Sunak's wife Akshata Murty decides to liquidate investment venture in UK
London (PTI), British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's wife Akshata Murty has decided to liquidate her investment company Catamaran Ventures UK Ltd, according to official company filings with the UK's Companies House this week.
The 43-year-old businesswoman had incorporated the venture in 2013 with her husband as one of the directors, before he resigned in 2015.
According to the latest financial statement for the year ended December 2022 available for the company on Wednesday, Murty as the only director of the firm has now decided to wind down her firm as a going concern.
"During the year, the directors have decided to liquidate the Company," notes the Companies House filing statement.
"Accordingly, the financial statements have been prepared on a basis other than going concern and no adjustments were necessary in these financial statements to reduce assets to their realisable values or to provide for liabilities arising from that decision," it reads.
The value of the company's investments for the period was stated at just over GBP 3.8 million, up from just over GBP 3.5 million in 2021 and the funds becoming due to Murty amounted to just over GBP 4.6 million.
Catamaran Ventures UK Ltd has been operating as an investment vehicle for funds from her shares in Infosys, the Indian software giant co-founded by her father N.R. Narayana Murthy. However, the ventures it has invested in have not had the best run.
According to an analysis by The Times' newspaper, education start-up Mrs Wordsmith backed by Catamaran closed less than six months after receiving GBP 650,000 from the UK government's pandemic support scheme called Future Fund.
The New Craftsmen, a Catamaran-backed furniture company which closed in November 2022, also benefited from the fund. And, Digme Fitness, a boutique London fitness chain of which Murty was a director, failed in 2021.
Study Hall, an education technology business in which Catamaran has a stake, was given a government grant of GBP 349,976 via state body Innovate UK last year, prompting questions from the Opposition Labour Party benches.
Murty's investments outside Catamaran also came under the spotlight this year when it emerged she had shares in Koru Kids one of six childminder agencies in England that stood to benefit from a new Budget scheme announced by the Sunak-led government. It led to a declaration of interest inquiry by the UK parliamentary watchdog, which concluded last month that Sunak's failure to reference his wife's shares in Koru Kids arose out of "confusion and was accordingly inadvertent".
"I apologise for these inadvertent errors and confirm acceptance of your proposal for rectification," Sunak wrote in a letter to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Daniel Greenberg.
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Minister Patil chairs industry meetings to chart growth for key sectors in Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister M B Patil on Tuesday chaired meetings with industry representatives from the aerospace and defence, machine tools, auto/EV, and green energy sectors to discuss sector growth and government support measures.
The meetings were attended by leading industrialists and their representatives, with some participating virtually.
Speaking on the occasion, the minister for Large and Medium Industries said Karnataka is at the forefront of the country’s aerospace and defence sectors.
He noted that Suzuki and Toyota plan to launch aerial taxi services in Japan by 2028, with Bengaluru-based Sasmos supplying electrical equipment for the project.
Industrialists suggested introducing similar “fly-taxi” services in Karnataka through an appropriate policy, which Patil said would be examined seriously.
The minister highlighted the need to establish testing centres and Common Facility Centres for the aerospace and defence industries and assured that these facilities would be provided.
Suggestions were also made to prepare a comprehensive roadmap for sector growth.
Karnataka has urged the Central Government to approve Defence Corridor projects in the Bengaluru North–Kolar–Chikkaballapur and Dharawada–Vijayapura–Belagavi regions.
Industrialists also suggested a corridor between Bengaluru and Mysuru, Patil said.
He said Karnataka aims to become a hub for defence electronics manufacturing, with plans to establish a 200-acre Defence Electronics Park and a 100-acre Avionics and Sensor Park.
These projects will be implemented once the Special Investment Region is operational, and land availability will not be an issue.
On the machine tools sector, Patil said the industry has recorded an annual turnover of Rs 36,500 crore and is witnessing steady growth.
Large-scale exhibitions have increased demand, and the state must strengthen its capabilities to develop control systems for heavy machinery. One testing unit is already operational in Bengaluru, with another planned for Tumakuru. Expansion of vocational training institutes in industrial areas is also underway.
In the Auto and EV sector, Vision Group members highlighted the need for a network of dry ports and more EV charging stations across the state.
Patil noted that the Tata Group is manufacturing EV buses in Dharawada for nationwide supply. Plans for mini excavator production and export facilitation were also discussed, along with the establishment of a testing facility for two-wheeler EVs.
For the Green Energy sector, the group emphasised the need for a suitable policy on battery-based energy storage and the establishment of data centres.
Patil assured that the government will seriously consider all suggestions and respond positively.
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