RapiPay To Facilitate “Covid-19 Vaccination Search And Registration Through Its Website And App”

RapiPay Fintech, one of the leading assisted payments Fintech companies has reiterated its commitment to the society by facilitating Covid 19 vaccination registration through its agent app and website. Currently, RapiPay’s B2B app has more than 5 Lakhs installs from retailers and merchants.  

RapiPay has used a tool on its website and app that redirects users to Covid vaccination data available on CoWIN website on live basis. Lakhs of RapiPay agents access this app daily to serve crores of customers for payments, AEPS and remittance services. Using the same app, the agents will be able to seamlessly assist their customers to check vaccination availability in their area and accordingly register for the vaccination slot.  

The second wave of COVID-19 has hit the country at a faster pace and to overcome this pandemic, the public at large needs to get vaccinated at the earliest. The government has now opened vaccination drive for 18+ age group population also and has made prior registration and appointment mandatory. 

Commenting on this announcement, Mr. Yogendra Kashyap, CEO, RapiPay said, “In this hour of need, all of us must do our bit to combat this pandemic. Millions of non tech users, especially in the rural markets, might not be able to register on CoWIN or Aarogya setu app on their own. With this initiative, their vaccination registration can be facilitated through our direct business outlets (DBOs) who use RapiPay daily for their business.  We are hopeful that with this facility a lot of people will not crowd the immunization center and help maintain social distance which is the need of the hour.” 

Renault India Extends Free Service & Warranty Period For Its Customers

In line with its commitment to customer satisfaction and in order to mitigate the challenges faced by customers in current times, Renault India has announced extension on Warranty and Periodic Free Service schedules for its customers. 

The extension would be applicable to free service and warranty period expiring between April 1, 2021 and May 31, 2021. These services will be extended up to 31st July 2021. Renault India’s 24X7 roadside assistance continues to ensure support for its customers in case of an emergency.  

COVID-19 is a challenge unlike any other faced by humanity in recent times. In the interest of all Renault employees, dealers and other partners, their families, and the community at large, Renault India has implemented multiple preventive measures across its offices, dealerships and continues to communicate and create awareness among all stakeholders. Renault India has also been sharing regular advisories with its dealer partners as well as directives to comply with the guidelines issued by the local authorities and regulatory bodies.  

Renault is fully committed to offer a safe and hygienic experience to its customers. In order to maintain utmost safety, Renault has significantly enhanced its digital capabilities and portfolios with online booking options and other interventions, providing the best of the services in these challenging times. The digital services include demo through the Renault virtual studio, website booking facility with full payment option, the smart finance calculator through which a customer can apply for and get loan approval online. Additionally, Renault India has tools like The Renault Virtual Assistant (RVA) and MY Renault App for customer convenience. MY Renault App is a customer app widely used by Renault’s existing customers, updating them on all the latest information about Renault. It is also used by prospects to explore Renault’s product range or book one online. 

ABOUT RENAULT  

Renault India Pvt. Ltd. is a fully owned subsidiary of Renault S.A.S. France. Renault India cars are manufactured in the manufacturing facility located in Oragadam, Chennai, with a capacity of 480,000 units per annum. Renault India also has a widespread presence of more than 500 sales and service touchpoints, which include 200+ Workshop On Wheels locations across the country, with benchmark sales and service quality. 

Renault India’s product line up and services have seen strong recognition among customers and industry experts alike, winning more than 60 titles, making Renault India one of the most awarded automotive brands in a single year in India. 

Hero Motocorp To Restart With Staggered Operations In Select Plants From May 17

* More than 90% of employees above the age group of 45 years already vaccinated 

Hero MotoCorp - the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters – is gearing up towards a gradual resumption of operations by starting single shift production at three of its plants – Gurugram and Dharuhera in Haryana and at Haridwar in the northern hill state of Uttarakhand – from Monday, May 17. 

In addition to producing for the domestic market in India, these plants will also have enhanced focus on catering to the Global Business (GB) markets across the world. 

The Company continues to monitor the situation closely and the remaining manufacturing plants and other facilities will also open up gradually. 

Meanwhile, with the ongoing concerted vaccination drive across the organization, more than 90% of Hero MotoCorp employees above the age of 45 have already been vaccinated. 

Strict safety and hygiene protocols are in place at all plant locations and offices in preparation for the gradual resumption of operations. 

Hero MotoCorp had proactively halted the plant operations temporarily in a staggered manner for four days from April 22-May 2, which was then extended till May 16. 

All corporate offices of the company have already been in Work from Home (WFH) mode. 

Facebook Helps People To Fight Misinformation Related To COVID-19

Now more than ever we are working to connect people to accurate sources, and tackle misinformation — especially about COVID-19. We have made significant investments to remove accounts and content that violate our Community Standards or Ad Policies; reduce the distribution of misinformation and false news, and inform people by giving them more context on the posts they see — so people can decide what to read, trust, and share.

During the pandemic, we’ve removed more than 12 million pieces of harmful misinformation on COVID-19 globally from Facebook and Instagram, including falsehoods about approved vaccines. Facebook has put warning labels on over 167 million posts marked as false by third-party fact checkers. When people see warning labels, about 95% of the time they do not go on to view the original content.

We endeavor to give people the tools to make qualified decisions about the information they see online. To support this effort, over the coming weeks we will be rolling out a new campaign in India to educate and inform people about how to detect misinformation related to COVID-19 and encourage them to check the information they receive against an authentic source such as www.mygov.in/covid-19/.  

