BoM shares hit 52-week high on strong Q4 earnings

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 21, 2026 | Business

Shares of Bank of Maharashtra rallied sharply on Tuesday, hitting a 52-week high and extending gains for a second straight session after the lender reported robust March quarter results

The stock climbed over 6 per cent to touch ₹80.43 on the NSE, up from the previous close of ₹75.54, driven by strong investor response to the bank’s earnings performance and growth outlook.

Bank of Maharashtra shares in focus

The rally followed a solid set of financial results for the quarter ended March 2026. The bank reported a standalone net profit of ₹2,014.09 crore, marking a significant increase from ₹1,493.08 crore in the same quarter last year. For the full financial year FY26, profit after tax rose to ₹7,019.32 crore compared to ₹5,519.79 crore in the previous year, reflecting sustained business momentum.

Adding to investor sentiment, the board recommended a final dividend of ₹1.20 per share, in addition to the ₹1 interim dividend declared earlier in January 2026 and already paid during the year.

The bank also outlined ambitious capital-raising and funding plans. It approved raising up to ₹7,500 crore through multiple routes including equity issuance via preferential allotment, qualified institutional placement, follow-on public offer, or rights issue, as well as through Basel III-compliant bonds. Additionally, the board cleared plans to issue long-term infrastructure bonds worth up to ₹10,000 crore in FY27 and raise up to USD 500 million through foreign currency bonds in multiple tranches.

Brokerage firm HDFC Securities maintained a positive stance on the stock, citing sustained outperformance backed by strong fundamentals. The firm noted that the bank delivered healthy Q4FY26 earnings driven by robust credit growth of 22 per cent year-on-year, stable margins, and continued improvement in asset quality.

It highlighted that while deposit growth at 14 per cent lagged advances, the bank’s CASA ratio improved significantly to 52.5 per cent, supported by seasonal strength in current account balances. Credit costs remained contained below 1 per cent, with asset quality gains particularly visible in the agriculture segment.

HDFC Securities added that the bank’s strong deposit franchise, aided by a high share of low-cost current account balances, continues to support a superior margin profile. Factoring in higher business growth and better asset quality, the brokerage raised its earnings estimates for FY27 and FY28 by around 4 per cent and reiterated a buy rating on the stock, with a revised target price of ₹90.

The sharp rally in shares underscores investor confidence in the bank’s growth trajectory, supported by improving profitability, strong balance sheet metrics, and continued operational momentum.

Published on April 21, 2026

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Crude oil futures trade lower on US-Iran talks report

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 21, 2026 | Business

Crude oil futures traded lower on Tuesday morning following reports that Iran will send a delegation for a second round of talks with the US.

At 9.19 am on Tuesday, June Brent oil futures were at $95.01, down by 0.49 per cent, and June crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $86.65, down by 0.88 per cent. May crude oil futures were trading at ₹8128 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹8184, down by 0.68 per cent, and June futures were trading at ₹7882 against the previous close of ₹7925, down by 0.54 per cent.

A Reuters report, which quoted an unnamed Iranian official, said that Iran is considering attending peace talks with the United States. However, the official said no decision had been made.

In a post on X, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Speaker of Iran’s Parliament, said, “Trump, by imposing a siege and violating the ceasefire, seeks to turn the negotiating table – in his own imagination – into a table of surrender or to justify renewed warmongering. We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats, and in the past two weeks, we are prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield.”

US President Donald Trump posted on the social media platform Truth Social that the ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’ was a complete and total obliteration of the nuclear dust sites in Iran. “Therefore, digging it out will be a long and difficult process,” he said.

In another post, he said the US will not lift the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz until there is a deal with Iran.

In their Commodities Feed for Monday, Warren Patterson, Head of Commodities Strategy of ING Think, and Ewa Manthey, Commodities Strategist, said while energy markets popped higher on Monday following Iran’s decision to reverse its opening of the Strait of Hormuz, they’re still trading in a manner which suggests optimism over US-Iran talks.

“The aim, of course, is to establish a viable off-ramp that enables energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz to resume on a sustained, long-term basis. But we believe markets are under-pricing the ongoing supply disruption. Optimism appears to be clouding the reality of the supply shock,” they said.

Stating that negotiations between the US and Iran are set to resume, they said: “It appears Iran will send a delegation too. This follows earlier suggestions that Iran wouldn’t attend as long as the US blockade continues. These talks are important, with the current ceasefire set to end on Wednesday.”

