
Two Sharp with ET: World Bank flags slowest growth since 2008; India to tighten grip on q-comm
In today's edition of Two Sharp with ET, Nisha Poddar breaks down the two biggest updates in the world of business today. The World Bank has slashed its global growth forecast to 2.3% for 2025 — the slowest pace since 2008 — citing rising trade tensions driven by Trump-era tariffs and policy uncertainty. Meanwhile, in India, the government is stepping up scrutiny of the booming quick commerce sector. The FSSAI will lead surprise inspections of dark stores amid mounting food safety concerns and complaints about unhygienic conditions. Top players like Blinkit, Swiggy, and Zomato are under the scanner. With more users and orders, the government is tightening oversight on both food safety and misleading digital practices
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(Catch all the Business News, Breaking News, Budget 2025 Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.) Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the ET ePaper online.


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India.com
2 hours ago
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Who owns Delhi's iconic Connaught Place? Monthly rent of shops here is Rs...
Connaught Place (File) The Connaught Place is arguably one of the most iconic markets in Delhi, its British-era architecture standing out amidst the bustling modern skyscrapers in India's national capital. The Connaught Place, adoring called 'CP' by Delhiites, is home to everything from banks, bookshops, high-end cafes and restaurants, along with brand outlets of almost every top Indian and global one could imagine. But have you ever wondered who actually owns Connaught Place, and how much rent is paid by the decades-old shops and retails outlets which are housed here? Let us delve into some amazing facts about the historic place, some of which will certainly leave you stunned. Who owns Connaught Place? Well, technically, the 'real' owner of Connaught Place is the Government of India, but there's a catch, a really big one. Beneath is overt government ownership, there are scores of lease deeds, family inheritances, and rental agreements dating as far back as the British era, which dilute the state's practical ownership of Connaught Place. According to various reports, several buildings at Connaught Place were leased out during the British rule, and surprisingly some of these leases still hold today, and will hold for the foreseeable future. Thus many shops here still pay rents that have not been revised for decades, due to the terms mentioned in those lease agreements. As per a News18 reports, some pay monthly rent as low as Rs 100, which is unprecedented for a prime site like Connaught Place, where even the smallest shops would pay lakhs in monthly rent, according to modern real-estate prices. Reports suggest that some wily individuals built thriving real estate empires by leasing dozens of shops during the British era, and their families and heirs are now reaping the lucrative benefits of those investments. While the practice could be called unethical, but its completely legal, thus leaving little room for modern-day governments to act without drastically changing real-estate laws. Connaught Place monthly rent However, apart from those ancient lease agreements, Connaught Place is one of the country's most expensive retail locations today, with monthly rent ranging between Rs 300 to Rs 700 per square foot, depending on the Block. But many businesses still pay monthly rents that have not been revised since 1947, thanks to the Old Delhi Rent Control Act, allowing tenants– which are often multinational chains and national banks– to rake in massive profits. As per an Economic Times report, Connaught Place saw a 33% year-on-year rise in high street retail rent in 2023.