To the Members,
Your Directors have pleasure in presenting before you the forty-eighth
Annual Report of the Company together with the Audited Financial Statements of the Company
for the year ended 31 March 2024.
FINANCIAL RESULTS
The performance during the period ended 31 March 2024 has been as
under:
Rs. in Crores
Particulars |
Standalone |
Consolidated |
|
2023-24 |
2022-23 |
2023-24 |
2022-23 |
Total revenue |
4343.99 |
4126.25 |
4470.21 |
4217.74 |
Profit before depreciation/amortisation, finance costs and
tax |
240.22 |
182.99 |
225.28 |
183.12 |
Less: Finance costs |
|
|
|
|
- Finance cost on financial liabilities measured at amortised
cost |
10.32 |
13.83 |
10.33 |
13.85 |
- Other finance cost |
17.39 |
15.32 |
17.57 |
15.59 |
Less: Depreciation and amortization |
122.15 |
119.44 |
124.39 |
121.50 |
Profit /(Loss) before Tax |
90.36 |
34.40 |
72.99 |
32.18 |
Less: Current tax |
17.42 |
0.26 |
18.57 |
0.34 |
Less: Deferred tax (net) |
4.06 |
16.90 |
4.06 |
16.90 |
Profit/(loss) after tax |
68.88 |
17.24 |
50.36 |
14.94 |
Other comprehensive income / (loss) |
|
|
|
|
Items that will not to be classified to profit or loss - |
|
|
|
|
- Re measurements of defined benefit plan |
0.89 |
2.85 |
0.66 |
2.85 |
- Income tax relating to items that will not be reclassified
to profit or loss |
(0.22) |
(0.72) |
(0.22) |
(0.72) |
Items that will reclassified to profit or loss - |
|
|
|
|
- Exchange differences in translating the financial
statements of foreign operations |
|
|
(0.66) |
2.14 |
- Income tax relating to items that will be reclassified to
profit or loss |
|
|
|
|
Other comprehensive income/(loss) |
0.67 |
2.13 |
(0.22) |
4.27 |
Total comprehensive income for the year |
69.55 |
19.37 |
50.14 |
19.21 |
Consolidated figure includes standalone figure and figure of Global
Appliances & Automotive Limited (GAAL), a wholly owned subsidiary company, Thai
Automotive and Appliances Pte. Ltd. (TAAL), a step-down subsidiary company, and IFB
Refrigeration Limited, an Associate Company.
OPERATIONS - Standalone
Your company completed year 2023-24 on a marginal increase of 5.28 % on
revenue terms, and earned PBT of Rs. 90.36 Crores. The net revenue from operations grew by
5.06 % to Rs. 4311.68 Crores. The profit before depreciation, finance
cost and tax as compared to last year increased by 31.27% to Rs. 240.22 Crores. Increase
in PBDIT is largely on account of reduction in material cost.
OPERATIONS - Consolidated
Net revenue from operations on consolidated basis increased by 5.79% to
Rs. 4437.84 Crores. Profit before depreciation, finance cost and tax on consolidated basis
as compared to last year increased by 23.02% to Rs. 225.28 Crores.
DIVIDEND
Your Directors have decided not to recommend any dividend for the
financial year under review to conserve resources for working capital, capital expenditure
projects, acquisition etc.
TRANSFER TO RESERVE
The company does not propose to transfer any amount to Reserve.
MANAGEMENT DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS REPORT
As required under SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure
Requirements) Regulations, 2015, hereinafter "LODR Regulations, 2015". The
Management Discussion and Analysis Report is enclosed as a part of this report.
CHANGE IN THE NATURE OF BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
During the year under review, there is no change in the nature of the
business operations of the Company.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND SHAREHOLDERS INFORMATION
Your Company has always taken adequate steps to adhere to all the
stipulations laid down in LODR Regulations, 2015. A report on Corporate Governance is
included as a part of this Annual Report. Certificate from the Statutory Auditors of the
company M/s. Deloitte Haskins & Sells, Chartered Accountants (Firm Registration No.
