There's not much about Partha Bhattacharyya, the chairman of Coal India, to suggest he would ever have to take on the mafia.
The head of the world's biggest coal producer lives in Kolkata's upmarket Alipore district and boasts membership of all three of its elite clubs: the Calcutta Club, the Tollyganj Club and the Bengal Club.
But less than five years ago, as the managing director of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), a Coal India subsidiary, Mr Bhattacharyya was forced to take action against India's notorious coal dons.
"I was in one of the regional companies, BCCL, which definitely does have its own share of mafias," he says. "At the time of loading, some extraneous elements used to come in and load bad coal, or load less coal, or load more coal."
Mr Bhattacharyya brought together the local police, the state government and Coal India's own central industrial security force (CISF) to thwart the illegal activity. So when a train came to the siding, "our CISF was there, and with this action things were controlled to an extent", he says.
In a way, Mr Bhattacharyya does have fighting in his blood. During the Second World War, his father, Binoy Krishna Bhattacharyya, fought with Japanese troops against the British as part of the Indian National Army.
The elder Mr Bhattacharyya was jailed until a nationwide protest led by Mahatma Gandhi secured his release.
"He was a fiercely nationalist person," Mr Bhattacharyya remembers. "He does have a lot of influence in the family and that runs through us all."
But it is policy work rather than mustering armed guards that the son enjoys the most.
When asked for his career highlight, Mr Bhattacharyya says it was negotiating a loan with the World Bank.
"That was 1993 and 1994, and over two years I spent about five weeks in the World Bank offices in Washington," he says.
Mr Bhattacharyya believes policy has been more successful than force with the coal mafia, especially in BCCL's home of Dhanbad where the interplay between industry and politics is often murky.
What works better, he argues, is the e-auction system he pioneered. "The second type of mafia operations is to take coal from the 'coal linkage' [government rationing] system and then sell it on the black market. That portion of coal that they used to grab, we offered that coal through a transparent, internet-based system."
The e-auction system helped Mr Bhattacharyya bring BCCL into profitability in the financial year that ended in March 2006 for the first time in Coal India's 35-year history, and has since been rolled out across the company.
For a Coal India "lifer" who has spent 32 years climbing the ranks of the company, Mr Bhattacharyya has unexpectedly emerged as a reformer.
"He is too smart by half," says a former Coal India executive with a laugh. "He's a very imaginative chap and he's tried to do a lot of new things for the company."
It was Mr Bhattacharyya who, in 1996, as head of corporate treasury, led the capital restructuring that freed the company from crippling debts. "Since then Coal India has not looked back," he says proudly. In Oct 2007, he replaced the linkage rationing system with a "new coal distribution policy" which gives coal users a fuel supply agreement (FSA) that is enforceable, like a standard contract (although, so far not many FSAs have been agreed to and the concept has yet to be introduced to the power sector).
And more recently, Mr Bhattacharyya put out international contracts to build coal washeries, develop new underground mines and restart abandoned ones. He has also begun importing coal and buying mines from overseas.
Today, he focuses on raising Coal India's profile. "We are the world's largest coal mining company: the top two Chinese ones, taken together, are the same size as Coal India," Mr Bhattacharyya says. "We feel that it is necessary for people to know the strategic relevance of this company."
The 404 million tonnes of coal the company produced last year made up 46 per cent of India's energy use. That is the energy equivalent of producing 2.3 million barrels of oil a day, about the same as the UAE.
The next big step will be floating a 5 per cent stake on the Bombay Stock Exchange, preparations for which, Mr Bhattacharrya says, will begin in the next couple of months.
"It will make us the fourth or fifth-largest Indian company with a market capitalisation of about US$30 billion (Dh110.17bn)," he says. "But I think we can do better. I think we can be third or fourth."
But would India's coal industry be better if it wasn't run by a public sector monopoly? "I would not agree with that," he says abruptly. "It's not as if the company has not reformed."
Mr Bhattacharyya says the number of staff has shrunk drastically from its 1988 peak of 676,000, and last year he sold coal at an average of $20 a tonne.
"This is possibly the cheapest price at which coal sells anywhere in the world and yet I made at least $2bn in profits before tax," he argues. "Arguably, we are one of the most efficient coal-mining companies in the world."
But the head of the India energy practice at one of the big four international accountancy firms disagrees with this sunny prognosis: "The price at which you can source coal from Coal India will be 50 per cent to 100 per cent higher than a private sector miner could do it."
Coal India is also failing badly to keep up with India's growth. China's largest coal mining company, Shenhua Energy, produced 17 per cent more coal last year than in 2007. Coal India increased production by just 6.4 per cent.
This failure to raise production means many customers are not getting near what they are supposed to under their linkage agreements, making unreliability a big problem.
Mr Bhattacharyya defends his company from these criticisms: "This linkage means a sort of a 'best effort'. Unless it is converted into a fuel supply agreement there is no contractual binding."
According to a former senior executive from Coal India's anti-corruption wing, the "vigilance department", there are also limits to Mr Bhattacharyya's ability to stamp out corruption in a company notorious for it.
"The problem at Coal India starts from the top," the former executive explains. "The (coal) ministers used to fix up targets with the chairman and each of the managing directors. Coal has become one of the main sources by which money is funnelled to the political parties."