Trump has suggested he is unlikely to extend the ceasefire. Therefore, a lack of progress would likely push oil and gas prices higher. This would create significant uncertainty over when energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz might return to normal.

They said that the longer these supply disruptions persist, the tighter the oil market becomes, leaving a longer path towards normalisation for markets once hostilities end. Energy flows will take time to recover. Upstream production will also take time.

“We also need to see restocking globally following significant stock drawdowns. Taking these factors into account — along with the likelihood that any US-Iran agreement would remain fragile — it appears that while oil prices would face downside pressure, the market’s floor for the rest of the year is considerably higher than it was before the war,” they added.

May natural gas futures were trading at ₹264.80 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹266.90, down by 0.79 per cent.

Published on April 21, 2026

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Stock Market Live April 21: Stock to buy today: Balrampur Chini Mills

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 21, 2026 | Business

Rolex Rings: Company’s board is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to discuss a potential buyback of its equity shares. (Positive)

Oberoi Realty: Q4 Gross Booking Value: Rs 1,673 crore (+96% YoY) (Positive)

Associated Alcohol: Company has finalized plans to acquire SDF Industries. (Positive)

TCS: South Korean tech giant NAVER Corp ink MoU. (Positive)

TVS Motor: Company signs JDA with Hyundai Motor Company for manufacturing of electronic three wheelers (Positive)

PNB Housing: Net Profit of Rs 655.8 Cr Vs Rs 550.4 Cr YoY, GNPA at 0.93% Vs 1.04% QoQ (Positive)

Nelco: Net Profit of Rs 1.1 Cr Vs Net Loss of Rs 4.1 Cr, Revenue at Rs 79.2 Cr Vs Rs 67.5 Cr (YoY) (Positive)

E2E Network: Net Profit of Rs 6.4 Cr Vs Net Loss of Rs 5.7 Cr, Revenue at Rs 96.0 Cr Vs Rs 70.0 Cr (YoY) (Positive)

Interarch Building: Company bags Rs 80 Cr order to design, engineering, manufacturing, supply & erection of Pre-Engineered Steel Building System. (Positive)

Ravindra Energy: An associate entity of the company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Drivn to deploy 1,000 electric trucks. (Positive)

Eimco Elecon (India) Limited: Company has executed Sale Deed(s) for the purchase of land measuring approx. 35,056 sq. meters in Kanjari, Gujarat, for a consideration of Rs 45.56 Cr. (Positive)

City Union Bank Ltd: Bank opened 7 new branches on April 20, 2026. (Positive)

Thomas Cook: Company, in collaboration with SOTC Travel, has launched a new ‘Visa Rejection Cover’ to provide security for international travelers. (Positive)

Veerhealth Care: Company bags “biggest single order” worth Rs 6.16 Cr for skincare products (Positive)

JSW Steel: Company, POSCO partner to set up 6 mtpa greenfield steel plant in Odisha. (Positive)

Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels: Company signs two hotel management agreements in Ayodhya and Ujjain (Positive)

Eimco Elecon (India): Company completes acquisition of 35,056 sq. Meters of land in Gujarat for Rs 45.56 Cr (Positive)

Oil India: Company’s subsidiary, Oil Green Energy, has entered into MoU with Numaligarh Refinery for the procurement and supply of renewable energy. (Positive)

Carysil: Company enhances quartz kitchen sink capacity expansion target to Rs 12.5 Cr p.a., proposed Rs 50 Cr investment to cater to major US retail chains (Positive)

CEAT: Company to invest up to Rs 325 lakhs in subsidiary ‘Tyresnmore Online’ via rights issue (Neutral)

Vedanta: Company sets may 1, 2026, as record date for scheme of arrangement of demerger of Vedanta into 4 companies (Neutral)

PNB Gilts: NII at Rs 106 Cr vs 49 Cr. Profit at Rs13 Cr vs Rs 75 Cr, down 82.7% YoY (Neutral)

Emudhra: Company launches ‘Emsigner for SMEs’ to digitize document workflows, integrated e-signatures and automation for HR, Legal, and Finance functions (Neutral)

AU Small Finance Bank: Board to consider raising fund via QIP, Pref Issue, Debt on Apr 27 (Neutral)

Muthoot Microfin: AUM rises 13% YoY to ₹14,006 cr in FY26 (Neutral)

