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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.In the TCS New York City Marathon in November 2025, Vijayaraghavan Venugopal finished first among 332 Indians who participated in the run, a remarkable achievement for a 50-year-old. He was the only one among them to finish in under 3 hours, the timing of 2:47:57 being his best ever for the distance.At the Taj Santacruz in Mumbai a few months later when we meet, it’s not surprising that the athletic chief executive officer and co-founder of sports nutrition supplement brand Fast&Up looks much younger than his years.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.NEW DELHI: An early and harsher-than-usual start to summer has prompted the Centre to ask states to step up heatwave preparedness, with temperatures already running 4-8 degrees Celsius above seasonal averages in several regions, according to two government officials and documents reviewed by Mint.The directive comes as parts of northwestern, central and eastern India report daytime highs crossing 44°C, raising the risk of heat-related illnesses and potential disruption to economic activity if extreme conditions persist.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that heatwave conditions are very likely in the next 24 hours in states including Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana, as well as parts of central and peninsular India.India's official weather forecaster defines a heatwave as temperatures at least 4.5°C above normal, with higher departures classified as severe.Union health secretary Punya Salila Srivastava has asked states to stock essential supplies such as oral rehydration salts (ORS), intravenous fluids, ice packs and cooling equipment, and to operationalize dedicated Heat Stroke Management Units at health facilities. Ambulance services have also been asked to be equipped to handle heat-related emergencies, according to the communication sent to states.States have been directed to mandatorily report daily heatstroke cases and deaths through the Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP) to enable real-time monitoring.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: Inventurus Knowledge Solutions (IKS Health) aims to be the leader in the US rural healthcare outsourcing market after its acquisition of TruBridge on Thursday, its top executive said.“IKS is in the business of taking away or outsourcing chore tasks from healthcare providers in the US, so that they could focus on their core of taking care of patients…when you look at rural healthcare and RCM (revenue cycle management) within rural healthcare, TrueBridge is the largest player by far,” IKS Health founder and global chief executive officer (CEO) Sachin Gupta told Mint in an interview. “In the rural healthcare market segment, once we combine effectively with TrueBridge, we will be the undisputed leader,” he added.A healthcare outsourcer, like IKS, handles the administrative, clinical and operational tasks, including billing, clinical documentation, and insurance claims processing.On Thursday, IKS Health announced the acquisition of US-based TruBridge Inc, a Nasdaq-listed provider of healthcare technology solutions for rural and community hospitals, for up to $565 million.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.In an effort to make health insurance pricing more transparent and claims processing more predictable, the Centre plans to build a public ‘Health Claims Index’ using data flowing through the National Health Claims Exchange (NHCX), according to two officials aware of the development and documents reviewed by Mint.Such an index would help consumers make more informed choices by offering visibility into how insurers handle claims. For insurers, it would create a common data framework to improve underwriting, reduce inefficiencies, and enable more consistent, risk-based pricing.The index will use aggregated data flowing through the NHCX—a digital platform for processing health insurance claims—to publish industry-wide benchmarks on claims processing timelines, approval rates and cost patterns across insurers.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.India's apex drugs regulator has directed state governments to enforce uniform medicine standards to eliminate regional variability in regulatory compliance.In its February directive, reviewed by Mint, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), chaired by the Drugs Controller General of India, Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, wrote that concerns have been raised regarding inconsistencies in the enforcement of drug standards across the country, low conviction rates in cases of drug adulteration, and the need for stringent scrutiny of adulteration in imported pharmaceutical products."All states are advised to take proactive measures to effectively address the issues. You are also requested to strengthen the necessary infrastructure, including the provision of adequate manpower under the State Health Regulatory Excellence Index (SHRESTH),” the letter said.The development assumes significance for India’s $50 billion pharmaceutical market, which is facing a quality crisis after Indian-manufactured cough syrups were linked to over 140 deaths globally, including in Gambia, Uzbekistan, and Cameroon, due to ethylene glycol poisoning.Mint's emailed queries to the health ministry spokesperson and the DCGI office on 15 April remained unanswered.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.America’s divisive political culture and rising cost of living are fueling interest in retiring abroad. It can be a great way to cut your expenses and improve your quality of life—as long as you understand some key factors.The prospect of kicking back in a Tuscan villa or hacienda in Tulum certainly holds appeal. But many expats devote more time to imagining their lifestyle than investigating the less romantic considerations: financial management, tax planning, and healthcare.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: Singapore-based private equity firm Everstone Capital will invest close to $270 million for a significant stake in Apothecon Group, which includes India-based Apothecon and US-based Navinta, it said in a statement on Tuesday.The combined platform is a regulated-markets-focused speciality formulations business with in-house formulation capabilities and captive active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing. It has a diversified commercial presence across the US, Europe and other international markets.Apothecon was founded in 2003 by industry veterans Mahendra Patel, former chief scientific officer at Sandoz and co-founder of Invamed (later acquired by Sandoz), and Joe Renner, former chief operating officer of Sandoz and chairman of Zydus US.

₹3.3 trillion and more will come if LDF returns to power,” he said. As many as 15 lakh jobs have been created so far and more will be created if the policies continue, he added.Apart from need for change, LDF is also battling perception issues. UDF has been accusing LDF of having a tacit understanding with the BJP.

IT sector, according to the data.There has also been a visible surge in companies explicitly branding themselves as AI-focused. At the beginning of FY26, 84 companies in every 10,000 new registrations mentioned ‘AI’ in their names.

Mumbai: Adar Poonawalla-led Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd is in talks to partner with medical device maker Trivitron Healthcare to scale up its investment in MyLab Discovery Solutions Pvt.