Mr Bhattacharyya says that "is simply absurd". "At least I have not faced such a situation," he says. "I've been chairman here for more than two-and-a-half years and I have never seen this and it never happened when I was managing director of BCCL. If this has happened at some point of time in the past, it would be an isolated case."
But Mr Bhattacharyya's predecessor, N K Sharma, was sacked in 2003 when the then coal minister, Karia Munda, claimed to have uncovered a system of kickbacks and contract over-invoicing.
In 2007, the South Eastern Coalfields subsidiary was investigated by India's Central Vigilance Commission after it was claimed that 20,000 tonnes of coal a day was being skimmed off.
The vigilance official says that between 15 per cent and 20 per cent of the value of what the company produces is siphoned off. If true, that means about a dollar is lost to corruption for every dollar the company makes in profit.
Mr Bhattacharyya acknowledges that's a problem. "To the extent that there is corruption in society, the coal sector is a part of the society," he says. "We have a fairly strong vigilance operation. Action has been taken against some senior officers as well where they have been found to be indulging in irregularities."
But he seems shocked at suggestions these senior executives should be dismissed or publicly named when found guilty of fraud. Mr Bhattacharyya prefers less public punishments.
"Losing their job!" he exclaims. "I don't think coal people would take such drastic decisions where they can lose their jobs.
"It's not good idea to publish these things, because we don't want to further embarrass the fellow. He's already embarrassed by whatever punitive action has been taken."
The former vigilance department executive says Mr Bhattacharyya is one of Coal India's most honest chairmen. "He's not a very dishonest chap. But to survive there, he needs the patronage of the minister."
He says Mr Bhattacharyya's ability to combine a modern business outlook with the requisite instincts to survive the labyrinth of the Indian public sector is his, and Coal India's, greatest strength.
"He's the best possible person they could have got at this stage because he can manage professionally, but also politically."
business@thenational.ae
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Astra%20Tech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbdallah%20Abu%20Sheikh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20technology%20investment%20and%20development%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20size%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Where to buy art books in the UAE
There are a number of speciality art bookshops in the UAE.
In Dubai, The Lighthouse at Dubai Design District has a wonderfully curated selection of art and design books. Alserkal Avenue runs a pop-up shop at their A4 space, and host the art-book fair Fully Booked during Art Week in March. The Third Line, also in Alserkal Avenue, has a strong book-publishing arm and sells copies at its gallery. Kinokuniya, at Dubai Mall, has some good offerings within its broad selection, and you never know what you will find at the House of Prose in Jumeirah. Finally, all of Gulf Photo Plus’s photo books are available for sale at their show.
In Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi has a beautiful selection of catalogues and art books, and Magrudy’s – across the Emirates, but particularly at their NYU Abu Dhabi site – has a great selection in art, fiction and cultural theory.
In Sharjah, the Sharjah Art Museum sells catalogues and art books at its museum shop, and the Sharjah Art Foundation has a bookshop that offers reads on art, theory and cultural history.
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The bio
His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell
His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard
Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece
Favourite movie - The Last Emperor
Favourite personality from history - Alexander the Great
Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
Results
5pm: UAE Martyrs Cup (TB) Conditions Dh90,000 2,200m
Winner: Mudaarab, Jim Crowley (jockey), Erwan Charpy (trainer).
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Handicap Dh70,000 1,400m
Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Richard Mullen, Hassan Al Hammadi.
6pm: UAE Matyrs Trophy (PA) Maiden Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner: Salima Al Reef, Jesus Rosales, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Apprentice Championship (PA) Prestige Dh100,000 1,600m
Winner: Bainoona, Ricardo Iacopini, Eric Lemartinel.
7pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Ladies World Championship (PA) Prestige Dh125,000 1,600m
Winner: Assyad, Victoria Larsen, Eric Lemartinel.
8pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown (PA) Group 1 Dh5,000,000 1,600m
Winner: Mashhur Al Khalediah, Jean-Bernard Eyquem, Phillip Collington.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
if you go
Getting there
Etihad (Etihad.com), Emirates (emirates.com) and Air France (www.airfrance.com) fly to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, from Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. Return flights cost from around Dh3,785. It takes about 40 minutes to get from Paris to Compiègne by train, with return tickets costing €19. The Glade of the Armistice is 6.6km east of the railway station.
Staying there
On a handsome, tree-lined street near the Chateau’s park, La Parenthèse du Rond Royal (laparenthesedurondroyal.com) offers spacious b&b accommodation with thoughtful design touches. Lots of natural woods, old fashioned travelling trunks as decoration and multi-nozzle showers are part of the look, while there are free bikes for those who want to cycle to the glade. Prices start at €120 a night.
More information: musee-armistice-14-18.fr ; compiegne-tourisme.fr; uk.france.fr
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
Why your domicile status is important
Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.
Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born.
UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.
A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
BAD%20BOYS%3A%20RIDE%20OR%20DIE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Adil%20El%20Arbi%20and%20Bilall%20Fallah%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EWill%20Smith%2C%20Martin%20Lawrence%2C%20Joe%20Pantoliano%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
