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lic: LIC IPO price band fixed at Rs 902-949, issue size Rs 21,000 crore

lic: LIC IPO price band fixed at Rs 902-949, issue size Rs 21,000 crore


NEW DELHI: The Life Insurance Corporation‘s (LIC‘s) initial public offering (IPO) size will have a price band of Rs 902 to Rs 949, resulting in the issue size being between Rs 20,000 crore and Rs 21,000 crore, depending on the final price, making it the country’s largest IPO even after being scaled down due to choppy market conditions triggered by the war in Ukraine.
Policyholders will be eligible for a Rs 60 discount on the issue price while employees and other retail investors will get a value of Rs 45, sources said after the insurance behemoth’s board approved the details. The discount works out to just below 10%, for which an enabling provision was included when the government amended the Life Insurance Corporation Act. As reported by TOI, the IPO will open on May 2 for anchor investors. It will be open for public subscription between May 4 and May 9.
The 22.13 crore shares being offered represent 3.5% of the total capital base of the corporation that is being divested by the government. Of this, 2.21 crore shares (10% of the issue size) are reserved for policyholders while 15 lakh shares are reserved for employees. Of the remaining shares, 50% are reserved for qualified institutional buyers, and retail (35%) and non-institutional investors (15%).
Of the portion reserved for QIBs, 60% is for anchor investors, indicating that the anchor book will be around Rs 6,300 crore only – smaller than the Rs 8,300-crore anchor book in the case of Paytm IPO. The issue price values the corporation at Rs 6 lakh crore at the upper end and Rs 5.7 lakh crore at the lower end of price band. This is around 1.1 times the corporation’s embedded value of Rs 5.4 lakh crore as of September.
According to sources, the government has scaled down its expectation of participation by foreign investors and is focusing more on expanding the domestic investor base. The bid lot size of 15 shares will enable participation with less than Rs 15,000 crore investment. Investment banking sources said that LIC is looking at retail participation of Rs 10,000 crore.
LIC had already conducted roadshows online with investors across the world in March. It will now do a fresh round of presentations providing details of the revised offer. The top management will meet with investors on Wednesday in Mumbai. Other zonal offices have also been asked to hold meetings to promote the issue. Meanwhile, digital brokerage firms see this as an opportunity to expand their customer base as many new-to-equity investors are expected to participate. The reduction in the size of the dilution might impact its possible inclusion in indices. According to Edelweiss Alternatives and Quantitative Research, the PSU insurer will not immediately make an early inclusion in any of the widely tracked passive indices.





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lic: LIC IPO may open on May 4, aims to raise Rs 21,000 crore


NEW DELHI: The initial public offering (IPO) of state-run insurance behemoth LIC, the country’s largest-ever, is likely to open on May 4. The hope is to raise Rs 21,000 crore by diluting a 3.5% stake, sources said on Monday.
The most awaited issue may open for anchor investors on May 2 and the overall issue may close on May 9. Sources said the dates would be formally announced on Wednesday morning or Tuesday late evening. Keeping the choppy market conditions in view, the government has decided to dilute 3.5% from the earlier planned 5%. In terms of size, it is bigger than the Paytm IPO of Rs 16,600 crore.
To ensure that the shares are attractive to retail investors and to leave some money on the table for listing gains, the government has settled for a lower valuation of Rs 6 lakh crore. Earlier, the market had expected the government to sell shares valuing the corporation at around Rs 12 lakh crore. At a Rs 6-lakhcrore valuation, a 3.5% stake would fetch Rs 21,000 crore.
Officials have defended the valuation, saying it is fair and attractive based on detailed feedback from analysts and experts. They have also said that in China, companies similar to LIC are trading at a multiple of 1.1 times their embedded value (EV), and at Rs 6 lakh crore, LIC’s valuation is 1.1 times its EV. The EV( embedded value), a measure used to value life companies, is the net asset value plus the present value of future profits.
The LIC IPO is the centerpiece of the government’s plans to raise Rs 65,000 crore from disinvestment in state-run companies in the current fiscal year. The Centre had earlier planned to list the insurance giant in the fourth quarter of 2021-22, but choppy market conditions triggered by Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine derailed those plans.
The government decided to wait for some order to return in the stock market before moving ahead with the listing. It has a window available till May 12 based on the earlier filing to list LIC shares.
There has been strong interest in LIC’s IPO given the importance of the insurance giant in the lives of citizens. LIC has been running a campaign to get retail investors who have not participated in the capital markets to open demat accounts to take advantage of the reservation and discount. The campaign results have been encouraging, with the number of demat accounts increasing by 34 lakh. The government has been working on multiple fronts to ensure a bumper response to the country’s biggest IPO.