EPL Ltd’s recently announced merger with Indovida is not just another expansion, but a shift in the business model. The transaction is structured as a share-swap, making it largely cash-neutral, where EPL will issue shares to Indovida shareholders.The deal values EPL at about ₹339 per share, implying a 70% premium to its pre-announcement closing price on 27 March, while Indovida is being acquired at a discount to EPL’s valuation multiple.

Stock market recap: The Indian equity markets commenced the new financial year on a remarkably bullish note, with Nifty 50 surging 1.56% to close at 22,679.40. This rally, which saw the index reclaim 22,650, was primarily fueled by optimistic global cues following hints of de-escalation in the West Asia war.Investor sentiment was further bolstered by a sharp decline in crude oil prices and a cooling of U.S.

A year after it acquired AGS Health from EQT in a billion-dollar transaction, global private equity firm Blackstone has hired bankers to plan a listing for the company at three times the buy value, three people with knowledge of the development said. The company, which is now being valued upwards of $3 billion, will look to raise around $500 million from the public market listing, these people added.AGS, which provides a host of services, including medical billing, claim submission, denial management and medical coding, has appointed investment banks JM Financial, Jefferies, ICICI Securities, Nomura and JP Morgan India and others for the IPO.“It will be a mix of primary plus secondary share sale,” said one of the people cited above.

Mumbai: India is expected to sustain strong M&A momentum, including cross-border deals, as investors take a long-term view despite macro headwinds, top executives said at the Mint India Investment Summit.“It’s interesting how the last three quarters over 2025 have shown the ability of investors to digest any volatility, price it in if required and proceed with M&As as they see sense in it over a 5–10-year horizon,” Devarajan Nambakam, co-head of India investment banking for Goldman Sachs Group, said at the summit last week.“This is probably going to be tested more this year than last, but the ability of investors to see through these volatilities has been the biggest mindset shift.”With India being a robust growth economy, there is demand for capital to accelerate this pace and for shareholders looking to monetize their stake among others, he added.“From a supply perspective, it’s safe to say that almost no pool of capital is unavailable in India be it strategic capital, private equity, private credit or hybrid capital. Today, the quantum of the capital that is available is higher than we’ve seen.

Vetic, to name just three. These clinics epitomize a big shift that is playing out across urban India: the corporatization of veterinary services.Until a few years ago, India’s petcare market was a highly fragmented affair, dominated by neighbourhood pet stores, standalone vets and a handful of product brands.

hospitals, and since only 20–25% of work is outsourced today, there is still a lot of room to grow. This could act as a tailwind for Sagility’s services.The type of work is also changing. Clients now want partners who can handle bigger and more complex tasks, not just basic services.

Infosys Ltd’s announcement late Wednesday to buy two US-based tech services firms for $560 million takes its acquisition spend in a fiscal to an all-time high, reflecting the pressing need for new capabilities as automation tools upend India’s tech sector.The country’s second-largest information technology (IT) services company said it will spend up to $465 million to buy Optimum Healthcare IT, a Florida IT services and consulting firm.On the same day, it announced the acquisition of Stratus, a New Jersey-based tech services provider to the insurance sector, for up to $95 million.Both deals are in cash and are expected to close by June. The payment includes upfront amounts and earn-outs but excludes management incentives and retention bonuses.The acquisitions will add $319 million in incremental revenue to Infosys, including $276 million from Optimum Healthcare and $43 million from Stratus, making up almost 45% of Infosys’ incremental revenue last year.Infosys ended last year with $19.28 billion in revenue, up 3.85% on a yearly basis.

Mint’s emails till the time of publishing.Broadly, India is seeing renewed investor appetite for preventive nutrition brands as the country’s wellness market scales rapidly. With deal activity accelerating across supplements and nutraceuticals, several mid-size deals have been announced recently as companies look to capture the growing demand for protein, hydration and clean-label products.Fullife Healthcare, which operates Fast&Up and Chicnutrix, on Wednesday said it concluded a ₹300 crore fundraise led by Elev8 Venture Partners, while USV Private Ltd acquired around a 79% stake in nutraceutical firm Wellbeing Nutrition in an all-cash deal valuing the company at ₹1,583 crore in February.Founded in 1971 by Kartar Lalvani, Vitabiotics is one of the largest nutraceutical firms in the UK and owns brands such as Pregnacare, Osteocare, Perfectil, Immunace and Menopace.

Global private equity investor LeapFrog Investments, which has backed InsuranceDekho and Healthify, has shelved plans to explore continuation vehicles as an exit option and will instead focus on traditional routes such as block deals, mergers and acquisitions, and public listings, the firm’s top executive told Mint.The firm is pursuing exits from its second and third funds as it deploys capital from its fourth fund and a climate-focused investment vehicle. Last week, LeapFrog led investment rounds in Shubham Housing Finance and clean energy company ReNew Energy Global Plc.“It (continuation vehicle) is not a focus area as of now for us.

The simultaneous patent expiry of Ozempic’s active ingredient in China and India on Friday was a watershed moment. Until now, these weight-loss drugs have been available largely to people with means. The launch of affordable generic versions will be a levelling force in healthcare, with global consequences.That’s because the world’s two most-populous countries aren’t just consumers.

Mint.The development is significant for India’s pharmaceutical market, valued at $50 billion and largely dominated by allopathic medicines. By comparison, the homeopathy segment is worth around $847 million.A proposal from the Ayush ministry was discussed last month by the Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) of the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to promote homeopathy medicines across the country.