Fortis to demerge hospitals business into Manipal
Mumbai: Fortis Healthcare has announced plans to demerge its hospitals business (Fortis Hospitals) into Manipal Hospital Enterprises Private Limited (Manipal Hospitals).
According to a statement issued on late Tuesday night, the company said that the proposed transaction is subject to shareholders' approval, creditor's approval, applicable regulatory approvals (including Competition Commission of India, SEBI, stock exchanges and National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT)) and other customary conditions precedent.
The company's board has also approved sale of its 20 per cent stake in SRL Limited (SRL) to Manipal Hospitals.
"The resultant entity Manipal Hospitals will be a publicly traded company listed on NSE and BSE. The remaining FHL will be an investment holding company with 36.6 per cent stake in SRL," the statement said.
"As part of the proposed transaction, Dr. Ranjan Pai and TPG will invest RS 3,900 crore into Manipal Hospitals."
As per the statement, the funds will be utilised by Manipal Hospitals to "finance the acquisition of 50.9 per cent stake in SRL (20.0 per cent from FHL and 30.9 per cent from other investors for which discussions are currently underway)".
"In addition, the investment will support the proposed acquisition of hospital assets owned by RHT Health Trust ("RHT") and the growth of the hospitals and the diagnostics businesses," the statement said.
Accordingly, the combination of Manipal Hospitals and Fortis Hospitals will result in the creation of the largest provider of healthcare services in India by revenue with 41 hospitals in India and 4 hospitals overseas.
"The hospitals' complementary geographic footprints and combined clinical strengths will provide significant scale, revenue and cost synergies," the statement added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Maharashtra government reduces Ladki Bahin Yojana stipend for 8 lakh beneficiaries: Report
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has reportedly cut down on the stipend received by eight lakh beneficiaries of the Mukhya Mantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana.
Under the revised structure, the beneficiaries will receive Rs 500 instead of Rs 1,500 per month because they already receive Rs 1,000 under another government scheme, the Namo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi (NSMN), as reported by the Times of India.
The Ladki Bahin scheme has the stipulation that its beneficiaries can avail other government schemes only if the benefit is capped at Rs. 1,500 per month.
“There has been an ongoing scrutiny. First to scan the applications that were sent by the districts to the state headquarters. And then to re-scrutinise the eligible cases,” TOI report quoted an official as saying.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier said he expected the number of beneficiaries to reduce by 10-15 lakh after the scrutiny process. "We are not changing criteria or funding, just ensuring only eligible ones get the stipend," he claimed.
The Opposition remarked that the state government is cheating the women who voted them to power.
The Mahayuti government had launched the Ladki Bahin Yojana in July 2024, where it provides Rs 1,500 per month to eligible women under the scheme. In its poll manifesto ahead of the state Assembly elections, the Mahayuti had promised to increase the amount to Rs 2,100. However, this commitment has not been fulfilled.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra’s debt projection is Rs 9.3 lakh crore for 2025-26. The outlay for the Ladki Bahin scheme was reduced from Rs 46,000 crore to Rs 36,000 crore in the 2025-26 budget.