We have developed 6 easy tips to fight COVID-19 misinformation. These tips will show up on Facebook through a series of creative adverts, and link out to a dedicated microsite, www.fightcovidmisinfo.com/india/. Through the website and the adverts, we will encourage people to 

Get the whole story, not just the headline. 

Look out for a trusted source 

Share  facts, not rumours 

Get the full context from credible sources 

Inform friends and family if they are sharing inaccurate information 

Pause before you share 

The campaign and the website will be rolled out in English and 9 Indian languages - Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Oriya, Malayalam, Marathi, Kannada, Gujarati and Bengali.

Continuing our endeavour to provide accurate and reliable information and resources on COVID-19, Facebook has also initiated a campaign in association with some of the leading doctors of the country. The campaign includes a series of 12 videos where Doctors address the most commonly asked questions on COVID-19. The video series - #DoctorKiSuno - will premiere on https://www.facebook.com/FacebookIndia  and will cover key topics like COVID-19 in children, Diabetes and COVID-19, the mental health impacts of Covid-19 among others.  

Through this COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, we’ll continue working with partners and the community to ensure we’re effectively tackling misinformation. We will give them the resources they need to help spot and challenge the content they are seeing online, and to share accurate information with their friends and family over social media.

Tenable Research Finds Scammers Made Over $10 Million With Fake Cryptocurrency Giveaway Scams

* Scam campaigns around Elon Musk’s appearance on Saturday Night Live compromised dozens of verified Youtube and Twitter accounts

Satnam Narang, Staff Research Engineer at Tenable, the Cyber Exposure company, found dozens of compromised social media accounts that peddled fake cryptocurrency scams in the lead up to SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s appearance on NBC’s Saturday Night Light. Narang estimates that scammers netted over $10 million (USD) between May 7-9. Narang’s analysis revealed that scammers stole over $9.4 million in Dogecoin, $609,000 Bitcoin and at least $423,000 Ethereum.

Popular YouTube account Wave Music Bhojpuri, a channel with 18.9 million subscribers, was hijacked during the scam campaign. Other compromised YouTube channels were also observed in the United States, Brazil, Germany, Indonesia, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Kazakhstan to promote phoney cryptocurrency giveaways.

The largest single grossing Dogecoin address used in these campaigns was a YouTube Live video linked to dogecoin-snl[.]com. One particular compromised YouTube channel operated by a scammer rotated multiple domains and wallet addresses to scam $1.6 million dollars in Dogecoin. The videos on this channel comprised nearly 2,000,000 viewers across several live streams.

Commenting on the success of these scam campaigns, Narang said that there’s an urgent need for heightened cybersecurity measures within social media organisations.

“The onus is on social media sites, such as Twitter and YouTube, to close down these campaigns. Proactive steps to monitor for changes of verified Twitter and YouTube channels, particularly those with a large number of subscribers, would help stop these scams in their tracks,” said Narang. “Social media organisations should enforce two-factor authentication on verified accounts with large numbers of followers or subscribers. Social media platforms need to scrutinise such accounts because verified badges are invaluable, not just to notable figures, but also the people who rely on them to identify fact from fiction. Scammers are eroding that trust. Enforcing more stringent policies for these Twitter accounts and YouTube channels won’t stop the cryptocurrency scams from persisting, but they can help stem the tide.”

You can find the full blog available here. If you’re interested in more detail on the report findings, Satnam Narang is available for further comment.

About Tenable

Tenable® is the Cyber Exposure company. Over 30,000 organizations around the globe rely on Tenable to understand and reduce cyber risk. As the creator of Nessus®, Tenable extended its expertise in vulnerabilities to deliver the world’s first platform to see and secure any digital asset on any computing platform. Tenable customers include more than 50 percent of the Fortune 500, more than 30 percent of the Global 2000 and large government agencies.

Timely Initiative Has Launched Five Sophisticated Buses To Provide Free Oxygen For Covid-19 Patients

Sattva Group, one of India’s leading Real Estate companies, in association with Greenwood High International School, (the educational entity of the group) and Maharaja Agrasen Hospital, Bengaluru – has come up with a timely initiative to launch Five sophisticated buses which will provide free oxygen to people waiting to get a bed outside city hospitals.  Each bus has been redesigned to accommodate 12 patients at any given time.

This initiative was inaugurated by Mr. R Ashoka, Hon’ble Minister for Revenue, Government of Karnataka in his constituency.

With this tie-up with Maharaja Agrasen Hospital in Padmanabhanagar, patients can have some respite in their time of dire need. Each patient will have to provide his or her doctor prescription or RTPCR report and a copy of his or her Aadhar card, to avail the free oxygen facility.

"We plan to see how this initiative goes for the next ten days and then we will scale up to 10 buses thereafter" says Dr.Satish Kumar Jain of Maharaja Agrasen Hospital. Each patient will be able to use the oxygen for 2 hours and will also be given a free nasal canula for the oxygen flow to be connected to the flow meter and regulator.

Mr. Bijay Agarwal, Managing Director of Sattva and Chairman of Greenwood High School was quoted as saying - "When Dr Satish Jain approached me with this idea, I was immediately keen to be a part of this very noble initiative. I sincerely thank the Hon’ble Revenue Minister Mr. R Ashoka who has supported us wholeheartedly in this cause. He has braved the pandemic to be there for us today”.

Citizens who wish to avail this facility can call the Hospital’s Admin at: 09620304864.

