<ul><li>India’s debt levels are set to rise this year due to an increase in borrowing to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.</li><li>While some believe that high government debt is a reason to worry, others believe India’s growth in the coming year will balance the scales.</li><li>Here’s what the Indian government’s debt currently looks like and how it could affect you.</li></ul>The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in debt not only for India but for most countries around the world. How much debt does India have compared to other countries? Last year, India’s debt was around ₹147 lakh crore against this year’s estimated GDP of ₹194 lakh crore . This year, the government plans to borrow another ₹12 lakh crore. <div type="image" title="Fiscal deficit india" msid="80688614" hostid="261"></div> Most of the emerging economies have government debt that is around 40% to 50% of their GDP. Compared to that our debt is around 75% to 80% of our GDP, which used to be on the higher side. There are countries — Brazil, for example, with debt at <a href="https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/brazil/government-debt--of-nominal-gdp">90.5% of its GDP</a> as of September 2020 — which may have higher debt than us. But most of the peer countries stand below us. <div type="image" title="India gross debt projection vs ROW" msid="80688621" hostid="261"></div> Advanced countries like the US and Japan may have even higher debt levels. But Apoorva Javadekar, assistant professor of finance at the Indian School of Business (ISB), believes that India should not compare itself to these economies because their repayment capacity is also much higher than India. “We’ve gone from every ₹70 on ₹100 of earnings to around ₹80. If you think of the economy as a ₹250 lakh crore, you can multiply and understand the amount of debt that we have,” he told Business Insider. “In the numbers game, India is still on the higher side though.” <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;"> </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Q3 2019 ($ trillions) </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Q3 2020 ($ trillions) </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">% Increase </td></tr><tr><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Developed markets </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$181.8 </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$196.3 </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">8.0% </td></tr><tr><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Emerging markets </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$70.9 </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$76.4 </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7.7% </td></tr><tr><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Global total </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$252.7 </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$272.7 </td><td style="vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7.9% </td></tr></tbody></table>Source: IIF, BIS, IMF, Haver, National Sources Why should I worry about government debt? “Why would anyone investing in stock markets fear to invest money in a company which is debt ridden? Simply for the fact, when the next crisis comes that company might be wiped out… Similarly for countries, for international investors the debt is going to show up in the sovereign credit ratings,” said Javadekar. <div type="image" title="Copy of Fiscal deficit india" msid="80688650" hostid="261"></div> “It’s the government who holds the printing machine. In the US, they have printed 40% of their initial money stock. A lot of countries, like Argentina, who have domestic debt go down the inflation route. And, that’s another reason we should worry about debt,” explained Shekhar Tomar, an assistant professor of Economics and Public Policy at ISB. The Indian government also has the option to flood the economy with more rupees to make its payments. If the government has too much debt and it fulfills this debt by printing more money, then the value of that money goes down. “Right now we’re spending more to support the poor people but it goes beyond a certain limit, the same poor people are going to pay back in 10 years,” explained Tomar. The latest budget plans to borrow a lot more. Is that a problem? If the economy grows, debt itself is not the problem.India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman believes the economy will grow. And, so does Shashwat Alok, an assistant professor of finance at ISB. “My estimate is that we’re going to grow at a rate faster than the rest of the world. Given that, we can sustain a higher debt level than the rest of the world for the foreseeable future,” he said. Borrowing more money means that you’ll have to pay it back at some point of time. And, this isn’t the first time that India has found itself in this situation. “During the Asian crisis we went from 67 to 83% when our growth rate was 3.9%. The economy was nothing. Then we had good growth and we came back to 66%,” Prasanna Tantri, the executive director at the Centre for Analytical Finance at ISB told Business Insider. However, if there are unforeseen circumstances like another pandemic or a war have the potential in the near term, the growth may take a hit and that is when debt will become a problem. But most experts believe the odds of another shock are low. “I don’t think the finance minister cares about taking on too much debt, but at the same time they've been more fiscally prudent than what I would’ve expected. If situations go south, I think as an economy we still have the capacity to borrow more,” he told Business Insider. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/isro-will-transform-in-2021-as-india-pumps-big-money-to-draw-in-startups-for-the-second-space-age/articleshow/80683054.cms">ISRO will transform in 2021 as India pumps big money to draw in startups for the 'second space age'</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/news/new-citizenship-law-pulls-india-down-in-the-democracy-rankings-and-2021-is-not-looking-better/articleshow/80671194.cms">New citizenship law pulls India down in the democracy rankings — and 2021 is not looking better</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/bank-unions-strongly-oppose-divestment-bad-bank-and-fdi-in-insurance-with-threats-to-go-on-strike/articleshow/80668430.cms">Bank unions strongly oppose divestment, a bad bank and threaten to strike</a>

