Cover Story
- United Phosphorus has made 26 acquisitions in 15 years— and in most of them it has recovered the investment made in three years.
- Calcined petroleum coke may sound esoteric, but not for Rain Commodities, which has emerged as the world’s largest producer of this raw material.
- Jubilant Organosys is currently in a sea of red, but two acquisitions in North America hold the promise of transforming the company’s fortunes over the longer term.
- Sintex is riding on a cost arbitrage opportunity as it goes about making three buyouts in its core business of specialised plastics.
- Bilcare buys its way into high-growth developed markets for pharmaceutical packaging.
- Overseas acquisitions have helped Bartronics scale up from being a local player to one that’s bagging bigger-ticket international projects.
- Rolta India has used buyouts to carve a unique niche for itself in a high-end technology arena.
- Allied Digital rides on the next big opportunity in IT services with a buyout in the US.
- Binani Cement has gone where no Indian cement maker has gone before—overseas, via two strategic buyouts.
- Plethico Pharma has used acquisitions to foray into new markets—and into a high-growth area of medicine.
From the Editor
It's the basic law of nature: big events impact big entities more. So, a storm is more likely to damage a tree than a plant. Yet, a fundamental irony guides public perception. Jai Ho India!
As urban consumers, neck-deep in debt and over-their-ears in mortgage, are forced to embrace frugality, marketers and companies are gravitating to the rural consumers (BT cover, April 5) . Recession under the radar
Most of the millions who stagger into Mumbai with nothing else but a dream quickly learn how to survive.That art, however, gets mighty Herculean when the commercial engine of the country slows down. BT catches up with six men and women in the street who live life under the middle-class radar, but who are never totally out of it. Rachna M. Koppikar reports. It’s still unclear whether B. Ramalinga Raju siphoned money out of Satyam. Investigations, though, have uncovered how the former chairman was cooking the books. Here’s the inside story on the accounting fraud. A clutch of smaller Indian companies has gone international by making a number of small acquisitions the world over. The best part: They seem to be working, unlike some multi-billion-dollar buyouts. United Phosphorus: Agri AggressorRain commodities:It'sraining cashJubiliant Organosys: Crams caperSintex: Labour gainsBilcare: Right place for the right priceBartonics: Raising the barRolta India:Mapping the globeAllied Digital: Remote controlBinani Cement: Concrete gambitPlethico Pharma: Inorganic prescription �€œThere is no recession in the United States�€?
Lean manufacturing, just-in-time or toyota Production System (TPS) are hallmark management philosophies that have dominated production practices since the 1950s. Dubai gorged itself on a decade-long construction boom that has imploded now. A recovery will mean giving up its opulent habits and focussing on real drivers of growth. The Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani was the first to start a blog. But have the other political parties caught onto the Internet? We take a look. Sistema wants to be one of the top players in the crowded Indian telecom market. Can this latecomer actually pull it off? Sony’s launch of the first console title developed wholly in India and for India could be a major milestone for the gaming industry. Roads: Race to High-growth
Getting the highways sector back on track can be the surest way of beating the slowdown. There is much by way of investments in the railway sector that are waiting to happen. Port investments are continuing apace—for now. Urban infrastructure is a multi-billion dollar opportunity, but just who’s coming to the party? In 10 years, demand for power will touch three times its existing capacity. That poses a challenge for policymakers and an opportunity for investors. Infrastructure is one sector where opportunities missed aren’t opportunities lost—not at least for the investors. BT presents a snapshot of prospects across a few key sectors. Branded for profit
Indian marketers are exploring new ways of targeting audiences, ensuring greater profit through ‘branded entertainment’ techniques. Now that high inflation seems to be a thing of the past—at least for the time being—a new confusion over the rate of price rise is dominating the public debate. “We really don’t want customers to wait for the car. As my friend (Fiat Chairman) di Montezemolo said in Paris, waiting to buy a car is like waiting for a pretty woman. If you wait too long, she might get old and fat,” says Ratan Tata. A recent Grant Thornton-FICCI study reveals most Indian companies do not give enough freedom to their board members. Tech giants are setting up ‘universities’ to train engineers and techies to suit their business needs. Belt tightening by many foreign airlines has resulted in a sharp drop in international flights to and from India.Back to the hindu rate of growth
At least 3 research reports predict a sub-5 per cent growth in ’09-’10. $50tn lost by global financial markets across the world in 2008, including $9.6 trillion in the developing Asian market, according to a report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). A government economist and a regulator eschew optimism to give more reasonable growth estimates. The fortnight’s burning question. Is the manner in which the Satyam investigation is being conducted giving India Inc. a bad name? Move with your number
Mobile Number Portability gives subscribers the ability to keep the same phone numbers when changing from one mobile provider to another. The subscriber’s mobile number and the recipient’s network ID are paired and updated in a centralised database. Largest private equity deals announced this year
3i India Infrastructure Fund established by international private equity firm 3i Group Plc. has invested around Rs 800 crore ($161 million) for a minority stake in Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. (KPCL). Yes, cheaters can prosper too!