About Salarpuria Sattva Group:

With 3 decades of expertise, the Salarpuria Sattva Group has grown into one of the most trusted builders in the country today. Headquartered in Bengaluru, India, it also a well-known name in Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Coimbatore and Goa. The Group will soon be expanding its presence in Mumbai. With 56 million sq.ft spaces completed, 34 million sq.ft under construction and 32 million sq.ft in the planning stage, the Group is one of the premium builders in India today. The Group’s cutting-edge upcoming projects in Hyderabad include: Knowledge City, Knowledge Capital, Knowledge Park and Image Towers (Innovation in Animation, Multimedia, Gaming, and Entertainment), a PPP based model with the Telangana State Government. By further expanding into various verticals such as co-working, co-living, education, hotels, facilities management and warehousing, the Group today stands tall as a frontrunner, shaping India’s growth story. The Group’s unwavering adherence to quality has given it the “trusted” tag among builders in the country, renowned for its “A Stable” CRISIL rating.

Growing Businesses 76 Percent More Likely To Be Run By A Tech-Savvy Leader

* Businesses that discuss technology frequently, and are run by a tech-proficient leadership team, are significantly more likely to be growing, according to a new report

* The leaders of growing businesses are 76% more likely to keep fully up-to-date with the latest technology trends than decision makers of businesses that are not predicting growth

* Monthly discussions about tech matters are significantly more likely in boardrooms of growing businesses than non-growing businesses

Half of growing businesses’ board rooms discuss digital transformation, customer experience and data strategy on a monthly basis

Growing businesses are led by leaders that know about – and regularly discuss – technology, according to new findings from ThoughtWorks, Inc., a global software consultancy, in a new report out today, ‘Tech proficiency: The new imperative for business growth, leadership and agility.’

Surveying 969 CEOs, CTOs and CIOs across 12 different countries, the new study assessed the level of digital proficiency, capability and confidence among companies, and the bearing this had on plans to adapt and grow at a critical time.

The research revealed that among businesses that anticipated growth in 2021, three-quarters (74%) were led by leaders that kept fully up-to-date with the latest technology developments, compared with 42% of leaders of companies that were not growing.

Meanwhile, leaders of non-growing businesses were more than twice as likely to rely on the tech expertise of others instead (55% vs. 25%).

The leaders of growing businesses were also significantly more likely to say their management team’s knowledge of new technology developments was ‘good’ in relation to key areas of business technology.

In particular, their digital proficiency was superior in areas including digital transformation (47% of growing businesses vs. 37% of non-growing businesses), cloud computing (39% vs. 29%), data strategy (44% vs. 32%), and software platforms (34% vs. 26%).

The big discussion

Growing businesses were also more likely to discuss tech issues at board level on a regular basis. Among growing businesses, over half (52%) had board level discussions around digital transformation at least on a monthly basis. This fell to 40% amongst non-growing businesses.

Meanwhile, half of growing businesses discussed customer-centric digital experiences at least monthly, (vs. 36% of non-growing businesses), while 49% discussed issues around enterprise modernization (vs. 34%).

Businesses that admitted being held back by their tech capabilities were four times less likely to have board-level discussions about digital transformation and operations each month than businesses that described themselves as technologically advanced, were half as likely to discuss customer experience and were 30% less likely to discuss enterprise modernisation.

Among those respondents who did not regularly discuss tech issues at board-level, the reasons included: not understanding the problems (39%), not knowing how to implement or manage them (33%), or a feeling that they were not a priority (50%).

Sameer Soman, managing director for ThoughtWorks in India commented:“Technology isn’t just about hardware or software products that can be plugged in to solve a problem. It is about the culture of an organization - and that culture starts at the top. Today’s CEO needs to be as well versed in data strategy, platform capability and engineering excellence, as they are about sales, marketing and accounts. These will all have an influence on future business performance.”

The research surveyed over 969 C-Suite decision makers, comprising of CEOs, CIOs and CTOs across 12 countries, all markets where ThoughtWorks has a significant market presence and can provide market commentary (USA, UK, Germany, China, Australia, India, Brazil, Singapore, Italy, Romania, Finland and Netherlands) and across seven sectors. The research was carried out online by Maru/Blue in February 2021.

Talent Demand Index Shed 4% Y-o-Y And 16% M-o-M In Apr’21; Construction, Petrochemicals Increased 22% Y-o-Y

The COVID-19 resurgence in Apr’21 has derailed the business growth - and M-o-M talent demand consequently - but the Y-o-Y stats show an encouraging story. The talent demand trend for Apr’20 - when first COVID-19 wave hit India – v/s Apr’ 21- when the country is braving a far more infectious wave - shows a double-digit growth in heavy duty sectors; and Constructions and Petrochemicals saw 22% Y-o-Y growth in talent demand, reported TimesJobs RecruiteX.

RecruiteX is a monthly recruitment index that records the demand and supply of talent at India Inc. The Y-o-Y analysis showed that all high volume sectors as BFSI, IT/Telecom and Automobiles saw growth. Most sectors were revving up their operations to resume full operations in Apr’21, however the widespread infection has cut this growth story short.     

India Inc.’s talent demand suffered a setback in Apr’21 owing to the sudden surge in the COVID-19 infection. India Inc. shed 4% Y-o-Y and 16% M-o-M talent demand in Apr’21, with all the top 10 industrial sectors noting a double-digit drop in the Mar’21 v/s Apr’21 comparison, reported TimesJobs RecruiteX.       

A further study of talent demand in Apr’21 found that Retail and Projects/Infrastructure industries shed most talent demand (28% each) in M-o-M analysis. Talent demand shrunk least in the IT/Telecom (10%), Healthcare (12%) and Automobiles (12%) sectors in Mar’21 v/s Apr’21 comparison.

