Business Today December 20, 2015

Sunil Bharti Mittal did not start off in business as a telecom entrepreneur – in fact, he experimented with several other trading businesses before he got around to his telecom foray. But he has built India’s largest and the world’s third-largest telecom company. With operations in India and 17 African countries, revenues of $15.1 billion, and a customer base of 316 million people, Bharti Airtel is a formidable player for any telecom rival. Though the Bharti Group has interests in finance, agri business and retail, it is telecom which is the jewel in the crown of Sunil Mittal. India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of the $62.2-billion in revenues Reliance Industries, plans to be the biggest telecom player after launching Reliance Jio, his 4G play. This is not the first…

Taxing Time for Foodies! This refers to your cover story on food tech, one of the hottest sectors in e-commerce (Singed, December 6). The government has clarified that the service charge levied by restaurants is not the same as service tax. A service charge is just an additional amount that diners are forced to pay, and the money is retained by the establishment. The government has not clearly stated that the charge is illegal, but it certainly is not legal either. If this practice is not stopped, restaurants might feel emboldened to exploit customers with more arbitrary charges. Restaurants and hotels have no right to charge diners in this manner. The government must issue a directive to all eating establishments to ensure that all menu cards reflect prices that are…

STAY CONNECTED WITH US ON www.facebook.com/BusinessToday @BT_India PERSPECTIVES 7th Pay Commission Report: 10 Facts A quick look at what it means in terms of additional financial liability, and structure, if accepted in totality. businesstoday.in/seventhpaycommission-facts Many Unanswered Questions as Government Plans to Remove Tax Exemptions for Corporates Industries divide over government proposal on corporate tax. businesstoday.in/industries-corporatetax Maggi, Ramdev and FSSAI: The Travails of a Regulator without Teeth It is time to empower the FSSAI for bringing in more transparency in the food sector. businesstoday.in/fssai-reforms NEWS Mercedes-Benz Launches the AMG GT S in India This new-born Merc proves that racing is in its DNA. businesstoday.in/mercedes-amggts Government Signs 11 APAs Targeting 30 More by March 2016 It is yet another move to make the country’s tax regime cordial for businesses. businesstoday.in/transferpricing-govt BT COLUMNS…

THE MOTHER OF ALL DRUG DEALS The $160 BILLION merger between Pfizer, makers of Viagra, and Allergan, makers of Botox, will create the biggest global pharma company. It is also being called a tax dodge because the much smaller Allergan will take over Pfizer on paper, to make sure that the combined company is taxed in Ireland in future, and not in the US, where tax rates are much higher. BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE Amazon’s Jeff Bezos claimed his company Blue Origin became the first organisation to successfully land a used rocket back on Planet Earth. Tesla founder Elon Musk claimed his firm Space X had done it even earlier. Both entrepreneurs are looking at dominating space travel, whenever it happens. THE WRONG QUESTION The answer, from at least half…

30 - 11 COMBATING GLOBAL WARMING WHAT: 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change WHEN: November 30 – December 11, Paris, France WHAT TO LOOK FOR: France plays host to and presides over the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11), also known as as “Paris 2015”. COP21 is critical for its objective of achieving a new international agreement on the climate which will be acceptable and applicable to all countries, with the target of keeping global warming below 2°C. France will be looking to arrive at a consensus across the nations, the United Nations, as well as within the European Union. 8 - 9 FIGHTING GRAFT WHAT: 17th…

Indian equities have been exceedingly volatile recently. In the past four months, the bulls have been jittery and the bears have clearly had the upper hand. The benchmark BSE Sensex, the barometer for the Indian stock market, has tumbled eight per cent in the July to November period. The positive cues have all been ignored – India overtaking China to emerge as the fastest growing major economy, inflation being reined in and the central bank changing its monetary policy stance and paring rates to support growth. Indeed, foreign institutional investors (FIIS), the lifeline of the Indian equity market, have turned net sellers and pulled out $3.5 billion in the past four months. So, why has the market lost steam? Experts point out that Dalal Street is concerned about the likelihood…