Financials: RBI withdraws April 1 circular on Forex risk management, interbank dealings. (Neutral)

Indosolar: Net Profit of Rs 42.0 Cr Vs Rs 40.0 Cr, Revenue at Rs 83.0 Cr Vs Rs 192.0 Cr (YoY) (Neutral)

PDS: Company’s arm files FIR over alleged employee misconduct. (Neutral)

Hindustan Copper: Company sees mine expansion capex of ₹7,189 cr under Vision 2030 (Neutral)

Bajaj Finserve: Bajaj General Insurance Gross Direct Premium: Rs 1,384.3 crore (-1.9% YoY). (Neutral)

Container Corp: The Ministry of Railways has officially appointed Vivek Gupta to serve as the Director of Finance for the company. (Neutral)

Godawari Power: Company allotted 2 crore convertible warrants to its promoters and members, while concurrently selling an additional 9.24% stake in Ardent Steel for Rs 22.2 crore. (Neutral)

HMA Agro: Company’s board is scheduled to meet on April 25 to consider the appointment of Gulzar Ahmad as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD). (Neutral)

Kirloskar Ferrous: Company has received trading approval from the NSE and will commence trading effective April 20. (Neutral)

Carysil: Company will invest Rs 50 crore to expand its quartz sink manufacturing capacity to 1.25 million units per annum to meet growing retail demand in the US market. (Neutral)

HCL Tech: Company has appoints Kimsuka Narsimhan as Independent Director. (Neutral)

SPML Infra: Company’s board will meet on April 23 to consider and approve various fund-raising options. (Neutral)

HEG: GDN Ventures LLP sold 10 lakh shares at Rs. 631.02 per share. (Neutral)

List of stocks included in short term ASM Framework: Allied Blenders, Apollo Micro, Bharat Wire, Man Industries, Elcid Investments. (Neutral)

List of stocks excluded from ASM Framework: Bhagiradha Chemicals, Easy Trip, eMudhra, EPack Prefab, JTL Industries, Sri Lotus, M&B Engineering, NACL Industries. (Neutral)

Circuit filter change from 20% to 10%: Indo Tech Transformers. (Neutral)

CIE Automotive India Ltd Ex-Date Tomorrow, Final Dividend – Rs. – 7.0 (Neutral)

Sanofi India Ltd Ex-Date Tomorrow, Final Dividend – Rs. – 48.0 (Neutral)

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लोग क्यों भरवाते हैं 110, 210 या 510 का तेल? जवाब जानकर दंग रह जाएंगे आप!

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 20, 2026 | Business

Petrol Pump Tips: पेट्रोल पंप पर अक्सर आपने देखा होगा कि कई लोग 100, 200 या 500 की जगह 110, 210 या 510 रुपये का पेट्रोल या डीजल भरवाते हैं. क्या आपने सोचा है आखिर ऐसा क्यों? ये सवाल सिर्फ आपके और हमारे ही नहीं बल्कि हर उस शख्स के मन में आता है जो पेट्रोल पंप पर ये देखता है. कई लोग तो एक दूसरे की देखा देखी में ऐसा करते हैं, लेकिन उन्हें इसके पीछे की वजह का पता नहीं है. तो आइये आपको बताते हैं कि क्या है ऐखिर ऐसा करने के पीछे वजह.

क्यों करते हैं लोग ऐसा?
ये मामला पूरी तरह से जागरुकता से भरा हुआ है. ये एक कोड है, जिससे ग्राहक बिना कुछ बोले ही पेट्रोल भरने वालों को बता देता है कि वो जागरूक व्यक्ति है. इसके पीछे एक दो नहीं बल्कि 4 कारण हैं, आइये बताते हैं.

‘प्रीसेट’ होती हैं मशीनें
दरअसल कुछ लोगों का मानना है कि पेट्रोल पंप पर मशीनें पहले से सेट (preset) होती हैं, जैसे 100, 200 या 500 रुपये के लिए. ऐसे में मन में हमेशा शक बना रहता है कि कहीं गाड़ी में कम मात्रा में पेट्रोल ना भरा जाए. इस वजह से लोग पेट्रोल हमेशा अनईवन अमाउंट में ही भरवाते हैं.

