It’s now or never. Indian pharma has watched from the sidelines as e-pharmacies like 1mg and Medlife have swooped in, tossed distribution channels out, and increasingly become the direct link between pharma companies and patients. They hold patient data and monetise for behaviour; which, in pharma terms, is a bit of a superpower. It’s now … Read more
Elections rouse emotions. Especially one where 900 million people will vote to elect their leaders this month. That, to an extent, explains the timing and the ensuing chest-thumping after India demonstrated its ability to destroy targets in space by shooting down one of its own satellites late last month. It, however, doesn’t explain this under-the-radar … Read more
The 2019 Indian elections, which begin in less than a week, loom large in Diggaj Mogra’s life. It’s all he has time for. “If you were to register as a candidate today, by tomorrow you would have 50 different companies calling you saying, ‘We’ll do SMS for you, give you databases, etc.’,” says Mogra, a … Read more
The humble debit card may already be on the verge of obsolescence in India. A couple of months ago, I had questioned the logic of the fee structure for card payments—particularly debit cards—in a piece titled “How to kill cash”. Banks across the board have little incentive to push for greater use of offline card … Read more
Five years ago, India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made big promises with regard to health. Specifically, it promised a reduction in out-of-pocket spending. Very few of these promises actually came to fruition, though. For instance, a pharmaceutical policy and a policy to curb Chinese imports from dominating the bulk drugs market were announced, but … Read more
DP Sengupta, 83, shuffles from living room to bedroom amidst a cacophony of ringing landline phones. Ignoring the calls, he scrounges, instead, for an Indian Express clipping from 1976. Ours is a telephonic chat, but one can still vividly picture the bald, bearded and baritoned scientist going from room to room during the conversation. Sengupta … Read more
Having spent over three decades practising Oncology in the US and India, Dr BS Ajaikumar is hardly one for the limelight. Just last month, however, Dr Ajaikumar, chairman and CEO of Healthcare Global Enterprises (HCG), India’s largest private chain of cancer hospitals, found himself the villain of the piece on social media. He was branded … Read more
Question: Can India shift entirely to sustainable energy? The short answer is yes. The long answer is what you’re here for. The brilliant British physicist, mathematician and renewable energy advocate David MacKay has an excellent book called Sustainable Energy—Without the Hot Air (from which a significant chunk of the philosophy has been derived). Which is … Read more
There are 336 million menstruating women in India, and 36% use disposable sanitary napkins, according to Menstrual Hygiene Alliance of India (MHAI). That’s 121 million women. It’s no surprise then that the menstrual products market is growing. And fast. Valued at $340 million by market research provider Euromonitor in 2017, the sanitary products market in … Read more
Just two months into the existence of Juno Clinic, it was evident the company’s business model wasn’t going to cut it. Founded in January 2016 by Davman Technology Services, Juno was meant to meet a pressing and widespread health need—that of accessible, affordable psychotherapy. To do this, it aggregated independent mental health professionals—psychologists and psychiatrists—on … Read more