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Massive fire breaks out at pharma company in Ankleshwar GIDC



Massive fire breaks out at pharma company in Ankleshwar GIDC

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War, FPI exit play spoilsport; push IPOs worth Rs 77K crore to back burner


The mega plans of over 50 companies to raise more than Rs 77,000 crore through initial public offerings (IPOs) seem to have been put on the back burner for now following the market volatility and exit of foreign portfolio investors in the wake of the Russian war on Ukraine. This is besides the LIC IPO through which the government plans to raise around Rs 60,000 crore. While the issue received Sebi approval last week, it is set to get delayed, given the current market situation.

Many of these issuers had planned their IPOs after the boom in 2021 saw a host of companies, including new-age companies, to firm up plans for IPOs in 2022. But their plans hit a roadblock with the benchmark Sensex falling over 8,300 points, or 13.5 per cent, between January 14 and March 7 amid the huge sell-off by FPIs as concerns over rising interest rates in the US, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the rise in crude oil prices accentuated the already parlous situation, leading to further panic in the market.

Even as the Sensex staged a recovery of 9.5 per cent over the 8 trading sessions since March 7, in line with correction in crude price and progress on talks between Russia and Ukraine, market participants feel that as markets are expected to remain volatile, it may take some time before the issuers and merchant bankers have the confidence to roll out their IPOs.

Investment bankers say the sustained sell-off by FPIs has put a spanner in the works of issuers. FPIs were major subscribers of shares offered through the IPO route in 2021 as they bought shares worth Rs 80,314 crore in IPOs. This is at a time when FPIs had sold Rs 54,563 crore from the secondary markets. “FPIs were a major factor in the success of IPOs in 2021. They are missing in 2022,” said an investment banking source. Between January and March 2022, FPIs have sold equity holdings worth Rs 110,974 crore from Indian markets.

Market participants say that the primary market activity will only pick up once the secondary market stabilises and starts witnessing investor enthusiasm. While a large number of issuers bunched up their issues to capitalise on the investor enthusiasm in 2021 and capitalise on the premium that investors were willing to pay, investor focus has now shifted towards listed blue-chip companies.

Besides, market participants feel that investors are likely to take a very guarded call on new-age technology companies that come for listing this year. This caution is on account of the sharp correction in the share prices of some of these companies that got listed in 2021.

While Paytm is trading at 72 per cent below its issue price, CarTrade Tech is trading at 64 per cent below its issue price. If FSN Ecommerce Ventures has seen a sharp decline in its share price from an all time high of Rs 2,574 to Rs 1,552 now — a premium of 38 per cent over its issue price of

Rs 1,125, Zomato too is trading just above its issue price of Rs 75 and closed at Rs 80.7 on Thursday.

“The current situation in the market and high volatility is likely to continue due to geopolitical tensions and fear of stagflation on account on higher crude and other commodities prices,” said Ravi Singh, vice president and head of research, Share India.

As the response in primary market depends on the activities in the secondary market, the extraordinary volatility in the primary market since last few months has forced the companies to hit a pause button on their IPOs, he said.

