Cover Story

Reform to Re-farm
Several key reforms were stalled and reversed when agri-business was about to take off.

From field to fries
The story behind made-in-India MacFries is an epic in the annals of potato farming and took almost a decade to script. The nine-year saga is full of heartbreak and pain, but it is also a remarkable success of agronomy in India. Kushan Mitra goes into the details.
On the farm trail
There has been an unprecedented rise in rural prosperity over the past two decades and new technologies have come in to partly offset poor infrastructure. Companies in agri-business are finally catching the pulse of the farmlands. Shalini S. Dagar goes into the details.
Colour of money
Despite the appalling gaps in the delivery mechanics—cold chains, warehousing, processing centres and logistics—there is enough today to make entrepreneurs tackle specific projects in the farm-to-the table value chain. Entrepreneurs and investors are making most of the business opportunities that abound in the farm-to-fork value chain. Shamni Pande reports.

2009-04-05

Digital

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Editors note

From the Editor

Till less than two years ago, every single french fry sold at McDonald's restaurants in India was imported. Reason: Indian potatoes didn't have enough solid content-the proportion of water is high- to produce the crispy MacFries.

BT More

Banish your oxfords

It’s true that your simple, no-frills black lace-ups are elegant, but they are boring! Don’t be afraid of brown, tan and other colours, and definitely don’t be afraid of brogues.

The Glycolic Peel

Each month, in conjunction with Kaya Skin Clinics, our courageous correspondent will venture to the frontiers of male grooming and bring you a full report.

On the game

The next time your plane is late, get your thumbs going. Gaming’s all grown up.

Etiquette- The rules of behaviour

Everyone knows a class act when they see one. The challenge is to be one yourself. So we decided to ask one of the classiest people we know for his rules about how gentlemen ought to behave. Author and hotelier Aman Nath reflects on handwritten notes, awkward introductions and a culture of excess.

Derby Day

The biggest horse-race in Mumbai is just around the corner. Tally ho!

Calender- April 2009

What’s new and what’s happening this month.

The books that shaped my life

Every issue, we ask a prominent businessman about the books that made them the people they are today. This month: Shailesh Rao, MD, Google India.

Fun on the run

A BMW is all about driving nirvana. And the new 3 Series is no different.

The executive consumer

It’s all about the good life for fashion designer Suneet Varma.

Pop Politics

In a world of mediocre music and even more mediocre personalities, we celebrate the importance of being M.I.A.

The budget gym

Built for a staggering $4 million, the latest Fitness First club in Delhi is offering health solutions for Rs 99 a day. Is this the shape of things to come?

Swinging with the Air Force

The Air Force golf course in the heart of New Delhi is a small nine-hole layout.

A taste of Padma

The beautiful Padma Lakshmi has a cookbook out called Tangy Tart Hot & Sweet. She chats with MORE about her food fetish, growing up in India and that bit of the bull that she just plain refuses to eat.

Shopping with the chef

One bright morning, J.P. Singh, the executive chef of the world-famous Bukhara, went to the market. MORE tagged along.

The 50 best restaurants in the metros

We enlisted some help—probably the most qualified voices on the restaurant scene in India. A panel of dedicated foodies and restaurateurs.

A Napa adventure

On a whirl across the Bay Area, Kushan Mitra spends a day among the vines at Napa Valley. Well, there would have been vines if it wasn’t December.

Shilpa Shetty 34

Mumbai-based actress and former Big Brother contestant, Shilpa Shetty, has experienced her share of controversy in her time. Currently dating UK-based NRI entrepreneur, Raj Kundra, she reveals that she has a thing for Tom Cruise.

Tote top secret

Ten years since Indigo rewrote the rules, Rahul Akerkar readies his hush-hush new venture—Tote.

Mr Metcalfe goes Indian

Charles Metcalfe doesn’t jump to conclusions—Kathryn and he went through 27,000 wine and food pairings over seven months for the Sainsbury Pocket Food & Wine Guide.

Features

India's costly airports

Steep airport charges in India are keeping air fares inordinately high at a time when airlines are fighting a downturn.

The IPO Lemons

A clutch of promoters raised money at fanciful valuations during the bull run. Today those stocks have hit ridiculous lows. So much for price discovery.

Issues of misuse

In the boom times, promoters had to just say a price, merchant bankers nodded, and investors blindly lapped up those initial public offerings. Today, however, much of those thousands of crores is either still lying unused or being deployed in areas not indicated in the issue prospectus.

IT Industry and fraud

The Satyam fraud may seem just an isolated case—but thanks to the IT and ITES sector’s unique characteristics, there is enough to suggest room for more frauds. Here is a quick checklist.

Luxury in a slowdown

Last year, the hype about the burgeoning luxury industry in India was hysterical. Since the slowdown and 26/ 11, things have calmed down somewhat. But, as a key luxury conference takes place in Delhi this month, we ask: Is luxury actually better off than it was last year? Sanjiv Bhattacharya finds out.

Real estate: Down in the pits

Hit by the slowdown and a credit crunch, once high-flying real estate projects across the country have come to an abrupt halt. If the recession gets worse, real estate could be in the pits for some time to come.Tejeesh N.S. Behl and Anusha Subramanian bring a report from the Ground Zero.

