MAM
Services sector to grow by 7-7.5%: CII Ascon survey
MUMBAI: Good news for the advertising fraternity! The services sector has continued its steady growth for the period April-June 2003 – says the latest Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)-Ascon Services Sector Survey.
The survey concludes that the services sector is estimated to grow between 7 to 7.5 per cent this year. This, it says, is significant, given the fact that services contribute the largest towards growth of the Indian economy.
The CII Ascon study reveals that cellular phones, construction industry and the hotel industry have posted impressive growth. Out of the eight sectors surveyed, three sectors registered growth in excess of 20 per cent, four sectors registered high growth between 10-20 per cent and only one sector recorded negative growth.
According to the CII-Ascon Survey, the fastest growing sector has been the cellular services sector, which registered a subscriber growth rate of 115 per cent over the period April-June 2003 over April-June 2002.
The CII-Ascon Survey says that the housing finance sector also registered impressive growth. Sanctions of home loans registered 35 per cent growth while disbursements registered a growth of 34 percent in April-June 2003 over April-June 2002.
The construction industry also had a positive growth. The industry recorded a growth of 15 per cent on turnover and an impressive 42.7 per cent on exports.
The tourism industry also maintained a high growth with tourist arrivals increasing by 12 per cent. The industry rallied forcefully after the Iraq war and tourist arrivals are expected to rise up to 15-20 per cent for the next six months. Occupancy in hotels are also expected at 15-20 per cent in the coming months.
The IT industry also maintained a high growth trend. Turnover in hardware registered a growth of 16 per cent while it was 12 per cent during the last year. Sale of personal computers and software recorded a growth of 12 per cent and 20 per cent respectively.
The leasing industry, unfortunately, had a dismal year adds the CII-Ascon report. It fell by 2 per cent and the outlook is negative in the coming months. The CII-Ascon Survey also attributes the reason for the poor showing to the Reserve Bank of India’s restrictive policies, which curtails the growth of NBFC’s (non banking finance corporations) drastically.
MAM
Beacon Group appoints Dr Rajesh Patel as Group CEO
36-year healthcare veteran to lead Beacon Diagnostics, Vector Biotek, Biogeny.
MUMBAI: A new chief, a fresh diagnosis and a sharper prescription for growth. Beacon Group has appointed Dr Rajesh Patel as its Group Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1, 2026, signalling a decisive push to scale its presence in the diagnostics and IVD space. Patel steps into the role with 36 years of experience across the healthcare and diagnostics industry, bringing a career shaped by leadership roles spanning sales, marketing, business development and operational strategy. His mandate is both expansive and precise: to steer the group’s overall strategic direction while tightening coordination across its three core entities Beacon Diagnostics, Vector Biotek and Biogeny Diagnostics.
In practical terms, that means driving cross-company synergies, accelerating market expansion and strengthening organisational capability areas increasingly critical as diagnostic players compete for scale in a fragmented yet rapidly evolving healthcare ecosystem. The group is positioning itself to capture unmet demand across chain laboratories, key accounts and standalone labs, segments that remain underserved despite growing diagnostic needs.
The appointment comes at a time when the In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) sector in India is entering a more competitive and innovation-led phase, with companies focusing not just on product pipelines but also on service delivery, integration and customer-centric models. Beacon’s leadership appears to be betting that Patel’s execution-focused approach can help translate ambition into operational momentum.
Welcoming the appointment, Chairman Dr D K Joshi described Patel’s induction as a strategic move aligned with the group’s long-term vision, emphasising the role of leadership depth in navigating the next phase of growth.
For Beacon Group, the message is clear, in a sector where precision matters, leadership is the new differentiator—and this appointment is intended to set the tone for what comes next.
