Mint Primer | Tesla at ₹40 lakh: Will EVs now come roaring in?

Modi govt’s mixed record on corporate reforms

Two Raza paintings emerge from the shadows to fetch an eye popping ₹86 crore

How pig butchering scam is taking a toll on investors

Alakh sir, can PhysicsWallah ace the profit test?

Welcome to Top of the Morning by Mint, your weekday newscast that brings you five major stories from the world of business. It's Wednesday, March 20, 2024. My name is Nelson John. Let's get started:

Tuesday saw the Indian benchmark indices take a downturn, ahead of a key interest rate announcement by the US Federal Reserve. Both Sensex and Nifty shed more than one per cent to end the trading session deep in the red on Tuesday. Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Bank were among the only few stocks to end the day in green.

Are you an electric car enthusiast? Ever dreamt of driving a Tesla on Indian roads? In a surprise move Friday, a day before the model code of conduct came into force, the Indian government revised its EV policy. The new policy slashed import duty on electric cars in India to 15 per cent from the current 70-110 per cent, a massive reduction! But it comes with conditions. The reduced tariff is valid only for 8,000 cars per annum and can be availed only if companies make an investment of 4,150 crore rupees or 500 million dollars towards setting up a factory within 3 years. There is also a clause on domestic value addition. So the policy requires electric car makers like Tesla to commit to significant domestic investments. Tesla plans to develop an affordable model for emerging markets like India. And we finally may have a price point for a Tesla model. It sits somewhere close to 40 lakhs. Mint’s auto correspondent Sumant Banerji explains what the policy change could mean for global EV companies.

When the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2014, one of the core ideas it championed was the ease of doing business in India. The previous regime’s ‘policy paralysis’ emerged as a strong pitch for the BJP. Now, after a decade in power, has the Modi-led government made any significant corporate reforms? Mint’s senior assistant editor Niti Kiran takes a look, using data as her tool. Niti examines the highs and lows of corporate policy making in the last 10 years. These include the Modi government’s banking reforms, led by capital infusion of more than 3 trillion rupees over five years between 2017 and 2022. Niti also takes a look at some of the not-so-successful policy decisions by the government - like 2016’s insolvency and bankruptcy code. This is the fifth part of an ongoing Plain Facts series covering the top election issues and the government’s report card after nearly 10 years in power.

Niti’s story and other featured stories have been linked in the show notes. Just scroll down and click on the links to give them a read.

“Money is not the criteria of art. Art or love is not a question of money. One should perceive these things at a different level”. What you just heard was a quote from the late great post-modernist painter Sayed Haider Raza. This is not an art history podcast.The reason we’re telling you about S H Raza’s art is because two of his famous paintings sold for an eye-watering sum of 86 crore rupees! Raza's 1959 painting titled "Kallisté" , which is Greek for 'most beautiful,' was auctioned off on March 19 at the renowned Sotheby's auction house for more than five and a half million dollars – that's close to 46 crore rupees. Another piece, "Paysage Agreste" (pey-saj a-grest), showcased at the Métayer-Mermoz (mee-tee-ye mer-moz) auction house in Antibes (anti-bees), France, on March 17, fetched 4.75 million euros – about 40 crore rupees. Mint’s assistant editor Varuni Khosla reports on the auctions that made Raza relevant again, nearly a decade after his death.

Wake up folks! We have a new scam in town. Something called the ‘pig butchering scam’ is targeting people looking to make a quick buck, especially students who tend to have little to no experience in investing. Mint Money’s Sashind Ningthoukhongjam explains that the pig butchering scam isn't your average investment fraud. Here, scammers draw you in with slick, fake investment apps and websites, sometimes even using real app names as a front, convincing you to keep upping your investment. Just when you think you're on to a good thing, they disappear - along with your money. Brokers like Fisdom, Dhan, Fyers, and Choice Broking are sounding the alarm, issuing public notices to warn investors. And what’s with the peculiar name? In the pig butchering scam, it starts with the scammer cozying up to the victim. Once they've got your trust, that's when they hit you for money, much like how a butcher fattens up a pig before it's time for the slaughter. Investors beware!

PhysicsWallah, the face of profitable edtech in India, has been struggling to cover all its bases. The company, which began as a YouTube channel in 2016, has had quite the journey. Last year, it saw its revenue skyrocket to 779 crore rupees, tripling its earnings and landing in the rarified strata of profitable unicorns. However, it's not all smooth sailing. Despite the revenue surge, its net profit took a dive, plummeting 91 per cent to just 9 crore rupees. However, what are the signals that suggest that staying profitable could be a challenge for PhysicsWallah moving forward? Mint’s startups correspondent Samiksha Goel spoke to students from across the country, as well as current and former PhysicsWallah employees to reveal a symptomatic, larger tale of decay that is evident in Indian edtech today. Students across the country, who enrolled in PhysicsWallahs prep classes for competitive exams say they have not been happy with the quality of education provided by the company. Samiksha also traces the company’s origins, the controversies it has faced and how the company may be lacking with quality control of the teachers it hires.

We'd love to hear your feedback on this podcast. Let us know by writing to us at feedback@livemint.com. You may send us feedback, tips or anything that you feel we should be covering from your vantage point in the world of business and finance.

That’s all for today. Thank you for listening.

We'll be back tomorrow with a fresh episode of Top of the Morning. Have a nice day!

Show notes: