BACK PAGE | PAGE 18 OBITUARY | PAGE 18 Govt weighs enhanced phone-location tracking INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 16 SimoneTata,thefirstladyof Indianbeauty,passesaway KOLKATA, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2025 Trump admin says Europe faces ‘civilisational erasure’ FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL 35 NO. 31, 26 PAGES, `12 (NORTH EAST STATES `13 & ANDAMAN `20) P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E READ TO LEAD SENSEX: 85,712.37 ▲ 447.05 NIFTY: 26,186.45 ▲ 152.70 NIKKEI 225: 50,491.87 ▼ 536.55 HANG SENG: 26,085.08 ▲ 149.18 `/$: 89.99 ▼ 0.01 `/€: 104.88 ▲ 0.20 BRENT: $63.21 ▼ $0.05 GOLD: `128,221 ▲ `780 RBI’S FOCUS: SUPPORT‘GOLDILOCKS PERIOD’ Door open for more rate cuts IN THE NEWS MARKETS PAGE 7 FINO GETS RBI NOD TO BECOME SMALL FIN BANK THE RESERVE BANK of India on Friday gave in-principle approval to Fino Payments Bank, making it the first payments bank in India to be approved for conversion into a small finance bank, reports fe Bureau.Fino had started operations in 2017. » INSIDE « COALPOWER EXPANSION MAYEXTENDTILL2047 PAGE 3 LOWER GSTFOR FERTILISERS, AGRI EQUIPMENT PAGE 2 National security & public health cess Bill gets House nod THE LOK SABHA on Friday passed the Health Security and National Security Cess Bill, 2025, paving the way for a dedicated cess on pan masala manufacturing units to fund the strengthening of national security and public health systems, reports fe Bureau. ■ PAGE 2 BAT sells 9% stake in ITC Hotels for `3,820 crore BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO on Friday sold a 9% stake in ITC Hotels for `3,820 crore, cutting its holding in the company to 6.3% from 15.3% earlier, reports Viveat Susan Pinto. ■ PAGE 5 ● FY26 GDP PROJECTION UPTO 7.3%; INFLATION ESTIMATE CUTTO 2% *New projection Continued on Page 7 FY26 6.8* NA 4 2.9 Q3 * 4.5 CPI 3.9 NA 6.7 6.4 Revised rates (in %) 6.5 Earlier rates 6.2 GDP 4 while bond yields eased, with the benchmark 10-year yield slipping to 6.494%. According to Pranjul Bhandari,India economist at HSBC, the RBI’s dovish turn is driven by two factors.First,a credible inflation-targeting regime requires actionwhen inflation sustains well below the midpoint of the target band. Second, while growth remains strong for now, it is likely to slow by March due to fiscal tightening,softer exports and fading GST-related base effects. “We believe that weaker SURPRISE MOVE 7 DEPOSIT RATES LIKELYTO STAY UNCHANGED P6 0.6 GROWTH INTIMES OF (NO) INFLATION,WRITES SOUMYAKANTI GHOSH P8 6.4 »INSIDE« EDIT: AN EARLY XMAS GIFT P8 MUKESH JAGOTA New Delhi, December 5 A 5% rupee depreciation typically adds about 35 bps to retail inflation growth down the line,low-forlong inflation and tighter fiscal conditions may require growth-supportive monetary policy in 2026 as well,” Bhandari said. State Bank of India Chairman C S Shetty said the measures“reinforce the structural drivers of a higher-for-longer growth trajectory through investment, credit and consumption.”Liquiditymanagement,he added,would anchor money-market rates and help lower borrowing costs, while the neutral stance preserved price and financial stability. Standard Chartered’s India and South Asia CEO P D Singh praised the RBI’s“unequivocal assurance on ample rupee liquidity”, noting that lower rates, improved policy transmission and currency-led export competitivenesswould help India counter global headwinds. What particularly reassured markets was the commitment to liquidity. The RBI announced open market purchases of government bonds worth `1 trillion and a threeyear dollar-rupee buy-sell swap of $5 billion,amounting to a total infusion of about `1.45 lakh crore this month. 1.8 from 6.8% and cut its inflation projection sharply to 2% from 2.6%. Markets welcomed the move. The Sensex, which had opened lower, ended the day 447 points higher at 85,712.37. The rupee closed flat at 89.99 to the dollar, 7.3 IT WAS A googly that caught markets off guard. After the sharp slide in the rupee, speculation had mounted that the central bank was nearing the end of its rate-easing cycle. But the six-memberMonetary Policy Committee (MPC) had other ideas, voting unanimously on Friday to cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.25%. The MPC also left the door open for further easing, while announcing measures to inject up to `1.45 lakh crore of liquidityinto the banking system. