As the leading smartphoneplayer,wehavebeenworking closelywithvarious stakeholders to make the PLI scheme a success”. Samsung was the only firm to qualify for incentives for FY21 as it ICICI Bank -20.9 (-2.6) L&T RIL -29.5 -163.3 (-3.7) HDFC Bank -431.8 (-20.5) (-54.3) 796 points 1.18% Leading contributors to Sensex fall Points (% contribution) Nifty Sept 18, 2023 20,133.3 Sept 20 (close) 19,901.4 Sept 20 (close) 66,800.8 Rupee 83.0 83.1 83.2 83.3 Previous close: 83.27 Inverted scale 83.08 83.22 10-yr govt bond yield (%) 7.20 7.19 Previous close: 7.19 7.19 7. 7.18 7.18 7.17 Open Close PLI: Govt to clear Samsung’s dues To pay `500 cr against firm’s `900-cr claim FE BUREAU New Delhi, September 20 CARNAGE ON D-STREET Sensex PENDING BILL `900 cr ■ Samsung Incentive claimed by Samsung only firm to qualify for FY21 incentives `500 cr ■ Disburse- 7.16 Open Close Infy, Nvidia collaborate on AI tech SAMEER RANJAN BAKSHI Benagluru, September 20 had achieved the incremental production and sales target set by the government.However,its claimwas stuck due to discrepancies found by the government in its invoices. Global companies like Samsung need to make phones priced higher than `15,000 to be eligible for incentives under the scheme,apart from meeting incremental production and sales target. AFTER COLLABORATING WITH Reliance Industries andTata group, US-based chip maker Nvidia on Wednesday partnered IT major Infosys to help enterprises drive productivity gains with generative AI applications and solutions. Infosys plans to set up an Nvidia centre of excellence where 50,000 employeeswill be trained and certified on Nvidia’s AI technologies. Nvidia’sAI enterpriseecosystem of models,tools,runtimes,and GPU systems will be brought to Infosys’s AI-first offeringTopaz.Through the integration,Infosyswillcreateofferings customers can adopt to integrate generative AI into their businesses,Infosys said in a statement. Infosys uses a full-stack Nvidia generative AI platform, including hardware and enterprise-grade software,across its business operations, and helps customers create generative AI applications. The two companies said this collaborationwill extend to digitalisation application with a focus on developing solutions forenterprise use cases across 3D workflows, design collaboration, digital twin, world simulation and others. Continued on Page 7 Continued on Page 22 Payment it is entitled to after reconciling invoices, as per govt mentwas stuck due to discrepancies in its invoices Women’s quota Bill gets green signal from LS THE FLEDGLINGAKASAAir,which has seen a spate of pilot resignations,onWednesdaysaid it has chosen to fly less and give up market share in the short term to offercustomers a more reliable network. The carrier recently approached theDelhihighcourtseekingadirection to the Directorate General of CivilAviation (DGCA) to take action againstpilotswholeftwithoutserving the mandatory notice period. In an email to employees, CEO Vinay Dube said that in the last 30 days,the airline has rationalised its network to ensure that it continues to offer its customers the highest levels of operationalreliability, as it did for the first 11 months of its operation. He said as on date, the airline has enough pilots at various stages of train- Vinay Dube, ing to flyover30 CEO, Akasa Air aircraft.“We are INSIDE poised to take Nod to delivery of additional aircraft in overseas theremainderof flights this fiscal year ■ PAGE 5 and expand our domestic and international footprint. We also remain on track to announceathree-digitaircraftorder before the end of theyear.” He said that when“a small set of pilots abandoned their duties and left without serving their mandatory contractual notice period”, it resultedinlastminuteflightcancellationsbetweenJulyandSeptember. Continued on Page 7 Union home minister Amit Shah speaks in the Lok Sabha during the special session of Parliament on Wednesday VIKAS PATHAK, LIZ MATHEW & DEEPTIMAN TIWARY New Delhi, September 20 CLEARING THE DECKS for a landmark legislation on 33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies, the Lower House on Wednesday passed the women’s reservation Bill. The Constitution (One Hundred andTwenty-SixthAmendment)Bill, 2023,was passed with Union home minister Amit Shah declaring that “the empowerment of women is a matter of principle, not a political weapon”for“our leader Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party”. Wrappingup adiscussionon the Bill introduced on Tuesday in Lok Sabha,Shah,inhisreply,assuredthe House of a“transparent process”to identify the seats to be reserved for women. Responding to apprehensions of delay in the Bill’s implementation,Shah said the next government will conduct the census and delimitation exercise immedi- PTI ately after the elections, and set in motion the process to make reservation forwomen in Lok Sabha and state Assemblies a reality. Describing the Bill,whichwill be taken to Rajya Sabha on Thursday for its clearance, as a “good start”, Shah said “anything incomplete” could be addressed in the future. OnOppositiondemandsthatthe proposed legislation should include a quotafortheOBCs,the homeminister said Parliamentarians are currently elected in three categories — General,ScheduledCasteandScheduledTribe–andtheBillhasincorporated a quota foreach of them. He said the “delimitation process” to decide which constituencyistobereservedforwomen will be “transparent” and it will be done bya delimitation commission. “Ifwe do it andWayanad (Lok Sabha constituency of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi) gets reserved, it would be an issue foryou,”he said. Continued on Page 22 Total to invest $300 mn in new JV with Adani Green RAJESH KURUP Mumbai, September 20 POWERING UP FRENCH PETROLEUM MAJOR TotalEnergies will invest $300 million to form a new 50:50 joint venture with Adani Green Energy (AGEL), which will set up renewableprojectswithtotalcapacity of 1,050 MW. TotalEnergieswould bring in the equity investment, while AGEL — AdaniGroup’srenewableenergyarm —willprovideitsassetstotheJV.The deal will enable AGEL to emerge as the leader in the renewable energy segment,the companysaid. The 1,050 MW portfolio of the JV firm will comprise a mix of already operational 300 MW capacity, under-construction capacity of 500 MW and underdevelopment assets of 250 MW (both solar and wind power), the AGEL statement said. “We are delighted to extend our 1,050 MW portfolio of JVfirm; 50% stake eachwith Adani &Total 500 MW underconstruction, 250 MWunder development wind & solar assets 300 MW of this already operational capacity 19.75% TotalEnergies' stake inAdani Green long-term partnership with TotalEnergies in AGEL. The investment will further strengthen the pivotal role played by AGEL in India’s glide path to decarbonisation. This will help deliver our vision to have 45 GW renewable energy capacity by 2030,”Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani said. TotalEnergies holds a 19.75% stake in AGEL. TotalEnergies’chairmanandCEO Patrick Pouyanne said,“TotalEnergies has been actively developing, notably through AGEL, its presence in the Indian renewable powermarket, a very interesting market by its size and growth and the early development of a merchant market.” “After our first joint-venture — AGEL23 in 2020 — and ouracquisition of shares in AGEL in 2021,this new joint-venture with AGEL will enable us to speed up our development through direct access to a large portfolio of assets and to support the ambition of AGEL in becoming the Indian leader of renewable energy,”he said. Continued on Page 7 LOW RATE FOR OVER-35 GRADUATES RAISES WORRIES OF SKILL MISMATCH India plays a crucial part in SAP’s Asian strategy, says its Asia Pacific and Japan president Paul Marriott 42% unemployment rate among graduates under 25 ■ EFE, P9 FE BUREAU New Delhi, September 20 ■ EXPLAINER, P9 Continued on Page 22 Sources and notes: PLFS 2021-22 25 15 10 5 0 9.8 20 Graduate & above Higher secondary 18.1 30 5 3.1 2.1 35 (Qtr, % chg) Less than 25 years 25−29 years 30−34 years 35−39 years 40 years and above 7.5 4.6 2.4 1.7 40 Women enter self-employment, move away from wage work Secondary New Delhi 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 (%) 21.4 10.6 45 42.3 Unemployment concentrated among educated youth 4.5 1.6 Large banks are expanding business correspondent networks for capital and compliance reasons mentinthisperiod. Effectively,there wasashifttowardsself-employment due to distress and this was accompanied by a fall in the share of both casual and regularwagework. Further, the study notes that afterfalling orbeing stagnant since 2004,thefemaleemploymentrates have risen since 2019 due to a distress-led increase in self-employment.Whilethepre-Covidlevelwas 50%, this went up to 60% post Covid.Theheightenedcompetitiveness following the crowding into the self-employment sector by women who were previously out of the workforce, resulted in a decline in real terms in the earnings from self-employment over this period. 22.8 Banking on business correspondent networks FIRSTTHE GOOD news:Theunemployment rate has declined postCovid-19 for all education levels in India. But the bad news is that it remains above 15% for graduates and has reached as high as 42% for graduates under the age of 25, according to the State of Working India 2023 report published by Azim Premji University. Within the higher educated group, the unemployment rate has fallen to less than 5% forgraduates who are 35 or older.While this suggests that eventually graduates do find somework,the question arises on what the nature of these jobs is and whether these opportunities match their skills and aspirations. The report points out that between 2017 and 2021,there was a slowdown in overall regular wage job creation,but formal jobs (with a written contract and benefits) as a share of all regular wage work rose from 25% to 35%. In 2020-21, during the pandemic,regular wage employment fell by 2.2 million. However, this net change masks an important trend: there was an increaseinformalemploymentby3 million and a loss of about 5.2 million of semi and informal regular wage employment. While half the lostemploymentisaccountedforby women, only a third of the increase in formal employment accrued to women.Inotherwords,innetterms, women lost out on formal employ- Salaried -20 Apr-Jun Oct-Dec Apr-Jun Oct-Dec Apr-Jun Oct-Dec Apr-Jun Oct-Dec Apr-Jun Oct-Dec -10 Casual 0 Self-employed 10 Sources and notes: PLFS various years. Employment is defined based on Current Weekly Status. Each bar indicates the cumulative percent point change as compared to the base quarter of April-June 2018. 20