A similar story was seen in the functional-area’s M-o-M study too. The IT/Telecom and Doctors /Medical Professionals profiles recorded (9%) dip each in the M-o-M review. Rest all functional areas shed talent demand in double-digit, with Marketing & Advertising noting the steepest fall of 30%.

Location-wise, except Vadodara, all other cities shed talent demand with Mumbai noting the steepest decline of 18% in the monthly analysis. Vadodara saw a 9% rise on Apr’21 v/s Mar’21 study.

Elaborating on the findings of RecruiteX Apr’21 edition, Sanjay Goyal, Business Head TimesJobs and TechGig said, “Most sectors in India were opening up for operations in Apr’21 but the COVID-19 surge threw everything out of gear. However, the Y-o-Y talent demand trends show that only three sectors (i.e. FMCG, Pharmaceuticals and Retail) noted a decline while all other sectors had an encouraging yearly growth with Construction/Cement and Petrochemicals sectors growing by 22% each. The M-o-M stats are of course in the red because of the COVID-19 resurgence.”

“Jack Ma’s observation that ‘2020 is the year of staying alive and not a time to dream or plan’ seems more apt for 2021. I urge everyone to be accommodative, understating and empathetic to their peers, juniors, managers. We can overcome this crisis, together,” he added.

Sector-wise Y-o-Y talent demand analysis:

·         Construction/Cement: 22%

·         Petrochemicals/ Oil and Gas: 22%

·         CRM/Call Centres/BPO: 16%

·         Projects/Infrastructure/Power/Energy: 15%

·         BFSI: 11%

Sector-wise M-o-M talent demand analysis: 

·         IT/Telecom: (-10%)

·         Healthcare/ Biotechnology/ Pharmaceuticals: (-12%)

·         Automobiles/Auto Component: (-12%)

·         BFSI: (-14%)

·         Manufacturing & Engineering: (-18%)

City-wise M-o-M talent demand analysis:

·         Vadodara: (9%)

·         Ahmedabad: (-3%)

·         Delhi NCR: (-8%)

·         Indore: (-11%)

·         Pune: (-11%)

Functional area-wise M-o-M talent demand analysis:

·         Doctors/Nurses/Medical Professional: (-9%)

·         IT/Telecom: (-9%)

·         Banks/Insurance/Financial Services: (-12%)

·         Sales/Business Development: (-14%)

·         Quality/Process Control: (-15%)

Work experience-wise M-o-M talent demand analysis:

·         2-5 years of work experience: (-9%)

·         5-10 years of work experience: (-15%)

·         Freshers, less than 2 years: (-20%)

·         10-20 years: (-21%)

·         20+ years of experience: (-29%)

About RecruiteX:

RecruiteX is the recruitment index for India. It is an analysis identifying the hiring activity and trends in India Inc. Based on tactful extraction and examination of jobs posted and applied for in a month at TimesJobs, it details ‘recruitment’ as a process backed by hiring sentiments of a recruiter and aspirations of the job seekers alike.

India's Fastest Growing Social Audio App Fireside Takes Internet By Storm, Crosses 100k Downloads

​* Being touted as the next revolution in social audio apps, fireside aims to bring back intimacy and emotions in the way Indian converse online. 

* fireside comes with a promise of protecting intimacy and privacy of shared voice conversations​.

Setting a record within just a week of announcing its beta version, India’s  fastest growing audio-based social media app fireside has​successfully ​crossed the milestone ​of over 100k downloads. The success story of the first-of-its kind app is propelled by its founders’ vision of bringing back intimacy and emotions in social media conversations​, completely revolutionizing the way Indians talk online.

Conceptualised and founded by Sumit Ghosh,Aditya Kothari and Ashwat Venkateshan, fireside along with its user-centricity,​also ​comes with a promise of protecting privacy of shared voice conversations.

“The early success of firesides cements our vision of creating a space for audio-​based conversations to instil emotions, intimacy and a sense of belonging among social media users. In today’s time when isolation has become a​reality, fireside gives a huge ​​support by creating a virtual room to bridge emotional ​and communication​gaps. The features have been conceptualised​ and curated especially​ to give space to voices, support ideas, allow debates, simplify learning and nurture creativity. We are buoyed by the initial response and believe that fireside’s popularity will continue to grow in ​near future,” ​​said  Sumit Ghosh, CEO fireside.

Being touted as the next revolution in online audio conversations, fireside creates a common virtual room for like-minded people to come together for long and meaningful chats. The nature of sessions can range over a myriad of topics including politics, music, fashion, cinema, leisure banters among friends and many others.

Re-envisioning the concept of social discovery during these volatile times, fireside makes SOS calls convenient through its latest user-friendly audio features and amplifies urgent messages in social circles or groups by saving time and making connection easier. The​one-of-its-kind platform comes with a facility to have open and closed rooms and the scale and significance of a particular discussion can vary as per the users’ needs like discussions, debates, educational talks, helplines, post-match sports reviews, quizzes, study, among others.

Users can club their niche interests and chat about anything to stay up to date. They can also listen and learn as a member of the audience during audio sessions. From workshops to debates, from fan fiction to candid confessions, this platform aims to be an outlet for whoever wishes to speak and to listen. The pandemic has also made people realise the significance of quick and constant engagement to amplify urgent messages and fireside suits the needs perfectly.​  ​

As the country is going through stressing times due to second wave of coronavirus, fireside has also enabled a virtual space which dispenses information on Covid, and amplifies SOS requests. To support this, a 24X7 Covid helpline rooms on fireside​ are active ​ where folks can drop in and relay their requests and questions.

