The warning shot for a weight-loss drug in India

Just as cheaper weight-loss drugs were set to flood the market, India’s drug regulator has stepped in with a warning shot.

The Drugs Controller General of India has asked states to ensure that only endocrinologists prescribe semaglutide, a powerful diabetes drug now widely used for weight loss, following raids on wellness centres where unqualified practitioners were dispensing it.

The move comes days after Novo Nordisk’s patent expired, triggering a rush of low-cost versions from major Indian drugmakers. While this could cut treatment costs by 50-70% and expand access, regulators fear misuse as demand surges beyond diabetes patients to those seeking quick weight loss.

Experts say the concerns are real. The drug can cause nausea, muscle loss, anxiety and long-term dependency, with weight often rebounding after stopping treatment. With India’s obesity burden set to soar, semaglutide is seen as both an opportunity and a risk.

The regulator has also warned against misleading social media promotions, signalling tighter scrutiny. While some doctors want prescribing rights expanded due to a shortage of specialists, the government is prioritising safety over speed as this new market takes off.

In today’s edition of Top of the Morning:

• Tata Group secure chip funding*
• Vedanta vs Adani’s JAL takeover
• The unprecedented silence of Morbi

THE MAIN STUFF

Tata gets chip funding, but conditions apply: Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing has raised ₹6,835 crore from foreign banks for its Gujarat chip plant, but with tight strings attached.

Lenders require the Tata Group to retain a 51% stake, continue using its brand, and maintain strict equity ratios, signalling reliance on its credit strength. The project’s land has been valued at zero, reflecting its undeveloped status despite being pledged. Backed by heavy government subsidies, Tata’s own investment is limited. Read more.

Inside Shantanu Narayen’s Adobe legacy: Shantanu Narayen will leave Adobe after 18 years (when a successor is found), defined by a bold pivot and a tougher finish. He transformed Adobe into a subscription giant, driving revenue from $3 billion to over $24 billion, and lifting its valuation more than tenfold at its peak.

But the final years brought setbacks.

The blocked Figma deal and rising competition from Generative AI tools triggered a sharp valuation drop and raised doubts about its business model.

As AI reshapes creative work, Adobe now faces a deeper challenge: whether its subscription engine can hold in a world where automation could shrink demand for its core products. Read more.

Vedanta challenges Adani’s JAL takeover: Vedanta Ltd. has moved the appellate tribunal against lenders’ approval of Adani Enterprises Ltd’s ₹14,543 crore bid for bankrupt Jaiprakash Associates, escalating a high-stakes insolvency battle.

Vedanta argues that it offered higher value on a net present basis and alleges procedural unfairness, calling the outcome a “commercial conspiracy”. Lenders, however, say bids were judged on execution certainty and faster payouts, not just headline value.

Legal experts suggest tribunals rarely override lenders’ commercial decisions unless rules are violated. With Adani’s plan already backed by over 93% of creditors, the challenge is unlikely to derail the deal, but it puts the resolution process under scrutiny. Read more.

The unprecedented silence of Morbi: Morbi, India’s ceramic capital, has gone dark. Nearly 90% of its tile factories have shut after a gas supply crunch triggered by disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, choking a fuel lifeline that powers its energy-intensive kilns.

The cluster, which produces 70% of India’s tiles and exports globally, is now in limbo. Workers have returned home, trucks stand idle, and manufacturers are bracing for losses as fuel shortages collide with rising input and shipping costs. While a short disruption may be manageable, a prolonged crisis could strain smaller firms and reshape the industry. Read more.

The AI focus of IBM-Confluent deal: IBM’s $11-billion buyout of Confluent sharpens its push into AI and hybrid cloud. The deal targets a key hurdle in AI adoption: fragmented, outdated data. Confluent’s real-time streaming tech enables continuous data flow across systems, helping AI models and agents operate on fresh inputs rather than static batches.

As firms move from pilots to production, this gives IBM a stronger pitch against cloud rivals by offering AI-ready infrastructure, positioning it to accelerate enterprise adoption of scalable, real-time AI applications. Read more.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

𝟤𝟢%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝖽𝖽𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗆𝖾𝗋𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝖫𝖯𝖦 𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗈𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖺𝗎𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗅 𝗀𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗎𝗇𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌, 𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗅𝗒 𝗍𝗈 𝟧𝟢% 𝗈𝖿 𝗉𝗋𝖾‑𝖬𝗂𝖽𝖽𝗅𝖾 𝖤𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝖼𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗌 𝗅𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗅𝗌.