“About 50 companies were set to raise Rs 77,000 crore from the market. The rising crude prices have caused inflationary concerns for companies, whose effect is seen on the stock prices. The IPO of LIC was expected to be launched by March-end but now it will be done in the next fiscal,” said Manoj Dalmia, founder and director, Proficient Equities Pvt Ltd. IPOs of Go Airlines, API Holdings, Delhivery, Emcure Pharma and Swiggy are among the companies that have planned IPOs. “However, the market is currently facing sell-off by FPIs, whose support is needed to create liquidity when such big-ticket size IPOs are involved,” he said.

The much-talked about public issue of LIC is expected to get deferred now in line with the weakness in equity markets over geopolitical concerns. Experts say that even if a company comes out with a public issue, it may not witness the enthusiasm received by many issues over the last one year and the returns too may be limited.

The validity period of Sebi’s observation letter is 12 months only — the company has to open its issue within the period of 12 months starting from the date of issuing the observation letter. This means if issuers who received the Sebi nod will have to submit a fresh prospectus if they are unable to launch the IPOs within 12 months.

In order to make the most of the rising market in 2021, as many as 50 companies managed to raise in excess of Rs 1.1 lakh crore from the equity markets — the highest mobilisation in a year. In line with interest from all categories of investors, retail investors too queued up in big numbers and, in many cases, returned dejected and empty handed, as issues got mobbed and some of them even received subscription of over 100 times. Many new-age companies, which raised money through IPOs last year, are now quoting below their issue prices.





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Navigating economic uncertainties caused by Ukraine war


Any escalation in the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia is bound to have a significant impact on emerging market economies, including India. The concern largely stems from the impact of higher crude oil prices on domestic macro fundamentals — crude hit $139/bbl briefly on Monday before settling closer to $130. The impact of higher crude oil prices could be significant on the rupee, interest rates, the current account and fiscal deficit and on inflation. This has been well documented. But while heavy interventions by the RBI in the foreign exchange market could pull the rupee up from the record lows, the larger concern is how the government and the RBI will navigate this period at a time of record government borrowings, and prevent domestic interest rates from hardening. This is perhaps the most crucial link between crude oil and financial market stability.

But first, a word on macroeconomic wisdom. It is ironic that even as emerging economies running current account deficits are getting punished by a depreciating currency and a hardening of interest rates, we are witnessing the US dollar appreciating and US treasuries strengthening. For the record, the US runs the largest current account deficit in the world — 23 times higher than that of India. By this logic, US treasuries should now have been at all-time lows.

The most common argument for such a macroeconomic paradox is named after the economist Robert Triffin (the Triffin Paradox). It postulates that the US current account deficit is purely a reflection of the US supplying large amounts of dollars to fulfil the world’s demand. In other words, central banks across the world must build up claims on the US to back their domestic money growth. Former US Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke even extended this argument in 2005 to the “saving glut” proposition by espousing that emerging economies were accumulating foreign exchange reserves in dollars, and diverting domestic savings to buy US treasuries.

There are several counter arguments to this view that effectively state that the dominance of the US dollar is inevitable in the global financial architecture, and it is purely a fault of emerging market economies. It is unlikely that the dollar’s dominance will decline ever in future as 90 per cent of global trade is dollar-denominated and a prolonged war will only strengthen the US dollar. Even the Renminbi and the Euro seldom find a larger space in the foreign reserves’ basket of an emerging market economy today.

Given this paradox, we must find domestic solutions by managing our government finances better. This can only be supported through the use of unconventional tools by the RBI to minimise pressures on interest rates as the prospects of the government’s borrowing programme getting disrupted are weighing heavily on market players.

First, every year, the government front-loads its large borrowing programme by completing 60 per cent of the borrowings in the first half of the year. This time, the RBI and the government may take a real-time view of disruptions and spread the borrowings over four quarters, keeping the initial two quarters light. The borrowing programme can also be announced as per a quarterly schedule and there could be even two auctions during the week. These steps could smoothen out the non-disruptive elements in government borrowings.

