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The DS Group (Dharampal Satyapal Group) is an Indian multinational corporation and an FMCG conglomerate. Founded in 1929 and headquartered in Noida, the group has diversified into mouth fresheners, food and beverages, confectioneries, agriculture, and luxury retail.

Leadership

The group is owned and managed by Ravinder Kumar and Rajiv Kumar, third-generation entrepreneurs from the founding family.

History

The DS Group, founded in 1929 by Shri Dharampal Sugandhi in Chandni Chowk, Delhi, started as a perfumery business producing agarbattis, rose water, and tobacco. In 1958, Shri Satyapal Sugandhi launched the BABA tobacco brand, marking the company’s expansion.

The group diversified into food and beverages with brands like 'Catch Salt & Pepper' (1987) and 'Catch Natural Spring Water' (1999). Confectionery products such as Rajnigandha, Pass Pass, and Pulse candy further boosted its market presence.

In 2019, the group ventured into luxury with a stake in the Lalique Group, and in 2023, it introduced Swiss chocolate brand Läderach to India while acquiring LuvIt chocolates. Today, the DS Group spans diverse sectors, including food, beverages, agriculture, and luxury.

Presence

The corporate headquarters of DS Group are situated in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The DS Group Headquarters (DSHQ), located in the National Capital Region (NCR), contains the company's main office, a research and development center, and manufacturing facilities for producing candies, flavors, fragrances, as well as edible gold and silver decorations.

In 2022, the group's headquarters was awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification under the US Green Building Council (USGBC). In the next year, the company attained net zero carbon status by achieving LEED Zero Carbon Certification of USGBC.

Corporate museum

DS Group Headquarters has a museum called "The Journey" that showcases its legacy and honors the founders. It is divided into five sections and offers an experiential museum experience.

CSR

Water Conservation

In 2018, the DS Group started the Water Economic Zone (WEZ) project in Udaipur, Rajasthan. The project aimed to manage natural resources such as water and soil. For the WEZ project, the DS Group received an award from Union Tribal Affairs Minister, Arjun Munda, in the category of Environment Sustainability at the 20th FICCI CSR Awards. In this project, approximately 11,000 hectares of land in the Alsigarh and Kurabad areas of Udaipur district in Rajasthan were modified. Over 900 structures for rainwater collection were erected by the coorperation. This allowed irrigation on 2,300 hectares of land.

Education

DS Group launched a project called Creativity Adda in partnership with Shikshantar Andolan; its stated goal was to promote skill-based education for students in an all-boys government-aided school (grades 6–12) in Darya Ganj, Old Delhi. This project was developed in collaboration with Commercial School and DS Group. The project has an "unschool" attend-daily from 2–5 p.m.

SaluteTheFarmHER

In 2023, DS Group launched the SaluteTheFarmHER campaign, a project aimed at highlighting the role of women in agriculture. The initiative was conceived by Grapes and officially launched on International Women's Day in March 2023.

Controversies

Plastic ban violation

In 2011, the Supreme Court of India issued a contempt notice to DS Group for violating its order against using plastic sachets to sell products. The company attempted to bypass the Supreme Court's ban on selling products in plastic pouches by falsely labeling them as "only for export", despite being sold domestically at a price of ₹6.

Tax evasion

In 2015, officials from the Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence conducted searches at 25 locations of DS Group's companies across several states, based on gathered intelligence. The investigation revealed that fake invoices for declared goods, labeled as "sandalwood compound or oil", were issued to Messrs Dharampal Satyapal Limited through dummy factories in the Haridwar–Roorkee area, Kanpur, and Lucknow. Owners of these dummy supplier firms admitted to generating bills for DSL on a commission basis without manufacturing or obtaining clearance for declared goods. Allegedly, DS Group evaded taxes by claiming inadmissible Cenvat credit, totaling ₹90 crore (US$10 million).

In 2019, the company was involved in a ₹900 crore (US$100 million) scam, which revolved around the avoidance of value-added tax (VAT) on tobacco products. As per the state Criminal Investigation Department, the directors of Dharmpal Satyapal Limited and the Gujarat trade were implicated in importing gutka and other tobacco products into the state without proper documentation, selling them in the market, and thereby avoiding the payment of VAT.