How big is India's debt and should it be a worry?

<ul><li>As ISRO is busy making plans to explore the space, the stock of Telangana-based government company <keyword id="2044704" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mishra-Dhatu-Nigam">Mishra Dhatu Nigam</keyword> has been skyrocketing. </li><li>It supplies ultra high strength steel for rockets and satellites. </li><li>In January, <keyword id="907560" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="MIDHANI">Midhani</keyword> dispatched its first delivery of steel for Ignitor box and Cobalt alloy for Throat Sitting Ring for the mission ‘<keyword id="6797456" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gaganyaan">Gaganyaan</keyword>’ — which is expected to take off next year. </li><li>As India’s premier space agency preps for 15-16 launches per year it is expected to bring in orders worth ₹250-300 crore per annum.</li></ul>As the <keyword id="116095" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Space-Research-Organisation">Indian Space Research Organisation</keyword> (ISRO) is busy making plans to explore the space, the stock of a Telangana-based government company has been skyrocketing. Mishra Dhatu Nigam, also goes by its acronym MIDHANI, which has a monopoly in supplying ultra-high-strength steel for rockets and satellites has translated into a 35% growth in revenue for the third quarter. The stock has increased from ₹150 to nearly ₹217 in the last two weeks. But this may just be the beginning. ICICI Securities believes that returns from this stock is at 20% and it also raised its target price to ₹326 from ₹242, earlier. 
 
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 What's so special about MIDHANI? Half of the orders that the company receives are from ISRO, which is on a growth path. ISRO has several space missions lined up including Chandrayaan 3, Mangalyaan 2 and two unnamed missions as well. In order to pull off these projects, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her latest budget speech, allocated ₹13,479 crore for space exploration — increasing 8% from last year. As India’s premier space agency preps for 15-16 launches per year it is expected to bring in orders worth ₹250- ₹300 crore per annum. This will be a major part of the ₹800 crore orders they would add per year.The supply of material to ISRO typically starts nearly two years prior to the launch. “Increasing order inflow from ISRO over the years has led to a higher topline. Also, MIDHANI has managed to better its yield i.e. more output from lesser input,” said a report by ICICI Securities. Size does matter The company which operates under the Ministry of Defence now supplies 40% to the sector that it was originally intended for. In the last few years, increased space activity for large scale projects like Chandrayaan 2 has given it a spurt. Moreso, it added economies of scale to its business — bringing in unexpected levels of operational efficiency. Last year, its margin expanded to a massive 73-95%. “MIDHANI’s higher value of production leading to operating leverage benefits; lower rejections; lower power costs, and bulk buying of raw materials are some of the reasons,” the report said. The reduction in corporate tax rate also added to its coffers. On January 6, 2020, Midhani dispatched its first delivery of <a href="http://midhani-india.in/news_marquee/midhani-delivers-ultra-high-strength-steel-cobalt-alloys-for-gaganyaan-of-isro/">steel for Ignitor box and Cobalt alloy for Throat Sitting Ring for the mission ‘Gaganyaan’</a> — which is expected to take off next year. As it demonstrates its ability to efficiently supply large and mission critical orders, it will also pave the way for its ambitions of becoming a multinational company. Over 70% of the company’s production is supplied to Defence Research &amp; Development Organisation (DRDO), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), and Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). While the rest goes to the commercial companies including Larsen &amp; Toubro and BHEL. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/indias-new-rocket-will-let-isro-launch-satellites-month-on-month/articleshow/73892024.cms">India’s new rocket will let ISRO launch satellites month-on-month</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/budget/news/isro-space-budget-2020-allocation-and-updates/articleshow/73830948.cms">ISRO Budget 2020 allocated ₹13,479 crore for space exploration</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/isro-is-hiring-scientific-and-technical-assistants-at-a-salary-of-44900-per-month-check-and-apply-isro-gov-in/articleshow/74172112.cms">ISRO is hiring scientific and technical assistants at a salary of ₹44,900 per month, check and apply @isro.gov.in</a>