Mukesh Ambani's biggest test yet

The swiftness and the savagery of the global downturn have caught business by surprise—the bigger the corporation, the bigger is the surprise. But few analysts expected Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Group to be hit. After seven years of a heady upcycle, Reliance Industries finds itself hemmed in a downturn that’s perhaps the worst ever since it went public 31 years ago. Suman Layak reports.

Adding up to Zero

In its five years at the Centre, the United Progressive Alliance government persevered for just one goal: Survival. Here’s a rating for its key ministers.

Event

Tryst with champions

India's corporate leaders called the shots along with the country's top pro golfers at the 14th Business Today-Honda Pro-Am of Champions 2009.

Jobs

Carrots with strings

Better pay packets for senior managers come at a premium in 2009.

Leadership Spotlight

Lights, Camera, Inaction

Just before the announcement of election dates, a few UPA ministers blew Rs 300 crore on an ad blitz tom-tomming their achievements— a few honest, most imaginary.BT presents a tongue-in-cheek Claim-Achievement Index with titles borrowed from Hollywood.

People

Mallya, Tipu & The Mahatma

At an auction in London in September 2003, an anonymous participant picked up the legendary Sword of Tipu Sultan, who ruled Mysore in the 18th century. The man’s identity came to light only when liquor baron Vijay Mallya, 54, displayed the sword in his flamboyant style at a media conference six months later in Bangalore.

Printed Circuit

Berry Picking

We tried out the new BlackBerry Bold from Research in Motion (RIM) a few months ago.Now we try out its three brand-new smaller siblings.

Reporters Diary

Life on the KG Basin

Life can be very different when one is trying to extract natural resources out of the sea that are buried more than 2-km below the surface. And yet somehow, they manage to serve samosas and farsan to their guests! On board RIL’s oil & gas exploration ship in the Krishna-Godavari Basin, Suman Layak returns impressed by the infrastructure and the production plans.

In This Issue

Rural to the rescue

Stagnant urban demand, collapse of export markets and relative rural prosperity are drawing companies to the countryside. Which means that the slowdown has not impacted the rural markets as much as their urban counterparts, reports Tejeesh N.S. Behl.Reform to Re-farmOn the farm trailColour of money

There is no question of a recovery in 2009: Mathas

In today’s distressed times, it may seem like an oddity, but according to New York Life Insurance (NYL) President and Chief Executive Officer and Chairman-elect Ted Mathas, the company seems to have weathered the storm quite well.

Back of the Book

Trash to cash

Ragpicking is the last area a corporate would want to foray into. But for ITC, which had in the past entered unorganised businesses such as manufacturing match sticks and incense sticks, it is a potential gold mine. Its Wealth Out of Waste programme shows how a simple habit change can significantly benefit the company, the society and the country. N. Madhavan reports.

Current

Where there's smoke...

...There must be smuggling. Indian-made cigarettes, the #1 FMCG, are facing a tidal wave of smuggled imports that get away without paying killer excise rates.

Stealing the thunder

Cognizant looks set to post bigger incremental revenues than the four giants of the Indian IT industry.

Markets to lose fizz

Volumes in the derivatives segment are expected to dry up with the manifold increase in lot sizes of contracts.

Grappling with change

The eighth India Today Conclave provided a fertile setting for cross-pollination of ideas and thoughts.

Where angels fear to tread

Satyam has plenty of suitors, but none ready for the first date, let alone the walk up the aisle.

Trends

CEO Watch

India’s and the world’s most talked-about CEOs in February.

IPL as an economic necessity

The second season of the IPL could provide some muchneeded cash flow for India Inc., though uncertainty about security remains a concern.

Instant tip

The fortnight’s burning question. Is the performance of UPA government on economic matters better than the NDA government?

Keeping it in the family

Family-run businesses are better at managing downturns, says a study.

Numbers of note

Who will flex the cat?

Flexible benefits for employees are gaining popularity across the world, and has got India Inc. interested, says a Mercer study.

Stuttering ad revenues

Across the Asia Pacific, ad revenues are declining. The Indian market is still growing but at a slower rate, according to a study.

CEO Watch

India’s and the world’s most talked-about CEOs in February. In February 2009, the impact of global economic meltdown intensified across Indian shores, as some of the leading Indian CEOs announced rollbacks in their businesses.

Forging ahead

To be precise

Letters

Battle-scarred Veterans

As in people, adversity can bring out the best in organisations, too. Companies with sound business strategy are defying the laws of gravity and will emerge from the ongoing recession more battle-hardened and stronger than before.

Book

Beyond central banking

Dr Rakesh Mohan’s Monetary Policy in a Globalized Economy combines a policymaker’s know-how with a scholar’s precision.

Treadmill

No more excuses!

You joined a gym in Jan and promised yourself that 2009 would be your fittest year ever. But just two weeks later, your resolve dwindled and the gym became a distant memory. Don’t worry!

Noted

Revamped, launched...

Work and processes by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the external auditor of Satyam Computer Services, by setting up a new advisory board and appointing a new quality assurance and risk management head.

'Damage to global liquidity is $18 trillion'?

Hemant Mishr, Head (Global Markets, India), Standard Chartered Bank, spoke to BT’s Puja Mehra on the liquidity crunch and the high lending rates.

Domestic air travel nose dives

A quick look at the latest Airports Authority of India (AAI) data for India’s top 10 airports shows that air traffic in the first nine months of the 2008-09 fiscal has dropped sharply.

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