302009E), confirming the compliance with the conditions of Corporate Governance as
stipulated under LODR Regulations, 2015 is included as a part of this report.
LISTING WITH STOCK EXCHANGES
The Company confirms that it has paid the Annual Listing Fee for the
year 2024-25 to NSE, BSE & CSE where the Company's Shares are listed. The company
applied for delisting of its shares from CSE which is pending before them.
DEMATERIALISATION OF SHARES
98.43% of the company's paid-up Equity Share Capital is in
dematerialized form as on 31 March, 2024 and balance 1.57% is in physical form. The
Company's Registrars is M/s. C.B. Management Services Pvt. Ltd., having their registered
office at P-22, Bondel Road, Kolkata - 700 019. The entire shareholding of the promoters'
and promoters' group are in dematerialized form.
NUMBER OF BOARD MEETINGS HELD
The Board of Directors duly met eight times during the financial year
from 01 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. The dates on which the meetings were held are as
follows :
24 April 2023, 27 May 2023, 28 July 2023, 02 November
2023, 15 January 2024, 25 January 2024, 1 February 2024 and 30 March
2024.
DIRECTORS AND KEY MANAGERIAL PERSONNEL (KMP)
Mr. Bijon Bhushan Nag (DIN: 00756995), Founder and Chairman of the
Company passed away on 28th January, 2024.
Mr. P. H. Narayanan (DIN: 10158148) was appointed as Managing Director
- Engineering Division of the Company for a period of three years with effect from 23rd
November, 2023 and the same was approved by the shareholders of the company through Postal
Ballot.
Mr. Bikramjit Nag (DIN: 00827155), was redesignated and appointed as
Chairman of the company with effect from 1st February, 2024 till 31st October, 2027 and
the same was approved by the shareholders of the Company through Postal Ballot.
Mr. Prabir Chatterjee (DIN: 02662511), Director & CFO retired
w.e.f. 1st April, 2024.
Mr. Harsh Sachdev (DIN: 06385288), had resigned as MD & CEO -
Engineering Division with effect from 24th July, 2023. Mr. Rajshankar Ray (DIN: 03498696)
retires by rotation and being eligible offers himself for reappointment.
Mr. Sudip Banerjee (DIN: 05245757) retires by rotation and being
eligible offers himself for reappointment.
Mr. Soumitra Goswami has been appointed as Interim CFO w.e.f 1st April
2024.
Mr. Ritesh Agarwal appointed as Company Secretary and Compliance
Officer of the company w.e.f. 1st June 2023. Brief particulars and expertise of the
director seeking re- appointment together with their other Directorship and Committee
membership have been given in the annexure to the notice of the Annual General Meeting.
Apart from the above, there is no other change in KMP of the Company.
DIRECTORS RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT
Pursuant to Section 134(5) of the Companies Act, 2013, Directors of
your Company hereby state and confirm that:
a) in the preparation of the annual accounts for the year ended 31st
March 2024, the applicable accounting standards have been followed along with proper
explanation relating to material departures;
b) they have selected such accounting policies and applied them
consistently and made judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent so as to
give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company at the end of the
financial year and of the profit of the company for the same period;
c) they have taken proper and sufficient care for the maintenance of
adequate accounting records in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013
for safeguarding the assets of the company and for preventing and detecting fraud and
other irregularities;
d) they have prepared the annual accounts on a going concern basis;
e) they have laid down internal financial controls in the company that
are adequate and were operating effectively.
f) they have devised proper systems to ensure compliance with the
provisions of all applicable laws and these are adequate and are operating effectively.
DECLARATION BY INDEPENDENT DIRECTORS
All the Independent Directors have submitted a declaration that each of
them meets the criteria of independence as provided in Section 149(6) of the Companies
Act, 2013 along with Rules framed thereunder and Regulation 16(1)(b) of the SEBI LODR
Regulations. In the opinion of the Board there has been no change in the circumstances
affecting their status as independent directors of the Company. The Independent Directors
have also confirmed the compliance pertaining to their enrolment with the databank of the
independent directors maintained by The Institute of Corporate Affairs in terms of Rule 6
of the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014. The declaration
was placed and noted by the Board in its meeting held on 28th May, 2024.
