WORDS WORTH WELL BEING There are no rules, says a new book, only opportunities, which need to be grabbed, sometimes from AI too Page 4 More & more young adults are reporting chronic and consistently worsening aches in their neck and lower back, a condition that once came only with old age Page 9 New rules of work FE LINES NOT JUST GROWING PAINS ‘Humanising’ AI Too artificial? Now there are apps to introduce ‘human’ mistakes Page 8 LEISURE Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL XXI NO. 12 ‘FINETEAREMAINS UNTAPPED IN SASIA’ AHMEDABAD 26 Pages, `12 FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 2026 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 A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , Interview with Dilhan C Fernando, chairman, Dilmah Page 7 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 , 28% F&B space at Lulu’s malls today, up from 10% when its first mall opened in 2013 32% SUGANDHA MUKHERJEE New Delhi, August 29 MALLS ARE INCREASINGLY becoming hangout zones,with food & beverage and entertainment taking up a significantly larger share.The two categories together accounted for around 32% of mall leasing space in H12026,upfromabout20%in 2020, as per Anarock Group. Game on for Asiad With esports featuring as a medal event for the second time at the upcoming Asian Games, we look at India’s prospects and the ecosystem that’s making it possible ■ LIVING, P6 Condiment conundrum ● Jagdishan opts to retire, not seek re-appointment SASHIDHAR JAGDISHAN, MD & CEO of HDFC Bank, has decidednottoseekre-appointment when his term ends on October 26, the country’s largestprivatesectorlendersaid in an exchange filing on Saturday. Jagdishan, who has spent 27yearsatthebank,stucktohis Delhi CNG price rises `3.89/kg ● FMWOOS US INVESTORS CNG prices in Delhi-NCR rose by `3.89/kg on Saturday, the fifth increase this year, amid the West Asia crisis. ■ PAGE 3 NEPAL may need $4-5 billion to rebuild after the devastating floods, Finance Minister SwarnimWagle said. ■ PAGE 22 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Chicago, where she met investors and business leaders, and urged them to make in India for the world ■ PAGE 3 PTI Newmodelstobooste-scooters NEW LAUNCHES IN the coming months promise to accelerate sales of electric scooters, a trend already visible in India’s two-wheeler market. The first launch happened on Saturday, when Ather rode in »INSIDE« D E L H I , the Konarc priced at `99,999. Built on Ather’s new EL platform — short for Enlightened — it is a next-generation EV product designed for the mass market, which aims to pull customers from petrol leaders like the Honda Activa. ATHER TARGETS 2,000 STORES PAGE 3 ■ People looking for places where they can shop, dine, catch movie, spend time with family, discover something new — all in single visit, says Pushpa Bector of DLF Retail 50% Allocation of space by upcoming malls to non-traditional retail such as F&B, entertainment Entertainment,including cinemas, gaming and experiential attractions,hasmorethandoubled its share from 8% to 17%, while F&B has risen from 12% to 15% overthe same period. The shift is reshaping the mallbusinessasdevelopersseek categories that can bring consumers in frequently and keep them there for longer.But data also show that the rise of F&B Bank’s board to fast-track selection and appointment of Jagdishan’s successor. His tenure ends on October 26 decision despite the board urging him to reconsider. “At its meeting held today, theBoardofDirectorstooknote of Mr Sashidhar Jagdishan’s communication to not seek reappointment. Despite persuasion, Mr Jagdishan reiterated his decision to not seek reappointment,”the bank said. The board will now fasttrack the search for a successor, aiming to complete the selection and appointment process well before Jagdishan steps down. Reportedly, HDFC Bank’s new Chairman Rajiv Kumar met Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra last week, with sources saying the meeting was primarily aimed at assessing the board’s position on Jagdishan’s re-appointment. Continued on Page 2 and experiences is not coming primarilyattheexpenseoffashion.Apparelremainsthelargest category,accountingfor33%of Continued on Page 2 TO CHALLENGE PLAN IN NCLAT Lendersupinarms overChandraorder ● LIC HFL, Union and Canara banks