मानसिक संतुष्टि के लिए
हालांकि इस बात की कोई पुष्टि नहीं है कि इससे आपके साथ ठगी नहीं होगी, या आपको कम पेट्रोल नहीं मिलेगा. ये पूरी तरह से मानसिक शांति का सवाल है. ऐसे करने से ग्राहकों को मानसिक शांति मिलती है और वो ये सोचते हैं कि उन्हें किसी भी तरह से पेट्रोल पंप पर ठगा नहीं गया है.

पुरानी मशीनों का डर
ये धारणा कुछ पुरानी मशीनों और कुछ पुराने धोखाधड़ी के मामलों की वजह से भी बन गई है. हालांकि, आज के डिजिटल युग में ऐसी धोखाधड़ी कम होती है, लेकिन फिर भी लोग सुरक्षा के तौर पर ऐसा करते हैं.

पंप कर्मियों को सचेत करना
ग्राहकों के ऐसा करने से पंप कर्मी भी सचेत रहते हैं. उन्हें पता रहता है कि ग्राहक जागरुक है, ऐसे में वो उनके साथ कोई तीन- पांच नहीं कर सकते हैं. विषम संख्या में पेट्रोल भरवाने से मशीन के सेट होने का कोई खतरा नहीं रहता है.

ध्यान रखने वाली बातें…
हालांकि पेट्रोल भरवाते समय हमें कुछ जरूरी बातों का ध्यान रखना चाहिए. जैसे:

पेट्रोल भरवाते समय हमेशा मीटर पर नजर रखें और चेक करें कि वो ‘जीरो’ से शुरू होता है या नहीं.
पेट्रोल पंप पर हमेशा पेट्रोल भरवाने के बाद रसीद जरूर लेना चाहिए
हमेशा ऐसा ही पंप पर जाएं जो भरोसेमंद और अधिकृत पंप हो.

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All you want to know about the women’s reservation and delimitation bills fiasco

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 20, 2026 | Business

The special session of Parliament to pass three bills — The Constitution (131^st Amendment) Bill, 2026; Delimitation Bill 2026; Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill 2026 — ended without a fruitful outcome for the Union Government. The Constitution Bill was defeated in the Lok Sabha by a united opposition, forcing the government to take back the other two bills. In this explainer, we’ll see how the transpired events affect women’s reservations, why the bill was defeated and what is the way forward.

What is the link between women’s reservation and delimitation?

Women’s reservation and delimitation are two independent exercises, which theoretically could have been done separately. However, the women’s reservation bill, 2023 tied women’s reservation to the delimitation exercise, which was to be based on the first census post-2026. That is the reason delimitation was tied to women’s reservation in the amendments that were proposed in 2026 too.

There is also an argument from the supporters of the bill that sitting men MPs would lose their seats to women if 33 per cent reservation is carved out without increasing the number of seats through delimitation. In the recently concluded special session, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya from Bengaluru South constituency, used this argument during the debate in Lok Sabha.

What did the women’s reservation bill 2026 propose?

Contrary to public perception, reservation for women in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies is already a law in the country since 2023. The women’s reservation bill was passed unanimously in Rajya Sabha (214-0) and with just 2 votes against it in the Lok Sabha (454-2) in 2023.

The 2023 bill said that the women should be given one-third representation (reservation) in the Lok Sabha and the legislative assemblies of the states, (including sub-quotas for SC/ST women). The act also says that the reservation should be implemented after the completion of first census post-2026 and the subsequent delimitation process, both of which are likely to take considerable time. This effectively meant that the reservation for women could be done only in time for the 2034 general elections, a full 11 years after the bill’s enactment.

What the Centre tried to do last week was to move the enforcement of the women’s reservation forward by a few years.

This was proposed to be achieved by (i) delinking the mandate in the 2023 women’s reservation act to use the census taken post-2026 for the delimitation process (ii) increase the number of seats in Lok Sabha to a maximum of 850 seats and (iii) not extending the freeze on the number of seats for states in the Lok Sabha, based on 1971 census.

Why was the bill opposed?

The major opposition to the bill was because of the alleged intent to accelerate the delimitation process by basing it on 2011 census, in the garb of women’s reservation. The constitutional freeze on the seat sharing of Lok Sabha among states, based on 1971 census. is based on the amendments in 1976 and 2001. The number of seats in Parliament and their distribution to states were frozen for 50 years till the census post-2026. Now, as the freeze is about to lapse, the 2026 bill chose to not extend the freeze any further.

