BRAMMA EXPOSURE

1. Weekly News
24/07/2017 – 29/07/2017

2. BSNL eyes 700 Mhz band spectrum to launch 5G,
to forge alliance with ZTE
State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. expects to get the
government’s approval soon for using airwaves in 700 MHz
band for offering 4G services, and 5G services in the future,
chairman Anupam Shrivastava said.
The state-run telco has written to the Department of Telecom
(DoT) to allocate airwaves in the 700 MHz band for rolling out
4G services.
“Six slots of 5 MHz are already available in the 700 MHz band
and we have asked for a slot to be allocated to us. We are
looking at it also for offering ultra-high speed 5G services in the
future,” Shrivastava said.

3. Max India pulls out Max Life-HDFC Life merger
deal
The proposed merger between Max Life and HDFC Life has been
called off, confirmed Max Financial Services.
"The exclusivity agreement with HDFC Life, valid till 31st July
2017, will not be renewed," said Max Financial Services in a
statement.
However, the company said that it will pursue acquisition
opportunities as the industry further consolidates.

4. RCom, Aircel merger deal on sticky ground
The proposed merger of Reliance Communications wireless
business and Aircel is clouded with more uncertainty with the
Department of Telecommunications setting the Supreme
Court's go-ahead a condition for it to approve the deal. The
department, though, is close to clearing the merger of
Sistema's Indian business with Rcom.

5. 5 lakh businesses opt for composition scheme
under GST: Hasmukh Adhia
Five lakh businesses have opted for the GST composition
scheme, which allows them to pay taxes at a concessional rate
and makes compliance easy. Nearly 71 lakh excise, service tax
and VAT assessees have migrated to the GST Network (GSTN)
till July 25. Besides, another 12 lakh new registrations came
about under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.

6. Tata Group companies deny Mistry allegations in
annual reports
Tata Group companies Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Tata Power
and Indian Hotels Company have all opted to utilise their
annual reports to deny the various allegations made by
former group chairman Cyrus Mistry and proclaim they
maintain highest corporate governance standards.
Mistry, who was ousted as chairman of Tata Sons in October
last year, had alleged mismanagement, poor business
decisions, falling corporate governance standards, violation of
insider trading norms, and gagging of independent directors
at the Tata Group, shocking the investor community and
corporate India alike.

7. Mukesh Ambani's wealth tops Li Ka-shing as debt
fuels Reliance growth
Mukesh Ambani has elbowed past Li Ka-shing to become
Asia’s second-richest man as investors rallied behind his
efforts to arm India’s poor with cheap data-loaded phones.
Some analysts are beginning to focus on the costs of his
ambition.

8. Bata appoints Vodafone's Sandeep Kataria as
country manager
Shoe maker Bata India on Tuesday announced the
appointment of Sandeep Kataria as the country manager, who
was earlier the chief commercial officer at Vodafone India.

9. Coal India's e-auction of coal sales up by 32 per
cent in Q1
Coal India's e-auction of coal sales was up by around 32 per
cent to 32.7 million tonne during the first quarter of FY 2017-
18.

10. To bring more transparency, Trai asks all telcos to
submit tariffs online
The telecom regulator has asked all carriers to submit from
August 1 their tariff plans online, besides filing their hard
copies, within seven working days of announcement, and is
likely to put all such rates in the public domain by year end, in
efforts aimed at more transparency and efficiency.

11. Passenger vehicle sales hit new peak in July, two
wheeler makers grow in double digits
Passenger vehicle sales are estimated to have registered
record growth in July with manufacturers resuming supplies
to dealerships and stocking up ahead of the festive season,
which is set to commence later this month.

12. Petrol pump dealers' commissions hiked by up to
55%
State oil companies have increased the commission for petrol
pump dealers by up to 55% under a revised formula that
accounts for higher staff wages and, for the first time, the
return on investment in land used for the filling station.
This is a good move by the government and oil companies.
The decision will mainly benefit lowselling retail outlets, many
of which were running on losses.

13. Voltas eyeing Sharp India plant
Tata Group company Voltas Limited which is the market
leader in the domestic room air-conditioner segment is
evaluating a potential buyout of Sharp India's inverter
technology AC manufacturing plant in Pune,
Invertor AC's are energy efficient and represent the future.
With many Indian rivals gradually shifting focus to this niche
vertical and moving away from old technologies, Voltas is
looking to boost in-house or indigenous manufacturing &
technological capabilities in the vertical rather than relying on
outsourcing. Hence, their interest in Sharp India's plant which
suits their requirements.

14. Textile companies fear losing out to Chinese
imports
The textile industry, which suffered a sales decline of up to
50%, is slowly getting back to normalcy as the new tax regime
completes one month of implementation on Tuesday.
Industry players, however, warned that if the government
does not raise duties to restrict imports, the trade would be
massively hit by cheap fabric imports from China in next few
months.

15. Baba Ramdev's Patanjali teams up with Facebook,
Google for online advertisement push
Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., the herbal products manufacturer
founded by yoga guru Baba Ramdev, is going digital big time. In
collaboration with Google and Facebook, Patanjali is for the
first time investing in advertisements tailored for online
audiences, hoping to reap bigger dividends than its campaigns
in the print and electronic media.

16. DGCA starts safety audit of country's airlines
• As an audit of India’s aviation sector by the International Civil
Aviation Organisation (ICAO) nears, the local regulator has
launched an evaluation of the country’s airlines for their
compliance with safety standards.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) audit is seen
as part of the local body’s preparation for the international
audit, which comes in the backdrop of increased instances of
safety violation in Indian skies.

17. Anti-dumping authority recommends import duty
on solar and wind energy equipment from China
Anti-dumping authorities have recommended action against
key Chinese components for windmills, and are considering a
similar petition for solar equipment, delivering another blow to
the flood of cheap imports from Beijing and potentially
arresting the steep fall in renewable energy tariffs.
The Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties
(DGAD) has recommended imposing anti-dumping duty on
castings imported from China for use in the construction of
wind turbines.

18. Bharti Enterprises disconnects call on mega
telecom alliance with Tata Group
Bharti Enterprises has dropped a plan to pursue a mega-alliance
with the Tata Group’s telecom, overseas cable and enterprise
services, and direct-to-home TV businesses.
Sunil Mittal-headed Bharti, burdened with debt of Rs 87,840
crore at the end of June, will instead focus on strengthening its
books through a strategic stake sale in tower arm Bharti Infratel
and on closing acquisitions including the takeover of Telenor
India as it tackles brutal competition in the market.

19. Reliance Communications withdraws from AUSPI
membership
Telecom operator Reliance Communications has pulled out from
membership of industry body AUSPI raising uncertainty over
future of the association.
RCom sent its letter to the Association of Unified Telecom
Service Providers of India (AUSPI) to withdraw from the
membership of the body recently.