REMUNERATION POLICY
A Nomination and Remuneration Policy has been formulated pursuant to
the provisions of Section 178 and other applicable provisions of the Companies Act, 2013
and rules there to and Regulation 19 of SEBI (LODR) Regulation 2015 stating therein the
Company's policy on Directors/ Key Managerial Personnel/ other employees'
appointment and remuneration by the Nomination and Remuneration
Committee and approved by the Board of Directors. The said policy may be referred to on
company's website at www.ifeindustries.com/Legal/Policies. As part of the policy, the
Company strives to ensure that the level and composition of remuneration is reasonable and
sufficient to attract, retain and motivate Directors / KMPs of the quality required to run
the company successfully; Relationship between remuneration and performance is clear and
meets appropriate performance benchmarks.
ANNUAL EVALUATION OF BOARD'S PERFORMANCE
The Board of Directors has carried out an annual evaluation of its own
performance, board committees, and individual directors pursuant to the provisions of the
Act and SEBI LODR Regulations, 2015.
The performance of the board was evaluated by the Board after seeking
inputs from all the directors on the basis of criteria such as the board composition and
structure, effectiveness of board processes, information and functioning etc.
The performance of the committees was evaluated by the Board after
seeking inputs from the committee members on the basis of criteria such as the composition
of committees, effectiveness of committee meetings etc.
In a separate meeting of Independent Directors, performance of
Non-Independent Directors, the Board as a whole and Chairman of the Company was evaluated,
taking into account the views of executive directors and non-executive Directors.
Nomination and Remuneration Committee also in a separate meeting
reviewed the performance of the individual Directors and the Board as a whole. In the
Board meeting the performance of the Board, its committees, and individual Directors were
also discussed.
AUDIT COMMITTEE
The Board has constituted an Audit Committee, the details pertaining to
the composition of the audit committee are included in the report on Corporate Governance.
There has been no instance during the year where recommendations of the Audit Committee
were not accepted by the board.
AUDITORS' REPORT
The notes on Financial Statements referred to in the Auditor's Report
are self-explanatory and do not call for any further explanation. During the year under
review, the Auditors did not report any matter under Section 143(12) of the Act, therefore
no detail is required to be disclosed under Section 134(3)(ca) of the Act.
STATUTORY AUDITORS
At 43rd Annual General Meeting held on 26 July 2019 the shareholders of
the company reappointed M/s. Deloitte Haskins & Sells (Firm Registration No.:
302009E), Chartered Accountants as the Auditors of the Company for the second term of five
consecutive years from the conclusion of 43rd Annual General Meeting till the conclusion
of 48th Annual General Meeting. As the 2nd term of appointment of M/s. Deloitte Haskins
& Sells will be completed with the conclusion of 48th Annual General Meeting of the
Company, it is proposed to appoint M/s. Price Waterhouse & Co Chartered Accountants
LLP (Firm Registration No.: 304026E/ E-300009)as Statutory Auditors of the company for a
period of five years from the conclusion of 48th Annual General Meeting of the company
till the conclusion of 53rd Annual General Meeting of the company. Accordingly, a
resolution seeking approval of members for above appointment of Statutory Auditors is
provided in the Notice to the ensuing Annual General Meeting.
COST AUDITORS
Your Board has appointed M/s. Shome & Banerjee, Cost Accountants as
Cost Auditors of the Company for conducting cost audit for the financial year 2024-25.
Accordingly, a resolution seeking approval of the members for ratifying the remuneration
payable to the Cost Auditors for Financial Year 2024-25 is provided in the Notice to the
ensuing Annual General Meeting.
COSTRECORDS
The Cost accounts and records as required to be maintained under
Section 148(1) of the Act are duly made and maintained by the Company.