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra described the current phase as a “Goldilocks period” for the economy,with inflation at a benign 2.2% and growth at 8% in the first half of FY26. Explaining the rationale for the rate cut, Malhotra said the favourable inflation backdrop provided“policyspace to support growth momentum.” At a later press briefing, he added that with inflation expected to remain benign, interest rateswere more likely to stay“low rather than high”. The RBI has also revised its macro projections.It raised its FY26 growth forecast to 7.3% Interest rates are more likely to stay low rather than high 2 JOYDEEP GHOSH Mumbai, December 5 nuclearunittobe expedited;JVinked forRussianureaunit GOVERNOR, RBI 6.8 25 BPS; LIQUIDITYGETS A`1.45-LAKH-CR BOOST ● Workonsecond SANJAY MALHOTRA, 2.6 ● REPO RATE REDUCED BY Modi,Putinvowto deepen trade,energypartnership Q4 Q1 FY27 Q2 INDIAAND RUSSIA on Friday adopted a programme for greater economic cooperation that will run till 2030, address the barriers hampering the goods and capital flows and quicken implementation of joint projects including a second collaborative nuclear power unit in India. The Programme for the Development of Strategic Areas of India — Russia Economic Cooperation till 2030 — will enable the trade between the two countries to be more balanced and diversified. Apart from addressing tariff and non-tariff trade barriers, both sides emphasised on removing bottlenecks in logistics, promoting connectivity, ensuring smooth payment mechanisms, solutions of insurance and reinsurance and regular interaction between the businesses. An MoU has been signed between Russia’s Uralchem Group and Indian fertiliser companies to set up a 1.8-2 million tonne urea plant in Russia, a move that will help cut import costs for India. The two nations also agreed to continue jointly developing systems of bilateral settlements through use of the national currencies in order to ensure the trade goes on uninterrupted. They also pledged to continue their PM Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin during ANI India-Russia Business Forum in New Delhi on Friday »INSIDE« THE TIME-TESTED SPIRIT OF DRUZHBA-DOSTI: N CHANDRA MOHAN P8 FULL COVERAGE P2 consultations on enabling the interoperability of the national payment systems, financial messaging systems, as well as central bank digital currency platforms. Amid concerns over the US sanctions impeding India's oil purchases from Russia which has skyrocketed in recent years, Putin assured uninterrupted supplies of energy to India and asserted that remaining units of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project would be completed as per schedule. A second nuclear power plant in India with Russian support is on the cards and the site will be identified expeditiously. Putin also offered to discuss the supply of small modular reactors and floating nuclear plants. Continued on Page 7 GovtblinksonrulestoendIndiGochaos Netflix clinches ● Normalcy expected in 3 days; DGCA to probe lapses NITIN KUMAR New Delhi, December 5 CIVIL AVIATION MINISTER Ram Mohan Naidu on Friday said complete normalcy in flight operations is expected within the next three days, announcing that the new Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) rules have been placed in abeyance with immediate effect to curb the cascading crisis triggered by IndiGo’s crew shortage. “With initiation of various operational steps,flight schedules are expected to begin to stabilise and return to normal by Saturday,” he said, adding thattherollbackofFDTLPhaseII norms was aimed solely at stabilising services for passengerscaughtinthedisruption. Theministeralsoordereda Stranded passengers search for their luggage after IndiGo cancelled more than 400 flights at PTI the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on Friday high-levelinquiryintotheairline’shandlingofthesituation and issued fresh directions to IndiGo to mitigate passenger inconvenience.Airlines must now ensure automatic full refunds for all cancellations, hotel accommodation for stranded passengers, and lounge access for senior citizens and personswith disabilities. Regular and accurate online updates have been mandated and a 24×7 control roomhasbeenactivatedbythe ministry to oversee real-time corrective action. Thecrisishasspiralledsince IndiGo failed to align its crew planningandtrainingwiththe revised rest and duty rules, resulting in hundreds of cancellations over the last three days and scenes of passengers marooned at airports. On Friday,Delhi airport cancelled all IndiGo departures -- around 235 flights -- while Chennai halted all departures to major metros until 6 pm. CancellationsmountedacrossMumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad as well, with airport sources putting the numbers at 104, 102and92respectively. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), »INSIDE« which pulled PILOTBODIES up IndiGo on WARN Thursday,said AGAINST theairlinehad DILUTION ignored OFNORMS repeated PAGE 4 instructions to prepare for the revised rules.In a detailed order,theregulatorsaidIndiGo had been unable to accurately forecast crew availability,conduct timely training or rework rosters, triggering cascading delays and cancellations since lateNovember. Continued on Page 16 Whenstrengthbecomesbiggestweakness YARUQHULLAH KHAN & AKBAR MERCHANT New Delhi/Mumbai, December 5 INDIGO'S ONGOING FLIGHT chaos brings to light the perils of its own lean playbook.With over 1,900 flights cancelled during the week, on-time performance plunging to a dismal 8.5% as on Thursday from 50% before the crisis unfolded.With passengersstrandedamidwinter fog and peak travel demand, the country's largest airline is reeling from a crisis that pilot unions and industry analysts squarely blame on years of self-imposed constraints. The trigger is the second phase of Directorate General ORIGIN OF A CRISIS ■ IndiGo employs red- eye efficiency – using overnight flights to save time and money ■ Over 1,900 IndiGo flights cancelled during the week ■ On-time performance plunged to a dismal 8.5% as on Thursday from 50% before the crisis unfolded ■ IndiGo has a fleet of over 400 Airbus A320s churning out 2,300 daily flights, which is more than half of the country's domestic traffic ■ A mere 10% cancellation rate translates to 230 grounded flights, versus under 100 for Air India of Civil Aviation's new Flight DutyTime Limitation (FDTL) rules,rolled out on November 1afteratwo-yearpreparatory window,buttherealcauselies in IndiGo's aggressive highutilisation model that left it uniquely vulnerable when fatigue curbs bit hard. The new norms, aimed at curbing pilot fatigue with global benchmarks, mandate 48 hours of weekly rest up from36,capnightlandingsat two instead of six,and stretch night hours to 00:00-06:00 from 23:00-05:00. IndiGo, with its fleet of over400AirbusA320schurning out 2,300 daily flights, which is more than half of the »INSIDE« SMOOTH OPS ATAIR INDIA PAGE 4 AIRFARES SPIKE ACROSS INDIA PAGE 4 country's domestic traffic, thrives on red-eye efficiency – using overnight flights to save time and money -- and squeezing multiple sectors fromnarrow-bodyjetsthatfly 12-14 hours daily. A mere 10% cancellation rate here translates to 230 grounded flights, versus under 100 for Air India, which logs fewer than half the departures despite its scale. Continued on Page 16 Kolkata $72-billion deal for Warner Bros LUCAS SHAW & MICHELLE F DAVIS December 5 NETFLIX AGREED TO buy Warner Bros Discovery in a historic combination,joining the world’s dominant paid streaming service with one of Hollywood’s oldest and most revered studios. Under the deal announced Friday, Warner Bros shareholders will receive $27.75 a share in cash and stock in Netflix. The total equity value of the deal is $72 billion, while the enterprise value of the deal is about $82.7 billion. Prior to the closing of the sale, Warner Bros will complete the planned spinoff of cable channels including CNN,TBS and TNT. The acquisition marks an dramatic strategic shift for Netflix,which has never made a deal of this scope. The streaming pioneer grew to become Hollywood’s most valuable company, without the benefit of a library or studio, by licensing programmes from others and then expanding into original content. With the purchase,Netflix becomes owner of the HBO network, along with its TOP DEAL ■ Under the deal announced Friday, Warner Bros shareholders will receive a share in cash and stock in Netflix $27.75 ■ The the enterprise value of the deal is about 82.7 $ billion ■ Founded as a DVD rental firm, Netflix finished 2024 with $39 bn in revenue library of hit shows like The Sopranos and The White Lotus. Warner Bros assets also include its sprawling studios in Burbank, California, along with a vast film and TV archive that includes Harry Potter and Friends. Continued on Page 7 Centre’s$7-bnIDBIBank stakesalelikelythismonth SIDDHI NAYAK, SIDDHARTHA SINGH & SAIKAT DAS December 5, 2025 THE GOVERNMENT IS poised to seek bids for its $7.1 billion majority stake in IDBI Bank, a key step in its long-running effort to privatise the previously-distressed lender and accelerate a divestment push. Talks with potential suit- ors are at an advanced stage, according to people familiar with the matter. A government agency is expected to formally open the bidding process this month, in what could be the biggest state-backed disposal of a bank stake in decades, they said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.