OPINION, P10 WELL BEING All that you need to know about one of the rarest and most novel surgeries in the world Page 9 Manipur: Dark side of the moon? MIND & GAMES We’ve got tips on how to clean clothes and support nature Page 11 TAKING A CLOSER LOOK AT FACE TRANSPLANTS ACROSS THE AISLE, P CHIDAMBARAM Green washing LEISURE Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL. XXI, NO. 4 MIND YOUR LANGUAGE KOLKATA SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2024, 16 Pages, `12 (NE States & Andaman `13) P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY 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 , READ TO LEAD H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , How chefs are introducing rustic flavours to urban dwellers in restaurants and fine-dining establishments in innovative ways ■ WORDS WORTH, P4 Food for thought An anti-obesity thriller digs deep into why we got fat, and are weight-loss drugs the answer SAMSUNG, XIAOMI AND other smartphone companies colluded with Amazon and Walmart’s Flipkart to exclusively launch products on the e-commerce firms’ Indian websites in breach of antitrust laws, according to regulatory reports seen by Reuters. Antitrust investigations conducted by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) have found that Amazon and Flipkart violated local competition laws by giving preference to select sellers, prioritising certain listings, and steeply discounting products,hurting othercompanies,Reuters reported this week. The CCI’s 1,027-page report on Amazon also said the Indian units of five companies—Samsung, Xiaomi, Motorola, Realme and OnePlus—were “involved in the practice of exclusive”phone launches in “collusion” with Amazon and its affiliates,breaking competition law. In Flipkart’s case, a 1,696-page CCI report said the Indian units of Samsung, Xiaomi, Motorola, Vivo, Lenovo and Realme conducted similar practices. The inclusion of smartphone makers SMARTPHONE BRANDS UNDER LENS ■ Samsung got preferential treatment. Sellers received marketing, warehousing, other services at 'miniscule cost'; Amazon, Flipkart used foreign investments to provide subsidised rates ■ Motorola ■ Vivo ■ Lenovo ■ OnePlus CHINA'S INDUSTRIAL output growth slowed to a five-month low in August, while retail sales and new home prices weakened further, bolstering the case for aggressive stimulus to shore up the economy. The data released on Saturday echoed soft bank lending figures on Friday, underscoring weak growth momentum. ■ PAGE 16 TERRORISM BREATHING ITS LAST IN J&K: PM ASSERTING THAT terrorism is taking its last breath in Jammu & Kashmir, PM Narendra Modi said his government projected new leadership to counter dynastic politics that has destroyed "this beautiful region". Addressing an election rally in Doda, Modi also reiterated his government's promise of restoring statehood to Jammu & Kashmir. ■ PAGE 2 SPENDING BIG Share of cars priced Average price of a car under `10 lakh 85% (` lakh) 7.61 11.5 FY19 53% FY24 VIKRAM CHAUDHARY New Delhi, September 14 FY24 THE AVERAGE SELLING price of a Share of cars priced above `10 lakh passenger vehicle in India has increased by almost `4 lakh in the past five years. According to data sharedbytopcarmakers,theaverage selling price of a carin India in FY24 was `11.5 lakh, which is a sharp growth from `7.61 lakh in FY19. Also, in FY24, 47% of cars sold in India were priced above `10 lakh—a figure thatwas just 15% in FY19.“In FY24,47% of cars sold in India were priced above the `10lakh mark, and 53% under `10 lakh. In FY19, the corresponding figures were just 15% for cars priced over `10 lakh and 85% under `10 lakh,”they said. Carmakers have attributed this growth to a rise in input costs of cars, thereby increasing their stickerprice,rising interest in SUVs which are priced more than sedans and hatchbacks in the same seg- 15% FY19 FY19 47% FY24 ment, a strong GDP growth seen afterthe lockdown,rise in the number of women buyers, growth in corporate earnings, and a YOLO (you onlylive once) mindset among Indians after Covid-19. Madan Sabnavis, chief economist, Bank of Baroda, said after the lockdown there has been a clear move towards purchase of premiumcarsandSUVs.“Assoonasone starts working, there is a desire to own a big car—avehicle that stands out. Banks and NBFCs provide the nudge byoffering easycredit facilities,”he said.