SECRETARIAL AUDIT
The provision of Section 204 read with Section 134(3) of the Companies
Act, 2013 mandates Secretarial Audit of the Company to be done from the financial year
commencing on or after 1 April 2014 by a Company Secretary in Practice. The board in its
meeting held on 30 March 2024 appointed Mr. Sankar Kumar Patnaik, Practising Company
Secretary (Certificate of Practice no. 7177) as the Secretarial Auditor for the financial
year ended 31 March 2024.
According to the provision of section 204 of the Companies Act, 2013
read with Rule 9 of the Companies (Appointment and Remuneration of Managerial Personnel)
Rules, 2014, the
Secretarial Audit Report submitted by Company Secretary in Practice is
appended as Annexure-A, which forms part of this report. The observations of the
Secretarial Auditor are self-explanatory in nature and does not call for any further
explanation.
SECRETARIAL STANDARDS
The Company has in place proper system to ensure compliance with the
provisions of the applicable Secretarial Standards issued by The Institute of Company
Secretaries of India and such systems are adequate and operating effectively.
CONSERVATION OF ENERGY, TECHNOLOGY ABSORPTION, FOREIGN EXCHANGE
EARNINGS AND OUTGO
Information required under section 134(3)(m) of the Companies Act, 2013
read with Rule 8 of the Companies (Accounts) Rules, 2014, is appended as Annexure-B,
which forms part of this report.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR)
In terms of section 135 and Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013,
the Board of Directors of your Company constituted a CSR Committee. The Committee
comprises independent director, non-executive director and executive director. CSR
Committee of the Board has developed a CSR Policy which has been uploaded on the website
of the Company at www.iftindustries.com. Your company has identified the activities
covering mainly relating to (a) Promoting Education, (b) Promoting Health Care and (c)
Skill Development Programme in line with the CSR policy of the Company. The company made
an expenditure of Rs. 39.37 lacs against the budgeted amount of Rs. 27.64 lacs. The
complete disclosure on CSR activities in terms of Rule 8 of the Companies (Corporate
Social Responsibility Policy) Rules, 2014 is appended as Annexure-C, which forms
part of this report.
VIGIL MECHANISM
In pursuant to the provisions of section 177(9) & (10) of the
Companies Act, 2013, a Vigil Mechanism for directors and employees to report genuine
concerns has been established. The Vigil Mechanism Policy has been uploaded on the website
of the Company at www.iftindustries.com.
CONTRACTS AND ARRANGEMENTS WITH RELATED PARTIES
All contracts/ arrangements/ transactions entered by the company during
the financial year with related parties were in ordinary course of business and on an
arm's length basis. During the year, the company has not entered into any contract /
arrangement / transaction with related parties which could be considered material in
accordance with the policy of the company on materiality of related party transaction,
which is required to be reported in Form No. AOC-2 in terms of Section 134(3)(h) read with
Section 188 of the Act. The policy on materiality of related party transaction and on
dealing with related party transaction as approved by the board may accessed on company's
website at www. iftindustries.com. There were no material significant related party
transactions which could have potential conflict with interest of the Company at
large.Your directors draw attention of members to note 37 to the Financial Statements
which set out related party disclosures.As required under the Companies Act, 2013, the
prescribed Form AOC- 2 is appended as Annexure - D, which forms part of this
report.
ANNUAL RETURN
In compliance with Section 92(3) and Section 134(3)(a) of the Act read
with Companies (Management and Administration) Amendment Rules, 2020, the Annual Return
for FY 2023-24 in the prescribed format has been placed at the Company's website at
www.iftindustries.com.
PARTICULARS OF LOANS, GUARANTEES OR INVESTMENTS
The particulars of Loans, Guarantees or Investments covered under the
provisions of Section 186 of the Companies Act, 2013 are given in the notes to the
Financial Statements of the Company.
REMUNERATION RATIO OF THE DIRECTORS / KEY MANAGERIAL PERSONNEL (KMP) /
EMPLOYEES
The information required pursuant to Section 197 of the Companies Act,
2013 read with Rule 5 of The Companies (Appointment and Remuneration of Managerial
Personnel) Rules, 2014 is appended as Annexure-E, which forms part of this report.
The number of permanent employees on the role of the Company as on 31
March 2024 is 2435.
