Date:08/06/2004 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2004/06/08/stories/2004060802080200.htm

Back Dabur India fixes record date for pharma co shares

Sindhu J. Bhattacharya

New Delhi , June 7

DABUR India Ltd (DIL) on Monday said it has fixed the record date for paying final dividend to its shareholders as well as for issuing shares of Dabur Pharma on June 22. However, the issue of getting Dabur Pharma Ltd (DPL) listed on the stock exchanges is still hanging fire as it awaits a nod from the market regulator, SEBI. Thus, while DIL shareholders will receive the final dividend and Dabur Pharma shares as per the record date, there is no clarity yet on when DPL shares may be traded on the bourses.

Last October, Dabur Pharma was demerged into a separate company so that DIL could focus on the FMCG business exclusively. Under a scheme of arrangement, the Delhi High Court had allowed the demerger, so that each existing shareholder of Dabur India would get one share of Dabur Pharma for every two DIL shares held.

However, since the demerger had been so executed that the shareholding of Dabur Pharma was to be replicated in DPL, the new company ended up with slightly over a 78 per cent promoter stake. This violates a SEBI stipulation that every new company being created must have at least 25 per cent non-promoter stake, and the market watchdog is yet to take a decision on Dabur India's application seeking waiver of this mandatory non-promoter holding limit.

When contacted, a Dabur India spokesperson confirmed that June 22 has been fixed as the record date for dividend payout and issue of Dabur Pharma shares to shareholders of Dabur India but declined to make any further comments on the issue.

Sources pointed out that the application of DIL to waive the mandatory non-promoter shareholding condition is pending with SEBI since this January. They said DIL has assured the market regulator that it would bring down the promoter holding in Dabur Pharma to 75 per cent within three months of listing the company, but has not heard from SEBI on the matter as yet.

As on March 31, 2004, the aggregate promoter holding in Dabur India stands at 78.21 per cent. In July 2002 itself, Dabur India had initiated restructuring to separate the pharmaceutical business from Dabur India, on the recommendations of management consultancy, Accenture. The demerger of DPL into a separate company is effective from April 1, 2003.