Best of the Week | Cheap alcohol, pricey consequences

Dear reader,

Yesterday, I was out running an errand, when a spate of firecrackers greeted me as I got off my scooter. Coming out of the rather crowded shop, I was a little surprised. The arrhythmic fireworks were shot out of a contraption that was placed right in the middle of the road —blocking traffic on both sides of the road.

What followed the loud, epileptic contraption was a procession. A group of at least two dozen people who sought to disrupt everyone's lives (at 10:45 pm, no less) to celebrate some sort of festivities.

As much as I enjoy the freedom to write about my daily life on this newsletter, I'm going to curtail my observations and opinions right here. Given the weekend, I'm sure you can do the cultural math.

Instead, let's pivot to what I was doing while I was at this peculiarly crowded store.

I'm almost glad my parents don't read this newsletter unless I send them a link. If they were regular readers, what I'm writing about next would warrant some stark actions. At the very least, it would resemble one of the climax scenes from 3 Idiots. Ignorance is bliss, but I'm not as paavam as I'd have convinced my parents a few years ago.

Anyway, it's not some big mystery: I was at the booze store. “XYZ Comforts”, as the board of the store said (XYZ is the censored name of the store). 

Comforting, for sure.

Whenever I visit a store like this, I'm almost certain of what I'll be buying. Nevertheless, I peruse through the store's offerings. It's a fun little quest. I usually do this to gauge my (non) options. I also like to see the new entrants to the market, and reminisce with some old memories (or lack thereof).

It was here when I spotted Imperial Blue, a familiar foe. You see, back in college, Imperial Blue was my best friend. It was present with me during good times and bad—mostly because it was the cheapest option available.

🥃 So it was a big surpise to me when I read this report by Ranjani Raghavan and Suneera Tandon that Imperial Blue was on sale for an eye-popping price of ₹5,000 crore. I used to buy it in college for around ₹750; why would anyone pay over MRP?! Inflation is out of control these days.

🍲 Talking about real inflation, you should read this piece by Sayantan Bera: the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) noted that food inflation averaged 6.3% in the past four years. And in the five years prior? Just 2.9%. RBI was quick to blame climate change for this stark increase. Despite this change, farmers aren't earning more either. Sayantan writes about how the rains play the biggest role in the equation between the farmer and the consumer, often playing havoc instead of aiding the two parties to reach an equitable price point.

💸 At this rate, I'd have to take a hefty EMI from one of my banks to buy a bottle. Like me, plenty of Indians are resorting to small debt to fulfill some shortcoming. The household debt in India is only growing—it seems like every family has a couple of small loans to their name. RBI has been worried sick about this development; it has routinely issued circulars warning against this. Our partners at How India Lives analyse this worrying trend.

🤝 Do you know who doesn't need a credit card EMI? Gautam Adani. Here's why: the Adani Group plans to invest $1 billion in acquiring packaged consumer goods brands in southern and eastern India. Anirudh Laskar reported that the investment will be made through its subsidiary, Adani Wilmar. This move is part of the group's strategy to expand its presence in the fast-moving consumer goods segment. Adani Wilmar aims to make multiple acquisitions over the next few years and anticipates a surge in demand for its products. The Group has previously used this strategy in other sectors too, like renewable energy and the cements business.

🐂 This week, the stock markets hit record highs for three consecutive days, before falling on Thursday and Friday. Nobody's surprised that Indian equities are hitting new highs; Sensex and Nifty are up around 15% so far this year. India is faring fine on its own, but when you compare it to foreign markets it seems like a diamond in a coal mine. However, investors should be concerned with one factor: pricey valuations. Veterans detest where midcaps are in terms of valuations, with some calling it “irrational exuberance”. Harsha Jethmalani takes stock of the Indian stock markets, advising you to exercise caution before diving head-first into the bull run.

📊 Some would argue that the markets are just fine—it's in everyone's interests for a bull run to continue, right? Companies that are raising crores at the bourses are seeing bids in multiples of thousands. Nobody is looking at the size issue anymore; investors want to try their hand at getting some shares when the gauntlet drops for these companies. These medium and small enterprises are all the rage on Dalal Street these days. But because of their small size, they are quite prone to market manipulation. Aprajita Sharma writes a detailed story on what red flags you should check for in such IPOs, lest you burn your hands and are left with a penny stock.

⚠️ Siri, define ‘conflict of interest’? Turns out, the Securities and Exchange Board of India chair Madhabi Puri Buch worked both at ICICI Bank and a private equity firm between 2011 and 2013. Varun Sood reported this development, which was confirmed by a stock exchange filing. Research group Hindenburg's allegations into Buch look murkier by the day, as more details emerge from the report. Who's watching the watchmen?

👻 Ever encountered a "ghost job"? These are fake vacancies posted by companies to gather resumes for future use and test market interest. Additionally, they might also post such jobs to maintain their brand image, or signal growth (but not actually prove it). Devina Sengupta reports that these postings are usually done by smaller companies. Read her primer on this trend, and find out how to avoid wasting your time by applying for a ghost job.

🦿 This was a good week for sports in India. Seventeen-year-old Sheetal Devi, an armless Indian Paralympian archer, captured the world's attention by scoring a perfect 10 earning a bronze medal at the Paris Paralympics 2024. She used just her foot, jaw, and shoulder to secure the medal—with remarkable precision, if I may add. Her achievement underscores a significant advancement in tech for Paralympians. Leslie D'Monte writes that Devi's success is part of a broader narrative of technological evolution in Paralympic sports. From rudimentary equipment to today's customised, high-tech aids like 3D-printed prosthetics, Paralympics have come a long way. This ensures fair competition and showcases feats of incredible human spirit and determination. India ended with a total of 26 medals in these Games, good for the 16th place overall. Onwards and upwards!

🥇 If you want to catch up on how India's para-atheletes won their dozens of medals, we have you covered. Deepti Patwardhan writes about the various categories and how we won in Paris. While reading this piece, you'd realise very quickly that it isn't about the tribulations, it's about the triumphs — all of them, worth celebrating.

That's all for this week. I hope you all have a pleasant weekend!

If you have any thoughts, ideas, or feedback, please feel free to write to me (shashwat.mohanty@htdigital.in) or reply to this mail. We are a constantly evolving news product, so any input is much appreciated!

Best,

Shashwat Mohanty

Assistant Editor

Subscriber Experience Team