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Zomato acquires 15-minute delivery platform Blinkit for Rs 4,447 cr

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 Online food delivery platform Zomato on Friday announced it had acquired quick-commerce platform Blinkit for Rs 4,447 crore (about $568 million) in an all-stock deal.

Zomato already owned more than 9 per cent stake in Blinkit (earlier Grofers).

While the earlier Blinkit deal value was around $700 million, the drop in Zomato’s share price reduced it to $568 million.

“This foray into the next big category is timely as our existing food business is steadily growing towards profitability,” said Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal.

Zomato has grown at a CAGR of 86 per cent in the last four years to an adjusted revenue of $710 million “while the adjusted EBITDA margin has improved from (153 per cent) in FY19 to (18 per cent) in FY22”, Goyal added.

Zomato’s restaurant supplies subsidiary Hyperpure will acquire the warehousing and ancillary services business of Hands on Trade Private Ltd (HOTPL) for Rs 60.7 crore.

Akshant Goyal, Chief Financial Officer, Zomato said the company is not acquiring the B2B trading business as “that no longer fits strategically into our plans”.

“Our existing Rs 2,228 million investment in HOTPL is protected through our liquidation preference right,” he said.

Blinkit is a quick commerce marketplace delivering grocery and other essentials to customers within minutes (average delivery time of 15 minutes in the month of May).

Blinkit was rebranded from Grofers after a pivot to quick commerce last year. Their erstwhile business model was next-day grocery delivery.

“Blinkit’s business pivoted to 100 per cent quick commerce in January 2022 and since then, the business has made tremendous progress on all important and relevant metrics for this business,” said Goyal.

In the month of May 2022, Blinkit did gross order value (GOV) of Rs 4,028 million, which is 1/5th of Zomato’s monthly average food delivery GOV in Q4 of FY22.

In August last year, Blinkit (then Grofers) raised $100 million from Zomato.

“As a food company, we are already tapping into the large food delivery opportunity in India. In addition to that, we now also want to focus on quick commerce as a natural extension of our food delivery business,” said Goyal.

“Quick commerce will help us increase the customer wallet share spent on our platform and also drive higher frequency and engagement from our customers,” he added.

The closing of the transaction is expected to happen in early August 2022.

National

Police in Srinagar attach property worth Rs 1.5 crore under UAPA

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Srinagar, July 5: Continuing its drive against terrorism, Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Police in Srinagar district on Saturday attached property worth Rs 1.5 crore under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

A police statement said on Saturday, “In a decisive move against the terror ecosystem and to dismantle its supporting infrastructure, Srinagar Police has attached a residential property — comprising 8 marlas and 202 sq. ft. of land along with the building structure— estimated to be worth approximately Rs 1.5 crore.

“The property, located at Mir Masjid Mohalla, Shallabagh Khanyar, and falling under Survey Nos. 3674/1147 and 3677/1148, is recorded in the name of Mohammad Yousuf Shah son of Hafiz Waliuallah Shah.”

The police statement added, “It is currently in the possession of Masood Hussain Shah son of Mohammad Yousuf Shah. The attachment has been carried out under the relevant provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with FIR No. 48/2024 under Sections 109 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 7/27 of the Indian Arms Act, and Sections 16, 18, 19, 20, and 39 of the UAP Act, registered at Police Station Khanyar.

“Investigations have established that the property was acquired through illegal proceeds linked to terrorist activities. Acting under Section 25 of the UAP Act, the immovable property has been formally seized and attached following due legal procedure.

“Through this attachment notice, the owner is prohibited from selling, leasing, or transferring the said property in any manner. This action is part of the sustained campaign of Srinagar Police to dismantle the terror ecosystem in a systematic manner.

“By targeting and crippling the financial networks of terrorist organisations, Jammu & Kashmir Police aims to curb acts detrimental to the security and integrity of the nation. Srinagar Police reiterates its unwavering commitment to eradicating terrorism and safeguarding public peace.”

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National

World-famous Mudiya Mela in Govardhan from tomorrow, cleanliness campaign launched

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Govardhan (UP), July 5: As the world-famous Mudiya Mela will kick off in Uttar Pradesh’s Govardhan on Sunday, authorities have launched a cleanliness campaign.

Over 2 crore pilgrims are expected to reach Govardhan for the mela and perform Parikrama.

The cleanliness campaign, led by District Magistrate C.P. Singh, started on Saturday and focussed on cleanliness in key areas, including Parikrama Marg, Daanghati temple, and Giriraj ji.

DM Singh swept the land near the Govardhan temple, spreading the message of cleanliness.

As per the directions of the Uttar Pradesh government, efforts are being made to provide pilgrims with proper facilities and clean surroundings, he said.

The District Magistrate said people use polythene bags and indulge in littering as they don’t care about cleanliness, but now, as prior warnings have been given, strict action will be taken against violators.

The DM pointed out that maintaining cleanliness in the area was the responsibility of the temple management, but as it failed, “our team and locals of Govardhan are carrying out the cleanliness drive.”

Highlighting the importance of cleanliness, DM Singh said, “We aim to clean the entire Parikrama marg.”

He also shared that notices have been issued to those shops which have encroached on public land. The cleanliness campaign was made successful with the efforts of Govardhan SDM Neelam Srivastava, Govardhan Tehsil and Panchayat.

For the unversed, Mudiya Mela is observed in remembrance of Sanatan Goswami, the principal disciple of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Legends have it that when Sanatan Goswami passed away, his disciples did parikrama of the Govardhan after tonsuring their heads. Since then, this tradition has been followed.

Notably, the 468-year-old tradition continues to draw a sea of devotees.

The devotees perform a 21-km-long Parikrama of Govardhan.

The belief with the yatra is that it bestows peace and prosperity on the devotees.

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Business

12 nations to get US tariff letters on Monday, says Trump

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New Delhi/Washington, July 5: US President Donald Trump has signed tariff letters on exports from 12 countries, which are expected to be sent out on July 7 (Monday).

Speaking to the media aboard Air Force One, the US President said the names of the countries which will receive the letters would only be revealed on Monday.

“I signed some letters and they’ll go out on Monday, probably 12. Different amounts of money, different amounts of tariffs,” he told reporters.

“The letters are better. It is much easier to send a letter,” Trump added.

Trump has suggested that the reciprocal tariffs could go even higher, potentially reaching 70 per cent for some countries, and take effect from August 1.

The US President in April unveiled a base tariff of 10 per cent on most goods entering the country, along with higher rates for certain countries, including China. Those elevated tariffs were later suspended till July 9.

Washington has concluded trade agreements with two countries – the United Kingdom and Vietnam.

Meanwhile, India’s high-level official delegation, led by chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal, has returned from Washington without reaching a final agreement with US officials on the sensitive issue of trade in agricultural and dairy products that the US is pushing for.

However, there is still a glimmer of hope that an interim bilateral trade agreement may be reached at the highest political level in the two countries before the July 9 deadline.

The Indian team was in Washington for negotiations on an interim trade agreement with the US from June 26 – July 2.

According to Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, India will not hurry into signing a free trade agreement under pressure from any deadline.

Speaking on the sidelines of an event in the national capital, Minister Goyal emphasised that India is ready to make trade deals in the national interest but it “never negotiates trade deals with a deadline”.

The US is seeking broader market access for its agricultural and dairy products, which is a major hurdle, as for India, this is a livelihood issue for the country’s small farmers, and hence, is considered a sensitive area.

While India is looking to secure an exemption from President Trump’s 26 per cent tariffs by concluding an interim deal before July 9, it is also pushing for significant tariff concessions for its labour-intensive exports such as textiles, leather and footwear.

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