“With ESOPs and high levels of salaries, especially in the BFSI industry and the services sector, young people have high purchasing power, and that’s getting reflected in booming sales of premium cars and SUVs.” Carmakers added that SUVs today form almost 55% of car sales,and the starting price of SUVs is `7-8 lakh. PRESS TRUST OF INDIA New Delhi, September 14 IN A FRESH round of Continued on Page 2 FY24 sees Cash market turnover at GST evasion NSE hits `200 lakh crore double over THE CASH MARKET turnover at the NSE reached `200 lakh crore during theJanuary-August period, surpassing the `163.5-lakh crore turnover recorded for the entire year of2023.This represents more than a doubling (104%) ofthe `97.75-lakh crore turnover inJanuary-August 2023. The average daily cash market turnover also increased by 81%, rising from `66,471 crore in 2023 to `1.20 lakh crore in 2024 so far on the NSE. Meanwhile, the cash market turnover at the BSE reached `16 lakh crore in the first eight months of 2024, compared to `12.4 lakh crore for all of2023. The average daily cash market turnover at the BSE surged 92% to `9,657 crore in 2024. Compiled by Kishor Kadam Continued on Page 2 FE BUREAU New Delhi, September 14 WHEN THE TAJ Mahal Hotel in New Delhi was renovated during the pandemic,the hotel dedicated two whole floors to residential suites. The 27 one- and two-bedroom suites come with a pantry equipped with all appliances needed for a home-like experience, including a refrigerator, washing machine, dishwasher, microwave,kettle and even crockery and utensils. The Oberoi Mumbai in Maythis ■ Hyatt has been offering residences since 2010 at Hyatt Regency Pune, and Park Hyatt Hyderabad since 2012 dedicated to residential (27 one- & twobedroom) suites ■ At Andaz Delhi, a Hyatt hotel, 125 residential suites are included in a separate section of the hotel ■ In May, The Oberoi Mumbai introduced 20 residential suites Atownhouse duplex apartment atAndaz Delhi Residences; (right) fully equipped kitchen of a in two categories for long-stay guests 1-bedroom residence atTaj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi year introduced 20 residential suites in two categories that again offer all the comforts of a home plus facilities of a hotel to longstay guests. While these are recent, Hyatt has been offering residences since 2010 at Hyatt Regency Pune, and Park Hyatt Hyderabad since 2012. At Andaz Delhi, a Hyatt hotel, 125 residential suites are included in a separate section of the hotel. Occupancy is at over 85%, with 80% corporate bookings,and general manager Hardip Marwah is P U N E Cong fresh salvo: Buch invested in Chinese firms previous fiscal FE BUREAU New Delhi, September 14 looking to improve this figure too given the hefty revenue the hotel accrues from the residences.Flexible about how to use the residences, the hotel even has the office of an international airlines operating from the hotel, with minor structural changes allowed in the suite for a lease of 2-3 years. “Not only does the hotel earn revenue from the suite, the collateral needs of an office get us good revenue from food and beverage, room bookings, conferences, etc,” said Marwah. With a sizeable Japanese clientele,he is now planning a Japanese-Korean restaurant in the hotel to make them feel even more at home. At Taj Mahal Hotel, general manager and area director, Delhi, AnmolAhluwalia revealed that residences at the hotel have an 8085% occupancy, with 95% THE DIRECTORATE GENERAL of reserved by corporates and consulates. Some takers include people whose houses are being renovated or built, etc. “The average stay is for a month, and guests have access to breakfast plus the Taj Club Lounge that offers high tea and complimentary cocktails. The tariffs range from about `20,000 for a single room to `40,000 for a doubles,”he told FE. IHCL also offers residency hotels in the Taj Wellington Mews at Mumbai and Chennai which include fully serviced apartments. Residential suites are available at Taj 51 Buckingham Gate, London, andThe Pierre,NewYork,too.Older hotels like theTaj Bengal in Kolkata have also been renovated to include residences. GST Intelligence (DGGI) has detected 6,084 cases of evasion in 2023-24,amounting to `2.01 lakh crore, which is double the amount detected in the previous fiscal,data sourced from DGGI annual report of FY24 showed. The report shows that online gaming, BFSI are the sectors most prone to evasion.In FY24,`81,875 crore evasion was detected in the “real money online gaming”sector, and `18,961 crore in BFSI. Among goods, iron, copper, scrap and alloys are the ones most prone to evasion (`16,806 crore), followed by pan masala, tobacco, cigarette and beedi (`5,794 crore), said the report. In FY24, voluntary taxes of `26,605 crore were paid, up from `20,713 crore in 2022-23. Online gaming Further, industry