The hottest Indian company that gives ISRO the metal for its rockets and satellites

Even before orbiting astronauts on India's first manned mission to the space in December 2021, the Indian Space Research Organisation will send 'Vyomamitra', a '<keyword id="7617165" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="lady-robot">lady robot</keyword>', in unmanned <keyword id="6797456" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gaganyaan">Gaganyaan</keyword> spacecraft. The robot was the centre of attraction at the inaugural session of the "<keyword id="1064783" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="human-spaceflight">Human Spaceflight</keyword> and Exploration - Present Challenges and Future Trends" here on Wednesday. Vyomamitra, a combination of two Sanskrit words Vyoma (Space) and Mitra (Friend), took everyone by surprise when she introduced herself to the audience gathered there. "Hello everyone. I am Vyomamitra, the prototype of the half-humanoid, been made for the first unmanned Gaganyaan mission," the robot said. Explaining about the role in the mission, she said, "I can monitor though module parameters, alert you and perform life support operations. I can perform activities like switch panel operations..." The robot said she can also be a companion and converse with the astronauts, recognise them and can also respond to their queries. ISRO chairman K Sivan told reporters the humanoid will simulate human functions in space and also interact with the environment control life support system. "It will be simulating exactly the human functions there (in space). It will check whether the system is right. This will be very useful to simulate, as if a human is flying," said Sivan. Earlier, addressing the inaugural function, Sivan said ahead of the launch of India's maiden human spaceflight venture 'Gaganyaan' in December 2021, ISRO will undertake two unmanned missions in December 2020 and June 2021. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/isros-gsat-30-satellite-successfully-rides-the-ariane-5-rocket-into-orbit-abroad-the-first-launch-of-2020/articleshow/73312278.cms">ISRO's GSAT 30 satellite successfully rides the Ariane 5 rocket into orbit abroad the first launch of 2020</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/budget/news/budget-2020-isro-needs-rs-666-cr-for-chandrayaan-3/articleshow/73462546.cms">Exploring space is expensive — and ISRO needs more money from the 2020 Union Budget</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/chandrayaan-3-and-gaganyaan-top-priorities-for-isro-in-2020/articleshow/73063629.cms">India's second mission to land on the Moon, Chandrayaan 3, confirmed by ISRO chief</a>

ISRO's humanoid lady robot will fly into space before they send astronauts out on Gaganyaan