Blue Dart Forms Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium To Operate Experimental Unmanned Aircraft System For Delivery Of Vaccines

* An intelligent smart drone delivery solution to tackle challenges in last-mile vaccine delivery  

Blue Dart, India’s leading express logistics service provider and part of the Deutsche Post DHL Group (DPDHL) formed Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium with the mission of revolutionizing the delivery of vaccines and emergency medical supplies to the remotest parts of India with Drones. Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium is part of the ‘Medicine from the Sky’ project in collaboration with the Government of Telangana, World Economic Forum, Niti Aayog and Healthnet Global. 

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has granted the project with necessary exemptions and rights to fly drone flights on an experimental basis in Telangana. The aim is to assess an alternate logistics route in providing safe, accurate and reliable pickup and delivery of health care items (medicines, covid-19 vaccines, units of blood, diagnostic specimens and other lifesaving equipment) from distribution centre to specific location and back. 

Blue Dart is committed to improving the supply chain infrastructure and is fighting hard to combat the pandemic. Blue Dart Med-Express Drone flights will deploy an immersive delivery model to optimize the current healthcare logistics within Telangana. The model will enable deliveries from district medical stores and blood banks to Primary Health Centers (PHCs), Community Health Centres (CHCs), Blood Storage Units & further from PHCs/CHCs to Central Diagnostic laboratories.  

Proud to be able to help the country in its fight against the pandemic Balfour Manuel, Managing Director, Blue Dart says, “It’s been over a year and our battle against COVID-19 continues to unfold new challenges that need solutions in real-time. The pandemic has taught each one of us the importance of logistics and the need for a tech-led supply chain infrastructure. As an organization Blue Dart has always been surrounded with the technology of the future. It is this ability that has helped us to not only withstand the pandemic but thrive with growth. While we reach out to over 35,000 locations across the country, the current situation calls for a much deeper penetration of vaccines.” 

Commenting on Blue Dart’s experiment with Drone flights for Beyond Visual Line of Sight delivery of vaccines Ketan Kulkarni, CMO & Head – Business Development, Blue Dart says, “The consortium aims at enabling safer, efficient and cost-effective Drone delivery flights. With efficient systems in place, it can help reduce the current logistics cost, making the healthcare logistics faster and efficient. We are delighted to be granted the rights to commence operations and this is definitely the need of the hour. Mankind is witnessing the worst time and Blue Dart is committed to giving back to the society in which it operates and will always be ready to take one step forward.” 

Smt. Rama Devi Lanka, Director of Emerging Technologies and Officer on Special Duty (OSD), ITE&C Department, Government of Telangana, says, “The project would generate real and actionable insights to drive future adoption policies and integration with the existing healthcare supply chain. With covid-19 pandemic wrecking existing supply chains, adopting such disruptive technologies is the need of the hour.” 

Sri Jayesh Ranjan, IAS, Principal Secretary, ITE&C Department, Government of Telangana, says, “Telangana is one of the most proactive states looking to adopt emerging technologies, and the ‘Medicine from the Sky’ project using drones is in line with the same principles. This project is one of the first such programs in the country where multiple drones would fly BVLOS to establish their value proposition for the healthcare supply chain. The vision is to ensure healthcare equity for rural areas.” 

Blue Dart has been consistent in its support to the nation in the fight against the pandemic. As the Trade Facilitator of the Nation, Blue Dart ensured that life doesn’t come to a standstill by safeguarding and ensuring the delivery of critical shipments across the country. In keeping with its commitment to its philosophy, Blue Darters have been working tirelessly to guarantee the continuity of the mission-critical supply chain since the time the country has been gripped by the pandemic. Blue Dart has continuously worked with the medical equipment and pharmaceuticals sector to maintain the supply chain and deliver critical shipment and essential supplies including Covid vaccine samples, temperature-controlled movement of COVID-19 testing kits, ventilators, PPE, testing kits, reagents, enzymes, respirators, surgical masks, goggles and gloves amongst other critical material. The company’s six Boeing 757 freighters ensure the ease in ramping up operations swiftly to handle large scale shipments. 

About Blue Dart: 

Blue Dart Express Ltd., South Asia's premier express air and integrated transportation & distribution company, offers secure and reliable delivery of consignments to over 35,000 locations in India. As part of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s DHL eCommerce Solutions division, Blue Dart accesses the largest and most comprehensive express and logistics network worldwide, covering over 220 countries & territories, and offers an entire spectrum of distribution services including air express, freight forwarding, supply chain solutions, customs clearance etc. 

The Blue Dart team drives market leadership through its motivated people, dedicated air and ground capacity, cutting-edge technology, wide range of innovative, vertical specific products and value-added services to deliver unmatched standards of service quality to its customers. Blue Dart's market leadership is further validated by its position as the nation’s most innovative and awarded express logistics company for exhibiting reliability, superior brand experience and sustainability which include recognition as one of ‘India's Best Companies to Work For’ by The Great Place to Work® Institute, India, ranked amongst ‘Best Multinational Workplaces in Asia’ by The Great Place to Work® Institute, Asia, voted a ‘Superbrand’ and ‘Reader’s Digest Most Trusted Brand’, listed as one of Fortune 500’s ‘India's Largest Corporations’ and Forbes ‘India's Super 50 Companies’ to name a few. 

Under the DPDHL group motto of “Connecting People, Improving Lives”, we focus our corporate responsibility under three pillars - GoTeach (Championing education), GoGreen (Protecting the environment) and GoHelp (Structures engagement with communities & Disaster management response). 