This would have meant that the seats in Lok Sabha would be shared based on 2011 census and can be changed again based on 2027 census leading to a significant reduction in relative strength of the southern states, compared to their more populous northern counterparts. So, the southern states and the united opposition demanded the delinking of the delimitation procedure from the women’s reservation altogether. Moreover, delimitation has been a contentious issue for a few decades due to its potential to profoundly shift the balance of power at the federal level. In addition, some parties demanded that the women’s reservation also ensure a sub-quota for OBC women as well, similar to SC/ST women.

What will be the way forward for women’s reservation in Parliament and Assemblies now?

The women’s reservation is still in effect. Even if no new bills are passed in this regard, women’s reservation can be implemented after the delimitation based on Census 2027 in time for the 2034 general elections. With the freeze on delimitation lapsing after the first census post-2026, theoretically the government can proceed with delimitation as per Census 2027.

Meanwhile, if a new draft legislation that delinks the delimitation process altogether from women’s reservation is introduced, the opposition has promised to pass that bill. Already a private member bill for the same has been brought in the Parliament by P Wilson, DMK’s Rajya Sabha MP. If that bill or a similar bill is passed in the next session, then women’s reservation can be implemented in time for 2029 general elections based on the current 543 seats in the Lok Sabha. If not, it will automatically be due for 2034 general election based on the existing legislation.

Published on April 20, 2026

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Nearly half of population now covered by health insurance, says govt survey

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 20, 2026 | Business

While insurance coverage has expanded, now accounting for 38% of the market and reaching over 50 crore people, these gains have not curbed OOPE, which still dominates health spending.

Nearly half of India’s population is now covered by health insurance, finds a survey report released on Monday by the Statistics Ministry. However, the average out-of-pocket expenses (OOPE) per hospitalisation continue to remain high, topping ₹34,000 in private and charitable healthcare facilities.

The findings are based on responses from about 1.4 lakh households surveyed between January and December 2025 as part of the 80th round of the National Sample Survey (NSS).

Health insurance coverage has risen sharply, the report noted. In 2017-18, during the previous NSS health survey, only 14.1 per cent of rural residents and 19.1 per cent of urban residents were insured.

By 2025, the coverage had increased to 47.4 per cent in rural and 44.3 per cent in urban areas. This expansion coincided with the reduction of GST on individual and family health insurance premiums to zero from 18 per cent, effective September 22, 2025.

Govt schemes

Coverage under government-sponsored schemes grew even faster, rising from 13 per cent in rural areas and 9 per cent in urban areas in 2017-18 to 45.5 per cent and 31.8 per cent, respectively, in 2025. The Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), launched in September 2018, offers annual health cover of up to ₹5 lakh per eligible household and has enrolled nearly 12 crore families.

Experts, however, offered a nuanced assessment of this expansion. “The increase is driven largely by government-funded health assurance schemes such as Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY rather than direct private insurance,” said Indranil of OP Jindal University. Mohan Rao, a former professor at the Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health, Jawaharlal Nehru University, added that the scheme has effectively subsidised private healthcare provision at the cost of strengthening public health infrastructure.

Out-of-pocket spend

Despite the wider coverage, cost disparities remain stark. The average OOPE per hospitalisation stood at ₹6,631 in government or public facilities, but jumped to ₹39,530 in charitable or NGO-run hospitals and ₹50,508 in private hospitals, including those empanelled under government schemes.

The 2017-18 NSS did not provide comparable OOPE estimates. However, a study by Indranil, which deflated costs to 2014 prices, estimated outpatient OOPE at ₹16,128 in rural and ₹20,814 in urban areas during that period.

Other key findings

About 13.1 per cent of persons reported illness in the 15 days before the survey, with urban areas (14.9 per cent) slightly higher than rural (12.2 per cent). The average hospitalization rate was 2.9 instances per 100 persons over the preceding 365 days.

While insurance coverage has expanded, now accounting for 38 per cent of the market and reaching over 50 crore people, these gains have not curbed OOPE, which still dominates health spending.

With private premiums rising (a 25 per cent jump for 52 per cent of policyholders in the last year) and schemes like AB-PMJAY focusing on inpatient empanelments, households continue facing catastrophic costs, as evidenced by studies like Reshmi et al (BMJ 2021) and Samir Garg et al (EPW, April 2024).

Published on April 20, 2026

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