The statement showing the name of top ten employees in terms of
remuneration drawn and other particulars of employees employed throughout the year and in
receipt of remuneration of Rs. 1.02 crore or more per annum and employees employed for
part of the year and in receipt of remuneration of Rs. 8.5 lacs or more per month, as
required under Section 197(12) of the Companies Act, 2013, read with Rule 5 of the
Companies (Appointment and Remuneration of Managerial Personnel) Rules, 2014, forming part
of this report and is available on the website of the Company, at www.iftindustries.com.
In terms of Section 136 of the Act, the said annexure is open for
inspection and any member interested in obtaining a copy of the same may write to the
Company to email id: investors@liftglobal.com.
BUSINESS RESPONSIBILITY AND SUSTAINABILITY REPORT
In conformance to the requirements of the clause (f) of sub- regulation
(2) of regulation 34 of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Listing Regulations,
the Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report for financial year 2023-2024 is
appended as Annexure-F, which forms part of this report.
DIVIDEND DISTRIBUTION POLICY
The Board of Directors of IFB Industries Limited at its meeting held on
May 29, 2018 has adopted this Dividend Distribution Policy (the "Policy") as
required by Regulation 43A of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements)
Regulations, 2015 is available at your Company website at www.iftindustries.com.
DEPOSITS
During the year under review, your company has not accepted any
deposits from the public/members u/s 73 of the Companies Act, 2013 read with the Companies
(Acceptance of Deposits) Rules during the year. There is no deposit outstanding as on
date.
SHARE CAPITAL
During the year under review, no new shares were issued by the Company,
therefore there was no change in the Issued and Paid-up Share Capital of the Company.
SIGNIFICANT AND MATERIAL ORDERS PASSED BY THE REGULATORS OR COURTS
There has been no significant and material orders passed by the
Regulators/ Courts/ Tribunals which would impact the going concerns status of the Company
and its future operations.
MATERIAL CHANGES AND COMMITMENTS, IF ANY, AFFECTING THE FINANCIAL
POSITION OF THE COMPANY WHICH HAVE OCCURRED BETWEEN THE
END OF THE FINANCIAL YEAR OF THE COMPANY TO WHICH THE FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS RELATE AND THE DATE OF THE REPORT
There has been no material changes and commitments have occurred after
the closure of the year till the date of this Report, which affect the financial position
of the Company.
However, on 14th May 24, CRISIL rating has reaffirmed the "CRISIL
AA - / Stable" (pronounced as CRISIL double A minus rating) for long term debts &
revised the outlook from "Negative" to "Stable".
DISCLOSURE UNDER SEXUAL HARASSMENT
OF WOMEN AT WORKPLACE (PREVENTION,
PROHIBITION & REDRESSAL) ACT, 2013
As per the requirement of Sexual Harassment of Women at workplace
(Prevention, Prohibition & Redressal) Act, 2013, your Company has in place a Policy
for Prevention of Sexual Harassment of Women at Work Place and constituted Internal
Complaints Committees. No compliant has been raised during the year ended 31 March, 2024.
DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A RISK MANAGEMENT POLICY
The Board of Directors of the Company already formed a Risk Management
Committee to frame, implement and monitor the risk management plan for the Company. The
Committee is monitoring and reviewing the risk management plan and ensuring its
effectiveness.
Risk management is the process of minimizing or mitigating the risk. It
starts with the identification and evaluation of risk followed by optimal use of resources
to monitor and minimize the same. The company is exposed to several risks. They can be
categorized as operational risk and strategic risk. The company has taken several
mitigating actions, applied many strategies and introduced control and reporting systems
to reduce and mitigate those risks.
Appropriate structures are in place to proactively monitor and manage
the inherent risks in businesses with unique/ relatively high-risk profiles.
An independent Internal Audit function carries out risk focused audits
across all business, enabling identification of areas where risk management processes may
need to be strengthened. The Audit committee of the board reviews internal audit findings
on risk and provides strategic guidance on internal controls.
FAMILARISATION PROGRAMME FOR INDEPENDENT DIRECTORS
To familiarize the Independent Directors with the strategy, operations
and functions of your company, the executive directors/ senior managerial employees make
presentation to the Independent Directors about the company's strategy, operations,
product and service offerings, markets, finance, quality etc. Independent Directors are
also visiting factories and branch offices to familiarise themselves with the operations
of the company and to offer their specialized knowledge for improvement of the performance
of the Company.
Further, at the time of appointment of an independent director, the
company issues a formal letter of appointment outlining his/ her role, function, duties
and responsibilities as a director. The format of the letter of appointment is available
at the Company website at www.iftmdustries. com.
INSOLVENCY AND BANKRUPTCY CODE
No application has been made under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code;
hence the requirement to disclose the details of application made or any proceeding
pending under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 during the year along with their
status as at the end of the financial year is not applicable.
GENERAL
Your Directors state that no disclosure or reporting is required in
respect of the following matters as there were no transactions on these matters during the
year under review :
Neither the Managing Director nor the Whole-time Directors of
the Company receive any remuneration or commission from any of its subsidiaries.
There was no instance of any settlement with any Bank or
Financial Institution.
No significant or material orders were passed by the Regulators
or Courts or Tribunals which impact the going concern status and Company's operations in
future.
SUBSIDIARY / ASSOCIATE COMPANIES
IFB Industries Limited, has one wholly owned subsidiary company Global
Automotive & Appliances Pte Ltd. (GAAL), one step down subsidiary Thai Automotive and
Appliances Ltd. ( TAAL) and one Associate company IFB Refrigeration Limited.
Wholly Owned Subsidiary Global Automotive & Appliances Pte Ltd.
(GAAL) and step-down subsidiary Thai Automotive and Appliances Ltd. (TAAL)
IFB Industries Ltd. acquired 100% equity shares of GAAL during July
2017. GAAL holds 100% equity holding in TAAL. GAAL acts as a special purpose vehicle for
further investment in TAAL. GAAL is also engaged in trading of Electronics Parts and
semiconductors and other commodities. TAAL is engaged in the business of Fine Blanking and
Conventional Blanking and its acquisition helps IFB to consolidate its position in similar
type of business in Thailand.
GAAL
During the year under review, GAAL has achieved a revenue of US$ 7.91.
million which is a 46% growth as compared to 5.41 million US $ achieved during 2022-23.
During the year the company made a PBT of US$ 0.82 million which is 10.23% of revenue as
compared to US$ 0.11 million which is 1.98% of revenue, achieved during 2022-23.
TAAL
During the year under review, TAAL has achieved turnover of 268.65
million THB, which is a 26% growth as compared to 213.13 million THB achieved during
2022-23. During the year the company registered a profit of 2.66 million THB at PBT level
as compared to a loss of 2.19 million made during 2022-23.
IFB Refrigeration Limited
During FY 2022-23, your Company invested an amount of INR 97 crores
(Rupees Ninety-Seven Crores Only) in Equity shares of IFB Refrigeration Limited. Your
Company's shareholding in IFB Refrigeration Limited as on 31st March, 2024 comes to
41.40%.
Consolidated financial statements of the company and its subsidiaries
and Associate have been prepared in accordance with Section 129(3) of the Companies Act,
2013. Further, the report on the performance and financial position of the subsidiary
companies in the prescribed form AOC-1 is appended as Annexure-G, which forms part
of this report. In accordance with Section 136 of the Companies Act, 2013, the audited
financial statements, including the Consolidated financial statements and related
information of the company and financial statement of the subsidiary companies will be
available on our website www.iftindustries.com. These documents will also be available for
inspection during business hours at the corporate office of company.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
Directors take this opportunity to express their thanks to various
departments of the Central and State Government, Bankers, Customers and Shareholders for
their continued support.
The Directors wish to place on record their appreciation for the
dedicated efforts put in by the Employees of the Company at all level.
For and on behalf of the Board of Directors |
Bikramjit Nag |
Place : Kolkata |
(DIN: 00827155) |
Date : 28th May 2024 |
Chairman |