LEGO Group And LEGO Foundation Donates US$1 Million To Support COVID-19 Relief In India

* The LEGO Group and the LEGO Foundation join forces to support Save the Children India to help children and families impacted by the country’s recent surge in COVID-19 cases~

The LEGO Group and the LEGO Foundation have announced a US$1 million donation to help Save the Children India support families and children most at risk in Delhi, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and West Bengal.  It will be used to deliver learning to around 20,000 children aged 3-14 whose education has been disrupted by the most recent outbreak, ensure food security for families and provide COVID-19 Care Kits designed to reduce infection rates.

Steen Lauge Kokkenborg, General Manager, LEGO Group India, said, “The latest outbreak is having a devastating impact on caregiving and schooling for the country’s most vulnerable children. We hope this contribution will provide some security to children and families as well as allow children to continue to learn through play and build vital skills despite schools being closed.”

Sudarshan Suchi, CEO of Save the Children, India, said, “Save the Children has embarked on a journey to reach and protect 1 million people across multiple locations in India, and we thank our friends at the LEGO Group for pledging US$1 million and providing us with crucial and timely support with our ambition. With this support, we will focus on children’s survival by distributing COVID-19 Care Kits, food and nutrition support and hosting medical consultations. Additionally, we will take our relief a step further and focus on ensuring learning continuity through the crisis - a fantastic aspect of this partnership. By concentrating on learning continuity, we are guaranteeing physical, psychosocial, and cognitive security that will ensure the growth and development of our children remains intact.”

This latest donation builds on an earlier contribution made by the LEGO Group in May 2020, when it partnered with NITI Aayog and Save the Children to introduce initiatives that promote home-based learning, while strengthening community efforts in response to the severe healthcare situation.

In addition to the contribution to Save the Children India, the LEGO Group is also supporting the state government’s relief efforts in Maharashtra where the LEGO Group’s Mumbai office is located.

About the LEGO Foundation

The LEGO Foundation shares the mission of the LEGO Group: to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow. The Foundation is dedicated to building a future in which learning through play em-powers children to become creative, engaged, lifelong learners. Its work is about re-defining play and re-imagining learning. In collaboration with thought leaders, influencers, educators and par-ents the LEGO Foundation aims to equip, inspire and activate champions for play. 

Airtel Thanks App Makes Staying At Home A Lot Easier With Its 24x7 Service

* All services will be available at Airtel Stores and Retails stores from 6 am -7:30 pm 

Airtel will continue to provide all essential services to its customers 24x7 even during the lockdown. In Karnataka , the Airtel services will be available from 6 am to 10 am at all retail outlets and Airtel stores in compliance with Covid protocols. 

Airtel has made recharging all its services distance-friendly to encourage safe social distancing and in hopes to ease your self-quarantining efforts. The Airtel Thanks App allows you to manage as well as recharge all your Airtel connections without having to step out of your home. This includes, prepaid plan, DTH connection, data card, post-paid bills etc. Here’s how you can do it  

To recharge on the Airtel Thanks App, follow these easy steps:

Step 1: Install the Airtel Thanks App

Step 2: Click on the ‘Recharge’ tab. Pick the service – mobile, internet, DTH – that you want to recharge.

Step 3: Enter your registered mobile number or DTH account number 

Step 4: Select your preferred pack 

Step 5: Pay online with your debit or credit card, UPI account, or Amazon pay account 

Airtel Thanks app also lets you make other transactions securely from your phone such as paying electricity and water bills, transferring money to someone etc. This is Airtel’s bid to make the lockdown easier for you. You can do the same for someone else who cannot do it themselves, such as your house help, watchman or even an elderly in the nerighbourhood. Stay safe. Stay connected.  

India’s leading hiring platform for frontline workers - Apna Steps Up To Help Essential Service Businesses Hire At No Cost During Covid-19

* Apna has committed to make its platform available to employers free of charge and expand to new cities to help businesses and frontline workers across India in their battle against the pandemic

* Apna has deployed special services at a short notice to facilitate 7M interactions between businesses and frontline staff in the last 30 days to help reconstruct India’s economy brick by brick

Apna, one of India’s largest hiring platforms dedicated to the blue and grey collar workforce, is on a mission to help Indian businesses hire their frontline workforce in the shortest time. The businesses can now continue to operate and keep their essential and critical services running in these trying times. Apna has amplified its efforts for critical roles such as volunteers, nurses, healthcare staff, delivery persons, lab technicians, drivers, or any other similar roles. They have made their products and services available free of cost, in their bid to support businesses and communities across India stand up against Covid-19.

India is facing an unprecedented challenge due to the second wave of Covid-19, with countless workers recovering from severe illness, helping friends and family members or dealing with the loss of loved ones, making it harder for businesses to operate. However, if India needs to battle Covid and recover from the pandemic, businesses catering to essential services must continue to operate effectively.

Apna has set up a 24 X 7 helpline at 011-41219881 to help essential service businesses hire the right talent within 48 hours, so that business operations can continue with minimal disruptions. Alternatively, employers can log on to employer.apna.co and post their hiring requirements in less than 2 minutes.

Nirmit Parikh, CEO & Co-Founder, Apna, said, “Today, as India battles the biggest problem of halted services, shutdowns, and unemployment, we at Apna want to help essential services and businesses that need to operate to hire people with the right tools to help India fight the pandemic. Since the first lockdown in March 2020, our platform has facilitated over 3.5 crore interactions pan-India. By empowering our blue and grey collar workforce, we will together contribute to rebuild our economy and help India get back to work over time.”

