From India's 100 Richest list to net neutrality, here are our most-read stories of the week
The Slice-NE SFB merger, Meerut's part in Asian Games, MNCs leaving India, are some of the stories that piqued the interest of our readers this week
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1) Forbes India presents India's 100 richest list
It is that time of the year: The Forbes India Rich List is out, and if you still haven’t had a chance to dive in, here’s some weekend diving for you! Mukesh Ambani, chairman and MD of Reliance Industries, has reclaimed the top spot from Gautam Adani of Adani Enterprises. Shiv Nadar has returned to the top three ranks with a fortune of $29.3 billion, as shares of HCL Technologies jumped 42% in the past year amid a tech rebound. Matriarch Savitri Jindal of the OP Jindal Group, a power and steel conglomerate, is at No. 4 with $24 billion, breaking into the top five ranks for the very first time. The cumulative wealth of India's richest 100 people seems to have flatlined at $799 billion, but as you go down the list, you will see some dramatic shifts, some returnees, and a few debutants. Take a look.
2) Raining EVs
The Indian EV market appears to be the 'IT' place for automakers. Four months ago, Tesla, the world's most valuable automaker, made a statement to that effect. Elon Musk reiterated it after he met with PM Narendra Modi and announced that the company will soon start operations in India. Domestic players Tata Motors, Maruti, and Mahindra & Mahindra launch new models every other month. Everybody wants a share of the third-largest car market in the world. The plan is to increase EV penetration from one percent currently. Therefore, it did not come as a surprise when VinFast, a Vietnamese automaker, said that it is looking forward to participating in this EV growth story of India. Let's take a look at the plans to expand.
3) Grabbing a 'Slice' of banking
This week, one of the eye-catching news from the BFSI sector was Rajan Bajaj's fintech unicorn Slice merging with Guwahati-based North East Small Finance Bank. The Reserve Bank of India has given an NOC for this move. But this merger with a bank with zero attractive assets and its acceptance from the apex bank has surprised fintech experts. This could turn into a win-win situation: for fintech companies, to explore banking opportunities to expand; regional banks can benefit from the reach and digital expertise of fintech firms to scale and improve. Nobody was prepared for the possibility of a backdoor for fintech firms to enter into the banking business. Now that the door has been opened, will it flood the landscape with such mergers? 
It's been almost a week since the 19th Asian Games concluded in Hangzhou, China, and Indians are still celebrating winning 107 medals—the country's best performance yet. A few names on that medal tally have a strong connection despite representing different sports. They all have the District Athletics Association of Meerut in common. Parul Chaudhary won a gold medal in the 5000m race and a silver in the 3000m steeplechase. Annu Rani won a gold in the javelin throw. Gulveer Singh won a bronze in long-distance running. Kiran Baliyan got a bronze in the shot put. Let's take a look at how a new approach implemented seven years ago is bearing fruit and churning out medal winners. 
Disney is facing a lot of issues in the US. There have been massive job cuts, and it is in the middle of several political battles in the State of Florida (where Disney World operates). The studio's recent superhero films have failed to reach blockbuster status, and the streaming gambit seems to be hit by content issues. Internal organisation restructuring problems since Bob Chapek left have persisted. All of this is showing effects on the performance of Disney+Hotstar in India. In addition, the platform lost streaming rights for the Indian Premier League, aka the cash cow, to rival Jio Cinema. Now, media reports suggest that Disney wants out. But its exit from India will not be the only MNC to pack its bags in recent years. General Motors, Ford Motors, Holcim, Citibank and others have either left entirely or have pared down their business. Why do MNCs fail in India? 
Throughout his career, Madhav Gadgil has worked closely with communities on the ground, roping in researchers, policy-makers, NGOs, farmers, teachers, students and citizens for environmental conservation. His contributions towards saving the Western Ghats and building an inventory to monitor biodiversity in India, among other things, have made him one of the country’s most eminent field ecologists. In the latest episode of From the Bookshelves of Forbes India, Gadgil talks about his newly-released memoir, A Walk Up The Hill, and summarises his decades-long experience of how we interact with the environment, the role of government and bureaucracy, and why there is hope for climate-conscious action in India. 
The noise about net neutrality has increased these days. About 128 startup founders recently signed a petition to the government to support net neutrality, including Zerodha's Nithin Kamath, PayTM's Vijay Shekhar Sharma and Practo's Shashank ND Singh. This was a response to telecom providers who have asked the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to allow them to charge OTT services a 'network usage fee'. The battle between telecom and technology firms over net neutrality has intensified. They have a vested interest in working for or against net neutrality. But here's a quick explainer for why you should care. 