Second, given the large size of the borrowing programme, the RBI and the government will need to entice market players to buy bonds in these uncertain times. For example, as rates move up, banks tend to prefer short-term investments while insurance companies, provident funds and others prefer longer-term investments. Given this, the borrowing schedule can be reconfigured with a higher proportion of short-and medium-tenor securities being offered in the initial months, while pushing back the longer tenor securities to the second half of the year.

Third, small savings collections have significantly exceeded budget estimates. The government could think of giving a push to small savings schemes such as the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) by encouraging fresh registrations, allowing for a one-time registration of SSY accounts of girl children up to 12 years that still have not been opened. The SSY has witnessed the registration of 2.82 crore girl children in the seven years since its inception in 2015, leaving enough room for further mop-up. The newly opened accounts may even be given an enhanced savings limit in the first year to catch up for the years lost for these new additions.

Fourth, LIC currently holds around Rs 23.5 trillion worth of government bonds, higher than even than the RBI. LIC’s G-sec holding is around 19 per cent, while in comparison the banking system’s ownership stands at around 38 per cent. Thus LIC’s listing should augur well for the bond market as the insurance behemoth may have to deploy a greater share of inflows in safer avenues domestically. This is a plausible option as banks may have to readjust their deposits into credit as the economic recovery gains momentum. Further, there are investments worth $40 billion in Russia’s OFZ bonds. The current market turmoil could see investors readjusting their exposure to countries like India.

We are living through unprecedented times. Rising oil prices have placed policymakers in an unenviable position. If the government lowers the excise duty, then the fiscal deficit may rise which in turn implies a higher market borrowing requirement, putting further pressure on the interest rates. However, if higher oil prices are fully passed through, it will result in higher inflation and hence higher rates as a consequence. In such a scenario it is best to follow the first option by using unconventional policy measures (such as those listed above) to ensure that the government’s borrowing programme passes through with the least disruptions.

The writer is Group Chief Economic Advisor, State Bank of India. Views are personal





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Rupee under pressure as FPIs rush to the exit door, pull out Rs 2 lakh crore since October


The ongoing sell-off by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) has led to withdrawal of over Rs 2,00,000 crore from the domestic stock markets since October last year. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has added to the nervousness of FPIs, already bracing for interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve. The FPI pull-out has hit the rupee, with its exchange rate against the dollar falling below the 76 level to 76.16 despite heavy RBI intervention.

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On March 4, FPIs pulled out Rs 7,631 crore from the stock markets, taking the total outflows to Rs 18,614 crore in the last three sessions of March as Russia intensified the attack on Ukraine and oil prices soared. This outflow has come after withdrawals of

Rs 45,720 crore in February and Rs 41,346 crore in January. With this, FPIs have pulled out

Rs 2,06,646 crore (excluding FPI investments in IPOs) since October 1, 2021.

If the situation in Ukraine worsens and FPI sales continue, the rupee will cross the 77 level against the dollar in the coming days, analysts said. While banks have been purchasing dollars to facilitate FPI pull-out, the RBI has been selling dollar from its forex kitty to salvage the rupee, said a banking source.

During the week ended February 25, India’s foreign currency assets declined by $ 2.228 billion. “The Russia-Ukraine conflict is hurting Indian rupee, bonds and equities via three channels: oil prices, US dollar Index and global equity prices,” said a Kotak Securities report.

Analysts said there could be a further temporary shock if things worsen more in Europe or, for that matter, a new front opens up in Asia. While the rupee is likely to remain under pressure, the RBI with its forex kitty of $631 billion will be able to prevent a big slide in the currency.

However, domestic institutional investors (DIIs), led by LIC, mutual funds and insurance companies, have been stepping up their purchases, absorbing most of the FPI sales. “There is a tug-of-war going on between FPIs and DIIs,” said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Countering the FPI strategy, DIIs have invested Rs 12,599 crore in March 1-4, adding to their total investments of Rs 1,42,872 crore since October 2021. DIIs invested a record amount of Rs 42,084 crore in February, their highest monthly investment since they put Rs 55,595 crore in March 2020 when Covid pandemic hit the country.