<ul><li>ISRO plans to reach the south side of the moon where no nation has gone before. </li><li>They have plans to study potential mining of <keyword id="6656023" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="helium-3">helium-3</keyword>, a a source of waste-free <keyword id="53710" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nuclear-energy">nuclear energy</keyword> which is worth trillions of dollars. </li><li>If successful, the mission could add significantly to the scientific, military and commercial gains of the country and the world. </li></ul>ISRO plans to reach the south side of the moon where no nation has gone before and a rover is expected to be launched for this in October. Once they get there, they plan to study if mining the surface of the moon for water and helium-3 is possible. Helium-3 is a source of waste-free nuclear energy which, when harnessed, is worth trillions of dollars. The Helium-3 isotope can provide safer nuclear energy as it is not radioactive and doesn't produce dangerous waste products. The Helium-3 isotopes are limited on Earth but found in abundance on the moon due to the heavy solarwinds it is in contact with. If the isotopes on the moon are harnessed, they could theoretically meet the global energy demands for 250 years. However, that could require overcoming a lot of difficulties like mining the lunar surface and building of power plants for starters. The exploration on the moon is open to all countries and therefore, <keyword id="3658" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> is facing tough competition from other governments, start-ups and billionaires. However, the chairman of ISRO, K Sivan, has declared that he wants to dictate this mission of harnessing Helium-3 and not just be a part of it like the other countries. If successful, the mission could lead to the scientific, military and commercial gains of the country and world, in general. China had put a rover on the moon in 2013 with its Chang'e 3 mission and has plans to return later this year to explore the far side. Furthermore, US is calling for astronauts to return to the moon too, and NASA has proposed a $19 billion budget to launch a lunar orbiter by the early 2020s. ISRO’s estimated budget, about $1.7 billion, is less than a 10th of NASA’s, but having said that, ISRO’s hallmarks include getting the job done cheaply yet effectively. The upcoming mission will cost about $125 million which is less than a quarter of Snap Inc co-founder’s compensation last year, according to the Bloomberg Pay Index. India’s confidence in the success of this mission has increased because it has already had one successful moon mission. The Chandrayaan-1 craft, launched by India in October 2008, had discovered molecules of water in the lunar surface for the first time. The upcoming launch called <keyword id="53289" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chandrayaan-2">Chandrayaan-2</keyword> will include an orbiter, lander and a rectangular rover and cover an area with a 400-meter radius. It will collect information for at least 14 days and send images to the lander, to be transmitted back to ISRO for analysis. Rakesh Sharma, a famous Indian space traveller, said that even if India reaches the moon first, one can not draw boundaries there. He wants India to show that its capable of utilising <keyword id="6422364" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="space-technology">space technology</keyword> for the good of people.

ISRO to step on unexplored side of the moon to harness trillion dollars’ worth of nuclear energy

<ul class="summary-list"><li>India has unveiled a "female" humanoid robot which it plans to send into space in 2020 as part of an unmanned mission.</li><li>The robot, which doesn't have any legs, is called 'Vyommitra'. A prototype of the robot was unveiled Wednesday by the country's space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation.</li><li>Indian prime minister Narendra Modi is looking to establish the country as a major player in the space industry.</li><li>But some of India's space forays have not gone well to date.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/international?r=US&amp;IR=T">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.</a></li></ul>India has unveiled a "female" humanoid robot that it plans to launch into space in 2020.On Wednesday, the country's space agency - the Indian Space Research Organisation - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ddm4US8B4qI&amp;feature=emb_logo">showcased a prototype of 'Vyommitra,' a humanoid robot it describes as "a woman.</a>"Vyommitra will reportedly speak two languages and will fly on an unspecified unmanned mission this year. Though the robot appears to be dexterous, it doesn't seem to have any legs, raising the question of why it needs a physical form at all. Vyommitra's development forms but a small part of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's ambitious, ongoing plans to establish India as a space industry player. You can see a video of Vyommitra via The Times of India:The ISRO is preparing for the Gaganyaan mission, the country's first attempt at sending humans into space and Vyommitra is part of the prep.Not all of India's attempts to conquer space have gone smoothly.The ISRO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-lost-contact-with-moon-lander-indicating-crash-2019-9?r=US&amp;IR=T">failed in an attempt to place a lunar lander on the moon earlier in January, with the ground crew losing touch of the lander</a>. The mission cost an estimated $145 million - nearly one-tenth of the agency's meager <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/we-have-liftoff-india-launches-moon-mission-on-second-attempt/2019/07/22/8a1cb69c-aa34-11e9-8733-48c87235f396_story.html">reported annual budget of $1.8 billion</a>, Despite Modi's space-faring ambitions, India's recent actions in space have come under fire from NASA. India <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/scientists-in-india-just-shot-down-a-low-orbit-satellite-in-space-2019-3?r=US&amp;IR=T">shot down a satellite as part of a missile launch</a> in March 2019, leaving millions of pieces of space debris.NASA condemned its actions as "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-space-junk-india-destroying-missile-threaten-international-space-station-terrible-thing-2019-4?r=US&amp;IR=T">a terrible, terrible thing"</a> and claimed it had endangered the lives of astronauts aboard the International Space Station.For his part, Modi was bullish in the wake of the launch, claiming it proved India was now a "<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-satellite/modi-hails-india-as-military-space-power-after-anti-satellite-missile-test-idUSKCN1R80IA">space power</a>."

