'Why is this quiet news?" Anupam Mittal on Mukesh Ambani's Reliance laying off 42,000 employees

Shark Tank India judge Anupam Mittal, in a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), raised questions about Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries laying off over 42,000 employees in FY24.

"42k? Why is this ‘quiet news’?" Mittal asked, adding, "Should be raising serious alarm bells across the economic & political circles".

42k? Why is this ‘quiet news’? Should be raising serious alarm bells across the economic & political circles 🤷🏻 https://t.co/L0XP0nnzHu

— Anupam Mittal (@AnupamMittal) August 10, 2024

According to the company’s annual report, Reliance had a workforce of 389,414 employees in FY23, which has now decreased to 347,362 employees in FY24.

Reliance Retail was the most affected, with its headcount dropping from 245,581 in FY23 to 207,552 in FY24.

It's worth noting that Reliance Retail makes up nearly 60% of the entire Reliance conglomerate's employee base.

Netizens reaction

Since it was shared, Mittal's post has garnered over 422,000 views and more than 9,800 likes

"It was mostly from Retail, mostly part-time or contract employees depending on need. They added 1.7 lakh in other areas. Maybe they are bringing in changes. Why does it need political attention though? It's their business decision," a user wrote.

what i mean is that if our largest cos are cutting down people, the job situation gets much worse. We already need 8-10 m net new jobs a year. Not suggesting they need to take it up with Reliance but rather that we need a bold plan that works

— Anupam Mittal (@AnupamMittal) August 10, 2024

"Its never ia business decision, comapny in India or  anywhere in  other countries, they can’t layoff when they want," another wrote. 

Not about Reliance but more about the state of the economy

The stock market and premium segment growth has been hiding the real pain in the bottom 80%

— Bubblehead (@bejoosy) August 10, 2024