Despite a correction of around 13 per cent from the peak in Nifty, FPIs continue to sell since market sentiments have been impacted globally by the uncertainty triggered by the war and the surge in crude prices. This is likely to impact the IPO market and LIC’s plan for listing this fiscal and push up the current account deficit (CAD).

The Sensex has already fallen 5 per cent, or 2,899 points, to 54,333.81 since February 24 when the Russian invasion of Ukraine started. Global markets are spooked with the events happening in Europe, which are causing volatility. “FPIs have been sellers for almost 6 months now. Commodities are hitting highs across the board – oil, coal, metals and agri-commodities,” said Vineet Bagri, managing partner, TrustPlutus Wealth.

The FPI pull-out is dampening the sentiment in equity and forex markets. “Their impact on markets is visible, with increase in volatility and declining equity prices. However, the fact that this selling by foreign investors has been absorbed by domestic investors bodes well for the outlook of Indian markets,” Bagri said.

According to a Morgan Stanley report, supply constrained oil price rises are bad for India. Indeed, the recent 25 per cent jump in oil prices will expand the current account deficit by 75 bps and inflation by 100 bps on an annualised basis, it said.

US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell recently said he will back a quarter point rate increase when the Fed meets March 15-16, putting to rest debate over starting a post-pandemic round of rate hikes with a larger than usual half-point increase.





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Cost of war | The Indian Express


The macroeconomic environment has changed considerably from the time Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union budget, and the RBI released its inflation forecast for the upcoming fiscal year. On Thursday, crude oil prices hovered around $120 a barrel for the first time in years. While prices have moderated mildly thereafter, for the Indian economy which imports around 80 per cent of its requirements, higher crude oil prices will have adverse consequences. Higher prices will impact growth, will be inflationary, and will exert upward pressure on the current account and fiscal deficit. Considering that crude oil prices are currently significantly higher than those factored in the Union budget and the RBI’s calculations, navigating this uncertain economic environment will require deft management by monetary and fiscal authorities.

Since November last year, when the price of the Indian crude oil basket stood at $80.64, oil marketing companies have refrained from revising pump prices, even though global prices have been on the rise. But, once the assembly elections are concluded, fuel prices at the pump are likely to be hiked. However, steep hikes will be needed — as per a report by ICICI securities, a Rs 12 per litre hike will be needed just to break even. This will be inflationary. Needless to say, fuel price hikes will upend the central bank’s optimistic assessment of the inflation trajectory. As per RBI’s recent assessment, inflation was expected to trend down from 5.7 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2021-22 to just under 5 per cent in the first half of 2022-23. This will complicate the choices before the monetary policy committee. Higher prices will also reduce discretionary spending by households. Governments may respond by lowering fuel taxes to absorb part of the burden. However, this will weigh down their revenues and spending. Thus, growth will thus take a hit. Higher oil prices will also push up imports, increasing the current account deficit at a time when global financial conditions are tightening. Recent data shows that the merchandise trade deficit has already widened to $21.2 billion in February, up from $17.9 billion, with much of the surge driven by oil. The rupee is already coming under pressure. This will only add to the inflationary pressures.

The indirect consequences of the deterioration in the economic environment are also beginning to show. There are reports that LIC’s initial public offering may be postponed to the next financial year due to prevailing market uncertainty. While the full effects of the oil price shock will be visible with a lag, when taken together with the third wave of the pandemic, it suggests further downside risks to economic growth in the fourth quarter, which as per the National Statistical Office’s latest estimate was already expected to slow down to 4.8 per cent from 5.4 per cent in the previous quarter.