India wants to send a legless, female humanoid robot called 'Vyommitra' into space

Buyers of loss-making airline Air India and oil firm Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) will not get a free hand to shed excess workforce as the government will build in certain protection to employees in the share sale agreement, DIPAM Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said.
 Public sector companies often have more people on rolls than their private sector counterparts and companies wanting to take them over would likely to right-size them to remove inefficiencies.
 In an interview with , the secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said the government will follow a two-stage bidding process for selling its entire holding in Air India and BPCL.
 First preliminary interest from potential bidders is invited, followed by they being given access of data room on the companies for due diligence. In the second stage, price bids are invited.
 While in the case of Air India, the expression of interest (EoI) has been invited by March 17, an offer seeking the same for BPCL is likely to be floated in the next few days.
 Asked if the bidders will get a free hand to right-size the companies after the acquisition, Pandey said, "There will be certain protection to employees and there will be other conditionalities and this will be listed out in the share purchase agreement (SPA)."
 He did not give details of the conditionalities. An SPA will signed with the acquirer who offers the highest bid for buying out government stake.
 The government is selling its entire 100 per cent stake in Air India but wants effective control to stay with Indian nationals. The airline, which started as a Tata Airlines in 1932 and was later acquired by the government, has not made profits since 2007. It has a total debt of Rs 60,074 crore, of which bidder has to takeover Rs 23,286.5 crore.
 In the case of BPCL, the government is selling its entire 53.29 per cent stake in the company that will give buyers ready access to 14 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and about one-fifth of the fuel market share in the world's fastest-growing energy market.
 "There is a two-stage process. There will be EoI and request for proposal or RFP (in the first stage) and due diligence-cum-bidding stage (in the second)," Pandey said. "After the bidding stage, the highest bidder (will be identified). The highest bidder meeting the reserve price will sign the SPA."
 Asked about concerns over valuation of BPCL, he said DIPAM has valuation methodologies. "There is an independent asset valuer and then there is a transaction advisor who will do the business valuation. Then, the value will be arrived at. But, this valuation or the reserve price will not be revealed unless the financial bids are received."
 Officers' unions of blue-chip public sector undertakings (PSUs) have opposed the government's decision to privatise India's second-biggest oil firm BPCL, saying family silver worth Rs 9 lakh crore is being sold for a fraction of the amount.
 BPCL has a market capitalisation of about Rs 1 lakh crore and the government stake at current prices is worth about Rs 54,000 crore. The successful bidder will also have to make an open offer to other shareholders for acquiring another 26 per cent at the same price.
 Privatisation of Air India and BPCL is essential for meeting the record Rs 2.1 lakh crore target Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set from disinvestment proceeds in the Budget for 2020-21.
 This is the second attempt for sale of Air India after the failed attempt in 2018. Losses notwithstanding, it has some lucrative assets that include prized slots at London's choked Heathrow airport, a fleet of more than 100 planes and thousands of trained pilots and crew.
 BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai, Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh) and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.4 million tonnes. While the Numaligarh refinery will be carved out of BPCL and sold to a PSU, the new buyer of the company will get 35.3 million tonnes of refining capacity.
 It also owns 15,177 petrol pumps and 6,011 LPG distributor agencies in the country. Besides, it has 51 LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) bottling plants. The company distributes 21 per cent of petroleum products consumed in the country by volume as of March this year and has more than a fifth of the 250 aviation fuel stations in the country. JD HRS See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/indias-new-rocket-will-let-isro-launch-satellites-month-on-month/articleshow/73892024.cms?src=hp_wh">India’s new rocket will let ISRO launch satellites month-on-month</a>

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How big is India's debt and should it be a worry?

Prabhjote Gill

The hottest Indian company that gives ISRO the metal for its rockets and satellites

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ISRO's humanoid lady robot will fly into space before they send astronauts out on Gaganyaan

PTI

ISRO to step on unexplored side of the moon to harness trillion dollars’ worth of nuclear energy

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India wants to send a legless, female humanoid robot called 'Vyommitra' into space

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Air India, BPCL investors will not get to fire employees says government department

PTI