There has been a significant rise in frontline workers looking for job opportunities on the Apna mobile app. Over 1 lakh employers including, 1MG, Columbia Asia Hospitals, Zomato, Flipkart, Swiggy, Wellness Forever, Kirloskar Chillers, and Bharti AXA, among others have leveraged the platform to hire talented resources free of cost. Apna is currently live in 14 cities and is growing its geographic footprint at a rapid pace to cope with the increasing demand from candidates and employers alike; Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Surat, Pune, Jaipur, Lucknow, Chandigarh (tri-city area), Kanpur, Ludhiana and Ranchi are the cities where Apna is currently active.

Zomato, India’s leading online food delivery platform, backed Apna’s efforts saying, “We are elated to be working with Apna which is on a national mission to mitigate the impact that Covid 19 has had on the job market and help India come back to work. We commend the intent and drive of Team Apna to help the present-day employers onboard the right resources in the shortest time.”

1mg, India’s leading online pharmacy added, “We are closely working with Apna for talent discovery across job families and their quickest turn-around time is enabling us to uninterruptedly continue our daily functions and services.”

The Apna platform comprises vertical communities for skilled professionals like carpenters, painters, field sales agents, security guards, delivery personnel, masons, artists, tailors, beauticians, and many others. It is a seamless platform for both job seekers and employers, to choose from over 10 lakh jobs in 70+ categories based on their qualification, experience, location, skill sets, and interest areas.

About Apna

Founded in 2019, the Apna mobile app is India’s largest professional networking platform dedicated to the blue and grey collar workforce, helping India’s burgeoning working class to unlock unique professional networking, and skilling opportunities. The app is currently live in Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Ranchi, Kolkata, Surat, Lucknow, Kanpur, Ludhiana, and Chandigarh.

Having raised capital from marquee investors like Lightspeed India, Sequoia Capital, Rocketship.vc and Greenoaks Capital, Apna is on a mission to enable livelihoods for billions in India. With over 85 lakh users, present in 14 cities and counting, and over 1 lakh employers that trust the platform - India has a new destination to discover relevant opportunities.

Zoho Supports TN Hospitals With Covid Beds, Oxygen Supplies, And Medical Equipment, Contributes To CMPRF

Zoho Corporation, the Chennai-headquartered global technology firm, is helping hospitals and healthcare centers across Tamil Nadu with procurement and distribution of essential medical equipment for Covid-19 treatment. The company has also donated ₹5 crores to the state government's public relief fund towards Covid relief. Other initiatives underway to support the state's fight against the second wave of pandemic include an isolation care facility at the Estancia campus for employees and their families, vaccination drives, and community kitchens catering to villages around Chennai and Tenkasi.

On-going Covid relief initiatives by Zoho:

Procurement and distribution of medical equipment: Zoho is providing oxygen supplies and medical equipment, worth ₹13 crore, to various private and public hospitals across the state that are treating patients from the economically weaker section of the society. The company plans to scale this support to the rest of India.

To meet the high demand for oxygen supplies, Zoho helped government hospitals in Tamil Nadu get timely refills for 200 cylinders. Additionally, 200 new cylinders have been ordered.

Distribution of 700 oxygen concentrators is underway for government hospitals and corporation healthcare centers.

150 HFNC’s (High Flow Nasal Cannula) distributed to various government and private hospitals across Tamil Nadu.

80 CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machines distributed to Rajiv Gandhi government hospital (RGGH). Modification of 5 vans are in the works to help RGGH with 'oxygen on wheels'.

300 beds have been procured for distribution to Stanley and Kumbakonam government hospitals.

Contribution to Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund (CMPRF): Zoho has donated ₹5 crore to Tamil Nadu CMPRF to aid the government in its efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19 and provide relief to those affected.

Temporary care facility at Estancia for employees: A 30-bedded healthcare facility has been set up at the Estancia campus to provide basic assistance for relatively mild cases of Covid-19 among Zoho employees and their families. The healthcare center is in compliance with BMW regulations and treatment protocols established by the state government, and is supervised by Zoho's in-house doctor.

Community kitchens for local food relief: Zoho reopened its office kitchens in Chennai and Tenkasi in the last week of April to prepare food to be distributed to local villages. Currently, the company serves 30,000 meals a day across Chennai, Kancheepuram, Chengalpet, Tenkasi, Tirunelveli, and Gudalur (Theni). Plans are underway to scale up to 1 lakh meals a day and to expand the initiative to Namakkal, Coimbatore, and Salem.

For this initiative, the team underwent basic health checks and safety training at the outset, overseen by Zoho's in-house doctors and safety team. Everyone is screened daily on various health parameters, and the company is ensuring that all safety protocols are being adhered to.

Supporting NGOs and hospitals: Zoho is supporting various NGOs that are distributing provision kits to the underserved in Tier II and III towns. 2000 kits have been distributed until now, with plans to add another 12,000 soon within Chennai. Zoho is also providing monetary aid to a few hospitals.

Vaccination drive: Zoho recently co-hosted a free vaccination drive in Madurai along with a few NGOs. The company plans to organize vaccination camps for employees and locals in other areas as well once an adequate supply of vaccines is available.

About Zoho

With 50+ apps in nearly every major business category, including sales, marketing, customer support, accounting and back office operations, and an array of productivity and collaboration tools, Zoho Corporation is one of the world's most prolific software companies. Zoho is privately held and profitable with more than 9,000 employees. Zoho is headquartered in Austin, Texas with international headquarters in Chennai, India. Additional offices are in the United States, India, Japan, China, Singapore, Mexico, Australia, the Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates. Zoho respects user privacy and does not have an ad-revenue model in any part of its business, including its free products. More than 60 million users around the world, across hundreds of thousands of companies, rely on Zoho every day to run their businesses, including Zoho itself. 