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Oil companies to cushion fuel price shock as crude tests $120


NEW DELHI: State-run fuel retailers are expected to cushion the blow on consumers as the government seeks to limit the impact of a surge in oil prices after benchmark Brent crude crossed the $119 a barrel mark.
The retailers are losing about Rs 20-22 a litre on petrol and diesel as they have not raised pump prices since November 4, when the Indian Basket – the mix of crude bought by them – was at $83/barrel. On Wednesday, it stood at $111.99, the highest since September 2012, in step with the oil price rally set off by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Simultaneously, the dollar has appreciated to Rs 75.75 from Rs 74.34 on November 4, contributing to widening the gap between cost and retail prices of petrol and diesel. Fuel prices are linked to their global markers and dollar exchange rate, while crude prices are a key factor in the spread.
One way to reduce the burden on consumers could have been tax cuts by the Centre and state governments, just as they had done in November. But given the uncertainty of the situation, it is not on the immediate agenda, sources told TOI.
There are various estimates doing the rounds, with some pointing to $150 being a possibility, and the government does not want to use up all the ammunition immediately while being acutely aware of the need to protect households from a massive shock.
Besides, oil is a major source of tax collection for the Centre and the states. Given the uncertainty over the mega initial public offer by Life Insurance Corporation, the Centre is keen on ensuring revenues are not hit significantly so that it stays within the fiscal deficit target of 6.9% of GDP.
There is also an assessment in the government that prices will cool down once the tensions ease, although the current price is something that was not budgeted for, given the Budget assumption of $70-75 a barrel.
Although India’s supplies are not affected, Russia is the largest oil exporter. Its gas exports account for 34% of global supplies. The conflict has given rise to the insecurity of supplies as the western sanctions are forcing consumers to shun Russian oil due to shipping and insurance issues. Some estimates put the loss of Russian supplies at 2.5 million barrels.
There is no way this quantity can be replaced in an already tight market, especially after the OPEC+ grouping, which includes Russia, on Wednesday refused to speed up production hikes. The market is looking at a breakthrough in US-Iran nuclear talks that will allow Iranian oil to flow.
Speculators are having a field day in the meantime, sending crude to $120 levels on Thursday, the highest in over a decade. Prices softened to around $115 a barrel around 7 pm India time.





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Daily Briefing: India, China echo similar positions on ‘territorial integrity’; Gehlot offers byte of Apple, BJP declares it forbidden fruit


Russia invades Ukraine 

Hours after India abstained during a vote on a US-sponsored UN Security Council resolution that deplored Russia’s “aggression” against Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has been leading the defence of Kyiv, spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sought India’s “political support” at the UNSC. Modi, according to the Prime Minister’s Office, expressed “deep anguish” over the loss of life and property, reiterated his call for “immediate cessation of violence” and return to dialogue.

Interestingly,  India and China found themselves on the same side of the vote at the UNSC on Saturday, with both choosing to abstain. Both the countries also invoked a similar formulation on “territorial integrity and sovereignty” and the “UN charter”. 

Meanwhile, 219 Indians, mostly students studying medicine in Ukraine, stepped off the Air India aircraft that flew them home from Bucharest in Romania — the first batch of Indian nationals evacuated under Operation Ganga after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Vennela Varsha, from Visakhapatnam and part of a group of students from Andhra Pradesh, said: “While we got out easily, the second and third batches of students had to walk in the cold with heavy luggage. Many students are still stuck in the university.”

Only in the Express 

BJP president J P Nadda, in an interview to The Indian Express, fields questions on the party’s prospects in five states that went to polls, unemployment in Uttar Pradesh, exit of prominent OBC leaders and more.   

From the Front Page 

The Union Cabinet has cleared an amendment to the FDI Policy to allow foreign direct investment (FDI) up to 20 per cent under the “automatic route” in the state-owned Life Insurance Corporation. This comes ahead of its proposed initial public offer (IPO), which is expected to be the largest in the Indian capital markets so far. 

The mystical “Himalayan Yogi” to whom former NSE MD and CEO Chitra Ramkrishna is alleged to have leaked confidential market information could be none other than Anand Subramanian, the former Group Operating Officer of the National Stock Exchange (NSE). According to Enst & Young findings based on an analysis of communications between Ramakrishna, Subramanian and the “Himalayan Yogi”, the location of two geotagged images attached in the emails sent using the ‘yogi’s’ id was found to be close to Subramanian’s residence in Chennai.