𝟪,𝟢𝟢𝟢: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖾𝗆𝗉𝗅𝗈𝗒𝖾𝖾𝗌 𝖮𝗉𝖾𝗇𝖠𝖨 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝖻𝗒 𝖾𝗇𝖽‑𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝗇𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗒 𝖽𝗈𝗎𝖻𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝟦,𝟧𝟢𝟢, 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗆𝗈𝗌𝗍 𝗁𝗂𝗋𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝖽𝗎𝖼𝗍, 𝖾𝗇𝗀𝗂𝗇𝖾𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝖾𝖺𝗋𝖼𝗁, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾𝗌.

𝟤𝟣: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖠𝖤, 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖪, 𝖥𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾, 𝖩𝖺𝗉𝖺𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗌, 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗂𝗌𝗌𝗎𝖾𝖽 𝖺 𝗃𝗈𝗂𝗇𝗍 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗆𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇’𝗌 𝖺𝗍𝗍𝖺𝖼𝗄𝗌 𝗈𝗇 𝖼𝗂𝗏𝗂𝗅𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝗂𝗇𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗆𝖾𝗋𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗏𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗅𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖦𝗎𝗅𝖿.

₹𝟤𝟨𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝖾𝗍 𝖻𝗈𝗑 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗈𝖿 𝖱𝖺𝗇𝗏𝖾𝖾𝗋 𝖲𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗁’𝗌 𝖣𝗁𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗁𝖺𝗋 𝟤 𝗂𝗇 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝖾𝖾 𝖽𝖺𝗒𝗌 𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗅𝖾𝖺𝗌𝖾, 𝗌𝗎𝗋𝗉𝖺𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖠𝗇𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗅’𝗌 𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀‑𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗄𝖾𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅.

₹𝟤𝟫,𝟪𝟦𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗅𝗒 𝖲𝖨𝖯 𝗂𝗇𝖿𝗅𝗈𝗐𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 ₹𝟥𝟣,𝟢𝟢𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖩𝖺𝗇𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒, 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝗅𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝗋𝖾𝖿𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗁𝗂𝖿𝗍 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝖿𝗂𝗑𝖾𝖽 𝖽𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗀𝗈𝗅𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗆𝗎𝗍𝗎𝖺𝗅 𝖿𝗎𝗇𝖽𝗌.

𝟧𝟪%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗁𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗅𝖽𝗐𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝖺 𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖻𝖺𝗇 𝗈𝗇 𝗆𝗈𝖻𝗂𝗅𝖾 𝗉𝗁𝗈𝗇𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗌𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗈𝗅𝗌, 𝗎𝗉 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝟤𝟦% 𝗂𝗇 𝖩𝗎𝗇𝖾 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟥, 𝖺𝗆𝗂𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖼𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗌 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋 𝖺𝗍𝗍𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖼𝗒𝖻𝖾𝗋𝖻𝗎𝗅𝗅𝗒𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁.

𝟥𝟢.𝟫𝟫%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗄𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖨𝗇𝖿𝗂𝗇𝗂𝖺 𝖥𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖪𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗄 𝖬𝖺𝗁𝗂𝗇𝖽𝗋𝖺 𝖢𝖺𝗉𝗂𝗍𝖺𝗅, 𝖺 𝗌𝗎𝖻𝗌𝗂𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝗈𝖿 𝖪𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗄 𝖬𝖺𝗁𝗂𝗇𝖽𝗋𝖺 𝖡𝖺𝗇𝗄, 𝗐𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝗌𝖾𝗅𝗅 𝖿𝗈𝗋 ₹𝟣,𝟤𝟫𝟥 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾.

AROUND THE WORLD

• This border crossing is one of Iran’s last lifelines to the outside world
• Even if you’re not driving, You’re probably using oil
• America may be a petrostate. But the energy shock still hurts
• Empires have battled over the Strait of Hormuz for centuries
• AI could set back women at work. Here’s the risk.

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Nike Mind 001 mules vs Ray-Ban Meta: This year, a pair of new shoes from Nike and a pair of glasses from Ray Ban, created in partnership with Meta Platforms, have become hot topics for small talk among those who have embraced the active lifestyle.

While the new shoes promise to sharpen your focus by pushing all the right buttons (literally), the AI-powered glasses talk to you, listen to you and take photos for you on command. Having used the viral products for a while, here’s a definitive low-down that will help you decide if they're truly worth your time and money. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

The act of “blurbing”

The word blurb was coined in 1907 by American humorist Gelett Burgess, who invented a fictional woman named Miss Belinda Blurb to parody the over-the-top hype used in book marketing.

On a mock dust jacket for his book Are You a Bromide?, Burgess used a doctored image of her “in the act of blurbing,” showering the book with absurd praise. What began as a satire of self-important publishing promotion stuck, and today “blurb” is the perfectly normal word we use for those glowing little endorsements on book covers.

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