Cheating is natural and cheating works. No, not examination cheating. If you’re a guy and in a relationship, we don’t mean the she’ll-neverfind-out cheating either. We’re talking about Gym Cheating that can actually help you build the body you want. Setting the tone
Reliance Communications has maintained its position as by far the largest CDMA operator and amongst the top two wireless operators in the country. Its GSM launch was part of a well-crafted strategy to increase the market share. With an aggressive pan-India launch of its GSM services, it has put rivals on notice. Rishi Joshi reports. Ratan Tata has changed the game in car manufacturing by producing the world’s most affordable car. Now he’s got to make it a money-spinner.Will rivals ride on pent-up demand?
The wait for the Nano could spur competitors— of the four-wheeled and two-wheeled variety— into action. Two decades after entering India, Microsoft is changing tack. Though its renewed push has coincided with the economic slowdown, the changes in the company’s strategy are for the long term. Rahul Sachitanand reports. After some hard-nosed bargaining, IPL 2 buries the hatchet with the sponsors and the broadcaster. Private sector life insurance firms have expanded rapidly. But mounting losses and a cash crunch suggest that many are feeding on the future. Cloud Computing is impacting your life and changing the dynamics of the software and hardware industries. But what on earth is the ‘cloud’? People, will miss newspapers when they are gone?
Stephen J. Dubner is the Co-author, along with economist Steven D. Levitt, of the 2005 international best-seller Freakonomics. The arguments of the book, which uses anecdotal information and shows how even the most innocuous things can be explained by simple economics, have been kept going via a blog. Inking money
A small PSU in Mysore, the only firm in India to produce the indelible ink used in elections, is certain to profit from the polls. It is burning the midnight oil to meet this incremental demand. The company will supply 20-lakh bottles of 10 ml each to states this time, as against 16-lakh bottles of 5 ml each in 2004. K.R. Balasubramanyam reports. Consumer follies
In Predictably Irrational, Dan Ariely shows that humans are easily manipulated and predisposed towards chasing worthless options, says Rajiv Rao. �€œAdmit to mistakes�€?
Most problems that companies face can be traced back to the failure of the management and the top leadership of those firms. So believes Dr Ashok Ganguly, one of India’s foremost management experts and a recent Padma Vibhushan recipient. A back-up for retirement?
Reverse mortgage, a scheme designed for senior citizens to help them tide over their golden years with ease, has not taken off in India. A lack of loan culture is a big reason. Boardroom to ballot
The boardroom is their familiar turf, but for the moment they are both gunning for the 15th Lok Sabha. Aviation entrepreneur Captain G.R. Gopinath and CEO of ABN AMRO Bank’s India operations, Meera Sanyal, have taken up the gauntlet to fight the election as independent candidates from Bangalore and South Mumbai, respectively. 