most about 46% of prone to default the evasion cases related to non-payment of tax (through clandestine supply and undervaluation), 20% related to fake input tax credit, and 19% to wrong availment/nonreversal of ITC,the report said. The detection of GST evasion by DGGI has gradually seen an increase since the rollout of GST in 2017. In FY18, `7,879 crore was detected,followedby`19,319crore in FY19. FY20 saw an evasion of `21,739 crore in 2019-20, and FY21 of `31,908 crore. In FY22, GST evasion worth `50,325 crore was detected,the report showed. ThereportsaidtheDGGI’suseof data analytics has unveiled new tax evasion tactics, enabling targeted enforcement actions. On the online gaming industry, the report said bringing the e-gaming entities under the tax net continues to be an ‘uphill task’. It said many firms are set up in offshore tax havens,which makes it difficult forthe authoritiesto ascertaintheir ultimate ownership. These online gaming platforms keep on changing their URL/websites to avoid tax compliance. Continued on Page 2 Continued on Page 2 NSE cash market turnover (` lakh crore) Avg daily turnover (` crore) 2019 83.9 2020 135.3 2021 172.0 2022 140.9 56,807 2023 163.5 66,471 2024* 200.0 1,20,476 34,256 53,692 69,374 BSE cash market turnover (` lakh crore) Avg daily turnover (` crore) 2019 6.6 2020 8.8 2021 13.8 2022 11.2 4,527 2023 12.4 5,024 2024* 16.0 *up to August 2,695 3,509 5,574 9,657 Source: NSE, BSE When home away from home goes beyond a tagline EXTENDED STAY ● Hotels offering suites functioning as ■ Taj Mahal Hotel in New Delhi has fully equipped homes two whole floors D E L H I , Continued on Page 2 Preferential listings like Samsung and Xiaomi in the case could increase their legal and compliance headaches. “Exclusivity in businessisanathema.Notonlyisitagainst free and fair competition but also against the interest of consumers,” CCI’s additional director general GV Siva Prasad wrote in theAmazon and Flipkart reports, in identical findings. Reuters is first to report the smartphone companies have been accused of anticompetitive behaviour in the CCI’s reports which are dated August 9 and are N E W not public. Xiaomi declined to comment, while the other smartphone makers did not respond to requests for comment. Amazon,Flipkart and the CCI did not respond, and have not so far commented on the reports’findings.Both theCCIreportssaid that during investigations Amazon and Flipkart“deliberatelydownplayed”allegations of exclusive launches, but officials found the practice was“rampant”. ■ Amazon, Flipkart enabled preferred sellers to give deep discounts, selling much below cost to drive out competition top ofAmazon, Flipkart listings from preferred sellers, creating barrier for other sellers ■ Realme M U M B A I , allegations against Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairperson Madhabi Buch, the Congress on Saturday claimed she traded in listed securities while in possession of unpublished pricesensitive information Cong also claims that as and has been investing whole-time member in Chinese firms at a and Sebi chairperson, time when India is fac- Madhabi Buch traded in ing geopolitical ten- listed securities worth sions with China. Con- `36.9 crore while in gress general secretary possession of unpublished Jairam Ramesh price-sensitive information pointed to “fresh conflict of interest allegations” against Buch, claiming that she, as a wholetime member and later as Sebi chairperson, traded in listed securities worth `36.9 crore. The Congress attack comes a dayafterBuch said she had made all necessary disclosures and complied with recusal guidelines in dealing with companies such as Mahindra Group that hired her husband, as she rejected allegations of improprietyas“false,malicious and motivated”. Deep discounting ■ Products appearing at N E W S Indian car buyers getting upwardlymobile,and how ● Average selling price of vehicles up `4 lakh in 5 years Exclusive product launches ■ Amazon, Flipkart partnered with tech companies to launch devices exclusively, hurting smaller retailers ■ Xiaomi IN THE CHINA INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT SLOWS TO 5-MONTH LOW L U C K N O W , Samsung, Xiaomi colluded with Amazon, Flipkart: CCI REUTERS New Delhi, September 14 Tasting Bharat K O L K A T A , FINES LIKELY FOR ANTI-COMPETITIVE PRACTICES KEY FINDINGS ● Smartphone makers Preferred sellers told to submit financials ■ Amazon had six preferred for past three fiscal years sellers, Flipkart had 33, who ■ SPOTLIGHT, P5 Deciphering comedy in the times of offence and political correctness Page 7 Kolkata