join HDFC Bank FE BUREAU Mumbai, August 29 AFTER HDFC BANK, public sector lenders Union Bank of India, Canara Bank and LIC Housing Finance (LIC HFL) have also decided to challenge before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) the order approving a repayment plan for Essel Group founderSubhash Chandra, passed by the National CompanyLawTribunal(NCLT). The lenders had voted against the repayment plan, under which creditors will receive just `6.25 crore against admitted claims of `22,006.57 crore. Continued on Page 2 GSTCouncil tomeeton September12 THE GST COUNCIL is set to meet on September 12, over a yearafterits last meetingwhere significantchangeswereundertaken, including reducing the numberoftaxslabstotwofrom four. The 57th meeting of the CouncilwillbeheldinNewDelhi, withanofficers’meetingscheduled for September 11,as per a GSTCouncilSecretariatnotice. Tax slabs restructured in last meet The Konarc will soon be joined by Simple Energy’s family-focused Simple Wave, Honda’s madein-India QC3, the high-performance Ultraviolette Tesseract, and Yamaha’s expanding electric scooter portfolio. “As GST enters its tenth year,the anticipated 57th GST Council meeting assumes significance far beyond another round of tax rate changes or procedural amendments,”said Manoj Mishra,partnerand tax controversy management leader,GrantThorntonBharat. Continued on Page 2 Continued on Page 2 ● ANIL CHADHA, MANAGING DIRECTOR, ITC HOTELS ‘Our push is premium; a budget brand just food for thought’ Less than two years ofbecoming an independent company,ITC Hotels is staying its course as a premium brand,with plans to expand aggressively both domestically and abroad.Managing director AnilChadha speaks with IvinderGill on the road ahead, new brands,impact ofAI,and more.Edited excerpts: At250hotelsand22,000 roomsby2031,whatwillITC Hotelslooklikeeconomically?Yourmanaged portfoliowillgrow from8,600to15,000 keysbythen,which makesitabouttwothirdoftotalassets. It’s been awonderful journeysince last January.Todaywe are at a 40:60 ratio of owned THE FIVE-YEAR PLAN ■ To allocate ■ From of cumulative revenue towards capital allocation owned vs managed assets, a target of 33:67 ratio 10-12% 40:60 ratio of ■ In final stages of hotel deal in Dubai, more hotels in proximal markets of Sri Lanka, Nepal and managed assets, whichwe aspire to take to 33:67 in fiveyears.We signed 87 hotels in the past threeyears,and opened more than 29 hotels in the last twoyears.Forourown portfoliowe are at 5,700 keys & P U N E mall leasing space in H12026, comparedwith 35% in 2020. The biggest loser has been the department store and hypermarket,whose share has collapsed from 14% to 4% over the same period, shows Anarock data.“Entertainment is the standout, growing the fastest of all categories over this period and now sitting at its highest sustained share (17%) since the 2022 postCovid spike,” said Anuj Kejriwal, CEO, retail and CEOEurope, Middle East & Africa, Anarock Group. SHUBHAM RANA New Delhi, August 29 Nepal may need $4-5 bn to rebuild VIKRAM CHAUDHARY New Delhi, August 29 space in H12026, growing from about 20% in 2020 HDFCBankCEOtostepdown KSHIPRA PETKAR Mumbai, August 29 A Gen Z navigates new-age supermarket aisles, and returns both excited and intimidated N E W No chores,it’s food,fun and games at the mall ● Supermarkets HANGOUT HUBS Share of F&B, slow, F&B and entertainment entertainment up in mall leasing ■ SPOTLIGHT, P5 M U M B A I , ■ Aiming for 50-55% premiumisation of portfolio from current 40-42% 875 keys operational in religious sites, with another 1,400 signed today,whichwe have to take to 7,500 keys.Of this,900 are alreadysigned.In the managed portfolio,we have to go from 8,600 to 15,000 keys,which is 1,200-1,300 keys ayear,and we are completelyon track to achieve this target. Whatproportionofrevenue doyouexpectmanagement feestocontributebythen? We earned a management fee of `135 crore in FY25,and had set a target to make it 2.5x in three-five years.So we are targeting maybe around `350 crore. Amongthese250hotels, whichbrandswillyoufocus onandforwhichgeographies.Whataboutexpansion abroadafterColomboand Nepal?Youhavetalkedabout Middle-Eastandproximal markets.WhataboutEurope, USandsouth-eastAsia? I’ll be happytoventure there,but onlywhenwe have something in hand. Continued on Page 2 Ahmedabad