‘Worst may be over, but only for now’

Industry leaders said the unprecedented global economic downturn had presented several new opportunities and imparted new lessons to India Inc even as a slew of recent data showed that the worst might be over for the world economy.

Industry leaders said the unprecedented global economic downturn had presented several new opportunities and imparted new lessons to India Inc even as a slew of recent data showed that the worst might be over for the world economy.

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“While current symptoms (of the crisis) may be over, the causes are very much alive. So, the worst may be over only for now,” said Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Auto Ltd at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit on Saturday.

“The symptoms that caused the downturn remain and unless we take action to ensure the disease is healed from the root, it will come back in this form or another,” he said.

“People say that the worst is over. I am not so sure,” said Preetha Reddy, managing director of Apollo Hospitals. “The key to fighting it and ensuring it is not repeated is to keep costs down at all times and leverage collaborations without worrying about the competition too much,” Reddy said.

For some, the downturn also provided opportunities to diversify and expand through acquisitions. “We picked up Lotus Asset Management Company last October and sealed the deal in three days flat. That led to tremendous growth for us,” said Malvinder Singh, group chairman of Religare Enterprises and Fortis Healthcare.