Two decades after Godhra’s deadly riots, little has changed visibly by way of infrastructure. Roads are still barely motorable. Water shortage plagues most households. While most have vague memories of what they were doing and where they were when the riots broke out, some scars are still visible. “Godhra is divided into two parts, Hindu and Muslim. But both communities do business together,” says 27-year-old Pankti Soni, who was in Class 1 when the Sabarmati Express was attacked. 

Must Read

For the last couple of days, a box has been lying under a table in the Rajasthan Assembly. In it are some brand new iPhones. The seemingly innocuous box is at the centre of an aggressive political one-upmanship in Rajasthan. On February 23, after CM Ashok Gehlot tabled the state budget, the MLAs were given the phones in the budget bags handed out to them, while on their way out. It was after some time, when Gehlot’s populist budget was dominating the headlines, as well as photos of the phones had made it to social media, that the BJP announced that its MLAs will return the phones.

P Chidambaram writes on how the state government has failed the people of UP for the last three decades: “Youth are the worst affected. The unemployment rate in UP is one of the highest in the country. Since April 2018, the unemployment rate for those aged between 15 and 29 years has been in double digits and above the All-India rate for that age group.”

In village after village across UP, a similar scene is playing out — farmers are forced to spend longer hours on their land to protect their crops from being destroyed by stray cattle. “Because of this shraap (curse), I spend most of my time in the fields,” says Ram Kishore, a farmer from Mangopur village in Sitapur district. In January, farmers in Sitapur district had locked stray cattle inside dozens of primary schools and anganwadi centres, and blocked the National Highway demanding a solution.

And Finally 

After two years of remote work and Zoom calls, as the world prepares to open up, how ready are we to return to our older connections and the conversations they generated? Death, devastation and adapting to new normalcies appear to have left their mark on one of the fundamental activities of society — conversations. If the first opening up in 2020 was marked by relief and the second by sadness, this time around, there is resignation. How do you greet a person you have not seen for two years, during which the world changed?

Until tomorrow,
Leela Prasad G and Rahel Philipose





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fdi: Ahead of IPO, govt allows 20% FDI via automatic route in LIC


NEW DELHI: Ahead of the planned public issue, the government on Saturday allowed 20% foreign direct investment (FDI) in Life Insurance Corporation via the automatic route.
The move also signals that the government is keen to pursue the mega initial public offer of the insurance behemoth despite the choppy markets in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
While the government allows 74% FDI in the insurance sector, overseas investment was not allowed in LIC, which is governed by a special statute. Now the government has sought to bring parity in terms of allowing foreign flows before the IPO but has aligned the rules for those applicable to public sector banks.
The government is keen to complete the listing of LIC by the end of March as part of its efforts to bolster revenues and close the year with a fiscal deficit of 6.9% of GDP. Though the recent developments in Ukraine have brought in some uncertainty about the timing, the government and bankers for the issue are going ahead with the roadshows.
While a large portion of the issue is proposed to be earmarked for retail investors and policyholders, overseas investors too are expected to invest large amounts in LIC.
Government sources said that the Union Cabinet which met on Saturday also cleared a few other changes to the FDI regime as part of the efforts to simplify the mechanism and make it attractive for overseas investors to pump in money into the country.
The details of the amended regime will be notified over the next few days. The changes are meant “to provide greater clarity and updated, consistent and easily comprehensible FDI framework”, an official source said.
“The measures taken by the government with FDI policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business, have contributed to India attracting record FDI inflows in the recent past,” an official said.
FDI inflows hit a record high of $74.4 billion during the last financial year as mega deals involving Reliance Jio pushed up inflows. Latest data released by the commerce and industry ministry showed a 16% decline in FDI flows during April-December 2021 and were estimated at $43 billion, compared with $51.5 billion during the corresponding period of the previous year.





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