jet airways revival Archives

NCLT approves Kalrock-Jalan consortium resolution plan for Jet Airways

The Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved the resolution plan submitted by the Kalrock Capital and Murari Lal Jalan consortium. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has been given 90 days to allot slots to the airline. The Kalrock-Jalan consortium is believed to have offered Rs 1,183 crore as repayment over a period of five years to financial creditors, employees, and other staff of the airline.

Jet Airways suspended operations in April 2019 due to financial distress. The company has been undergoing a resolution process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) for two years.

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Sobha Q4 Results: Net profit falls 64% YoY to Rs 17.9 crore

Sobha Limited reported a 64.69% YoY decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 17.90 crore for the quarter ended March (Q4). Its revenue from operations declined by 39.19% YoY to Rs 553.40 crore during the same period. Net profit for the financial year ended March 31, 2021 (FY21) declined by 77.87% YoY to Rs 62.30 crore. The real estate developer’s board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 3.5 per share.

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Dr Reddy’s Labs launches Icosapent Ethyl Capsules in the US

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories announced the launch of Icosapent Ethyl Capsules in the US market. The drug is used to reduce triglyceride (TG) levels in adult patients with severe hypertriglyceridemia. It is available in 1 gram capsules in bottle count size of 120’s count. The pharma company had received approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) for Icosapent Ethyl Capsules in August 2020.

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Minda Industries to acquire 51% stake in UzChasys

Minda Industries Ltd has won a bid for the acquisition of a 51% stake in Uzbekistan-based UzChasys LLC. The cost of the acquisition is 83.1 billion soms (~Rs 58.13 crore). UzChasys is engaged in the manufacturing of automobile headlights and lamps. It is a joint venture (JV) firm of AMS Co. (30% stake) and UzautoComponents LLC (70% stake). The proposed investment in UzChasys will enable the UNO Minda Group to have a significant presence in Uzbekistan as a leading supplier to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

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Avanti Feeds Q4 Results: Net profit declines 19% YoY to Rs 69 crore

Avanti Feeds Limited reported a 19.88% YoY decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 69.69 crore for the quarter ended March (Q4). Net profit has declined by 7.06% when compared to the previous quarter. Its revenue from operations rose 6.12% YoY to Rs 1,098.11 crore during the same period. Net profit for the financial year ended March 31, 2021 (FY21) rose 3.92% YoY to Rs 360.07 crore. Avanti Feeds’ board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 6.25 per share.

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Subex partners with Spire Solutions to address cyberattacks in the Middle East

Subex Limited has entered into a strategic partnership with Spire Solutions to address the sharp rise in cyberattacks and associated cyber risks in the Middle East and Africa. The companies will ensure that businesses are protected at critical infrastructure level security with the most comprehensive stack of Internet of Things, Operational Technology, and converged environment (IoT-OT & Information Tech) protection solutions. Subex and Spire Solutions have also received a project by a major oil & gas entity in the Middle East to meet its cybersecurity and cyber risk assessment requirements.

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Shilpa Medicare launches Paracetamol Oral Thin Film

Shilpa Medicare Ltd announced the launch of a pediatric dose Paracetamol Oral Thin Film, under the brand name ‘Molshil’. The drug has been launched in strengths of 60 mg and 120 mg in orange flavour. The pharma company’s Paracetamol Oral Thin Films are patent protected and are the first of their kind in the world. Shilpa Medicare manufactures and sells active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), intermediates, and formulations globally.

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HPL Electric & Power to install NB-IoT technology smart meters in parts of Delhi

HPL Electric & Power Ltd has received approval and production clearance from a leading private distribution company for the implementation of Narrow Band-Internet of Things (NB-IoT)-based smart meters in parts of Delhi. HPL’s new range of smart meters is both 4G and 5G compatible. It offers a dedicated channel for smart metering and avoids any reduction in performance from obstruction due to congestion on the public network. These smart meters have been developed at HPL’s new R&D facility at Gurugram. HPL Electric & Power is a leading meter and electrical equipment manufacturing company.

Hero MotoCorp to hike prices from July

Hero MotoCorp Ltd has announced plans to hike the prices of its two-wheelers by up to Rs 3,000 with effect from July 1. This is to partially offset the impact of the continuous rise in commodity prices. The exact quantum of the increase will depend on the model and the specific market. Hero MotoCorp further said it continues to drive cost-saving programs aggressively to minimize the impact on the final consumer.

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Engineers India receives order worth Rs 111 crore from Numaligarh Refinery

Engineers India Ltd (EIL) has secured an order from Numaligarh Refinery (NRL) for the execution of revamp of a delayed coker unit (DCU). EIL will execute this project as a licensor cum engineering, procurement & construction management (EPCM) consultant. The project involves increasing the capacity of the DCU from 0.306 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) to 0.560 MMTPA. The estimated value of the order is Rs 111 crore.