Sealing of Guwahati factory

In 2022, the Mumbai Crime Branch closed down the company's Guwahati facility after discovering that the Pan masala produced by the company in Guwahati was discovered in the possession of a dealer in Solapur (Maharashtra), where the manufacturing, selling, and storage of Pan masala are prohibited. But, within a fortnight, the factory was de-sealed as per the Guwahati High Court order.

Litigations

In 2016, the Supreme Court imposed a fine of ₹4 crore (US$460,000) to Dharampal Satyapal Limited for breaching commitments and causing delays in resolving a 2009 tax dispute. DSL contested a ₹244 crore (US$28 million) tax demand related to Central Excise Duty, briefly applied to the Settlement Commission without reaching an agreement, faced a dismissal of its petition by the Delhi High Court, and sought relief from the Supreme Court in 2013, securing a stay order against the tax demand.

References

1. "Milk, Pan Masala & Catch-22: DS Group & Its Sugar-coated FMCG Gambit". Forbes India. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
2. "DS Group partners with Swiss luxury chocolate brand Läderach". Afaqs.
3. Roy, Sidhartha (August 30, 2009). "'Catch'-ing the right solutions". HindustanTimes.
4. "DS Group eyes 20-24% revenue growth this fiscal". Business Standard. December 4, 2016.
5. Matharu, Sonal (March 12, 2022). "Inside story of how billionaires of big-brand pan masala industry got around an ad ban". ThePrint.
6. "DS Group to expand cold chain channel". The Tribune. October 19, 2015.
7. "The Pashas Of Luxury". BusinessWorld. November 8, 2014.
8. THOMAS, PRINCE MATHEWS (April 29, 2014). "Can DS Group Diversify Beyond Tobacco Like ITC Did?". Forbes India.
9. "Candy Rush: How Pulse Got It Right". Forbes India.
10. DS Group - About Us
11. Financial Express - DS Group to focus on premium products
12. Business Standard - Catch Spring Water: A trusted name in Himalayan water
13. Economic Times - Pulse candy revenue crosses Rs 300 crore mark in 2 years
14. DS Group acquires stake in Lalique Group
15. Business Today - DS Group brings Läderach chocolates to India
16. DS Group - Expansion Initiatives
17. "Dharampal Satyapal group's headquarters gets LEED award for green building". India Today. March 28, 2022.
18. "FMCG firm DS Group awarded with LEED certification for green building". cnbctv18.com. April 12, 2022.
19. "Dharampal Satyapal group's headquarters gets LEED award for green building". India Today.
20. "Green initiatives: FMCG firm DS Group awarded with LEED certification for sustainable biz practices". TimesNow. March 25, 2022.
21. "'The Journey' corporate museum in Noida brings 88 year old legacy to life". NYOOOZ.
22. Surana, Shashank (September 2, 2016). "Corporate museums showcase history of brands". The Asian Age.
23. "DS Group – Corporate Museum". mgsarchitecture.in.
24. ^ "DS Group wins FICCI CSR Award in environment sustainability". India Today. December 30, 2022. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
25. "DS Group's Water Conservation Projects in Rajasthan improves Ground Water level phenomenally". udaipurtimes.com (in Hindi). March 21, 2020.
26. Jain, Manish. "Welcome To The Creativity Adda". BW Businessworld. Archived from the original on February 22, 2016.
27. "DS Group launches #SaluteTheFarmHER initiative to recognize contributions of female farmers". The Times of India. April 4, 2023. ISSN 0971-8257.
28. "SC fury hits Rajnigandha pan masala co". The Indian Express. May 11, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
29. "Rajnigandha pan masala maker face alleged tax evasion probe". India Today. December 2, 2015. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
30. "Gujarat: Three held for Rs 900 crore VAT evasion scam". The Times of India. May 1, 2019. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
31. "গুৱাহাটীস্থ DS গ্ৰুপৰ কাৰ্যালয়ত মুম্বাই আৰক্ষীৰ তলা". ETV Bharat News (in Assamese). March 9, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
32. "Assam: Dharampal Satyapal factory at Guwahati to be de-sealed- GHC directs". March 30, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
33. "SC imposes Rs 4 crore fine on makers of Rajnigandha paan masala". Hindustan Times. November 21, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2023.

• Conglomerate companies of India
• Companies based in Noida
• Indian companies established in 1929
• Conglomerate companies established in 1929