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Sun Pharma settles patent litigation with Celgene over cancer drug

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has reached an agreement with Celgene Corp to resolve the patent litigation regarding submission of an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for a generic version of Revlimid (lenalidomide capsules) in the US. As per terms of the settlement, Celgene will grant Sun Pharma a license to its patents required to manufacture and sell limited quantities of generic lenalidomide capsules in the US after March 2022.

Celgene is a wholly-owned subsidiary of New York-based pharma company Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS). Revlimid is a blood cancer drug, which had annual sales of $12.1 billion (~Rs 89,900 crore) in 2020.

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The Mystery Man

According to many in the business world, Murari Lal Jalan is a very mysterious man. There is not much information about how he was able to create all his wealth. He has always kept a very low profile, and is not popular among the business communities in India or abroad. Totally inexperienced in the field, he has confused a lot of people as to how he was able to enter into the airline industry. Let us look at some of the facts which we know are for certain:

In the 1980s, Murari Lal Jalan began his career by entering into the paper industry. He started working at his family’s paper trading business in Kolkata. He also worked as a trader for JK Paper and Ballarpur Industries, which were once big paper manufacturing companies. In 2003, he wanted to expand his paper business, and thus, acquired Kolkata-based Kanoi Paper and Industries. He renamed the company to Agio Paper, and currently has a manufacturing facility in Bilaspur (Chattisgarh). However, In 2010, the paper company faced a lawsuit from government agencies, for pollution-related issues. The production activities of Agio Paper have been suspended since then. So almost his whole career, his focus was on the paper industry and even that did not end well either.

After his paper company received backlash, Jalan began plans to enter the real estate and healthcare sector. In 2015, he approached Dr. Naresh Trehan and Associates Health Services. He went on to acquire a stake in the company for Rs 75 crore, through a secondary share sale transaction. A secondary sale means that Jalan bought-out the shares from an existing stockholder. Around the same time as the acquisition, Dr. Trehan’s Medanta Hospital had plans to establish a hospital in Dubai, with the help of Jalan. Unfortunately, this plan was not implemented.

Jalan kept going and began to secure his vision of entering into more businesses. Once he moved his base to the UAE, he quickly expanded to sectors such as real estate, mining, fast-moving consumer goods, and construction. He was chairman of the Agio Image group, which sold and distributed photographic and consumer products of well-known companies such as Sony, Panasonic, and Konica.

He established the real estate development company, MJ Developers. The firm has its headquarters in Dubai, but its main businesses span over countries such as Russia, Brazil, and India. MJ Developers is currently engaged in developing residential and commercial properties in Uzbekistan. Jalan is also contributing to the development of the city of Namangan (in Uzbekistan), which has been termed as a land of investment opportunity in pharmaceuticals, the health sector, automobile, and information technology. Various reports state that he was able to improve his business position through these projects in Uzbekistan. In fact, if you search his name on Google, many shady self-praising articles from Uzbekistan will show up.

It is also interesting to know that Jalan had partnered with his own family relatives to set up Patanjali India Distribution Ltd. Certain documents from the Indian Ministry of Corporate Affairs state that this company would be involved in trading, export, distribution, and marketing of milk products and health foods. The list of products also included herbal medicines and ayurvedic cosmetic items. Regardless of these claims, the company never opened, and the founders never looked back on it. We do know that Patanjali Ayurved is owned by the yoga guru, Baba Ramdev. However, it is not clear whether the two companies are linked in some way.

Entry into Airline Industry

At a time when most airline companies are going through huge losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic, we see that Kalrock Group and Murari Lal Jalan have plans to revive a very troubled airline- Jet Airways. You can read more about why the airline company failed here. Some may question as to why there was a sudden need for Jalan to enter into this field. Many have suspicions whether this deal would really help the airline to bring back its former glory.

Through the bid to revive Jet Airways, it would be the first time that Jalan starts his venture into the airline industry. “Jet Airways is a renowned Indian aviation company with a strong legacy. The aviation sector underwent substantial correction on account of Covid-19 and created an opportune time to enter the sector. Our vision for Jet Airways is to operate the carrier as a full-service airline, both domestic and international”, he declared in a statement. The point to be noted here is that Jalan has no expertise in this particular sector. However, the management team of Kalrock does have the essential experience from cargo and logistics management through past deals. They have big plans to take Jet Airways to new heights.

Now, we know that Murari Lal Jalan has always been interested in entering into multiple business sectors. His latest entry into the aviation or airline industry can be analysed as part of his plan to speed up the expansion of his empire. The proverb ‘don’t put all your eggs in one basket’ can clearly be attributed to him.

But now, a major doubt remains to be answered – how was Jalan able to create all this wealth and expand his business to such a large magnitude? We have seen that his initial business in the paper manufacturing industry had failed. Also, when Jalan moved to the UAE, he was not able to contribute effectively towards the implementation of projects in the healthcare sector. He created a company in India that was never launched. Moreover, the fact that most business people don’t know about him, makes everything all the more suspicious. All these facts make us feel very unsure and doubtful about his new deal with Jet Airways. Let us wait and watch for the results of this revival plan.