Happiest Minds’ FY21 Total Income Grows At 11.7% To ₹ 798 Crores While PAT Up ₹ 162 Crore And Recommends Maiden Dividend

Happiest Minds Technologies Limited (NSE:HAPPSTMNDS), a ‘Born Digital. Born Agile’, digital transformation and IT solutions company, today announced its  consolidated results today for the fourth quarter and year ended March 31, 2021 as approved by its Board of Directors.

Ashok Soota, Executive Chairman, Happiest Minds Technologies said, “The highlight for the year FY21 was our successful   IPO. We have been able to fulfil all our promises and are grateful to our customers, our team, and all stakeholders, who helped make this possible. As we begin FY22, we will look to achieving 20 percent organic growth as indicated at the time of our IPO.”

Financial highlights:

Venkatraman N, MD & CFO, Happiest Minds Technologies talking on the financials said, “Our fiscal year revenue growth of 6.3% in US$ terms is reflective of our business model which positions us as a go to player for customers building a digital ready enterprise. Revenues for the quarter grew sequentially by 15.4% which includes Pimcore Global Services (PGS) the Company we acquired earlier during the Quarter. Our growth for the quarter even on a standalone basis has been robust. Considering our performance, strong cash generation and capital allocation priorities, I am happy to highlight the maiden divided of ₹ 3 per share recommended by the Board.”

Quarter ended March 31, 2021

·         Operating Revenues stood at $30.2 million (growth of 15.4% q-o-q ; 18.0% y-o-y)

·         Total Income stood at ₹ 22,374 lakhs (growth of 11.2% q-o-q ; 17.6% y-o-y)

·         EBITDA stood at ₹ 5,883 lakhs, 26.3% of Total Income (decline of 1.4 % q-o-q ; growth of 129.5% y-o-y)

·         PAT at ₹ 3,605 lakhs (decline of 14.5 % q-o-q; growth of 580.2% y-o-y)

·         Free cash flows of ₹ 5,853 lakhs for the quarter

Year ended March 31, 2021

·         Operating Revenues stood at $104.6 million (growth of 6.3% y-o-y)

·         Total Income stood at ₹ 79,765 lakhs (growth of 11.7% y-o-y)

·         EBITDA stood at ₹ 21,573 lakhs, 27.0% of Total Income (growth of 90.7% y-o-y)

·         PAT at ₹ 16,246 lakhs (growth of 126.6% y-o-y)

·         EPS(diluted) for the year is ₹ 11.45 (growth of 113.6% y-o-y)

·         Free cash flows of ₹ 21,476 lakhs

·         RoCE & RoE for the year stood at 31.2% and 29.8% respectively

Our Business:

Joseph Anantharaju, Exec. Vice Chairman, Happiest Minds Technologies said, “We continue to see good demand for digital skills across verticals, with good growth in EduTech, Industrial & Manufacturing and Retail. All our geos have demonstrated impressive growth, especially Middle East and Europe. We are truly among India's best companies to work, as reflected in our high Glassdoor rating of 4.3 and low attrition levels of 12.4%”.

Clients:

·         173 as of March 31, 2021

·         23 additions during the quarter

Our People - Happiest Minds:

·         3,228 Happiest Minds as of March 31, 2021 (net addition for the quarter 343; for the year 562);

·         Trailing 12 months attrition of 12.4%

·         Utilization of 82.6%, up from 81.6% in Q3 FY21

Key Project Wins:

·         For a large US financial services company, Happiest Minds was chosen as a partner for implementing a cloud-based loan and leasing solution

·         For a leading US based Credit Union Services Organization, Happiest Minds was chosen to transform the legacy HR performance Solution

·         For a leading US manufacturer of electrical wiring and lighting control systems, Happiest Minds is building the next generation system to control, configure, and monitor their commercial lighting systems

·         For a large US professional services company, Happiest Minds is providing onsite and offshore IT Security services for Identity and Access Management

·         For a large Health care company in USA, Happiest Minds is providing managed security services for Governance risk and compliance and security operations

·         For one of the largest and most successful estate agency groups in the UK, Happiest Minds has been selected to deliver multi-year Managed Vulnerability and Penetration Testing Services

·         For a large UK based Utilities company, Happiest Minds has been selected to deliver a critical Cloud Transformation project

·         For a large bank in UAE, Happiest Minds is providing high end security services in the space of DevSecOps and Big Data Security.

Awards:

·         Recognized with Peoplefirst’s Leading Practices in Talent Acquisition Award

·         Preeti Menon, Senior Vice President, Product Engineering Services was recognized among the Top 25 Women Leaders in IT Managed Services of 2021 by IT Services Report

Announcements:

·         The Board of Directors have recommended a final dividend of 150% (₹ 3 per equity share of par value ₹ 2 each) for the financial year ended March 31, 2021 which is subject to the approval of shareholders at the Annual General Meeting

For further details please refer to the Investors presentation hosted on the company website –

– Investors section

About Happiest Minds Technologies:

Happiest Minds Technologies Limited (NSE: HAPPSTMNDS), a Mindful IT Company, enables digital transformation for enterprises and technology providers by delivering seamless customer experiences, business efficiency and actionable insights. We do this by leveraging a spectrum of disruptive technologies such as: artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud, digital process automation, internet of things, robotics/drones, security, virtual/augmented reality, etc. Positioned as ‘Born Digital . Born Agile’, our capabilities span digital solutions, infrastructure, product engineering and security. We deliver these services across industry sectors such as automotive, BFSI, consumer packaged goods, e-commerce, eduTech, engineering R&D, hi-tech, manufacturing, retail and travel/transportation/hospitality.

A Great Place to Work-Certified™ company, Happiest Minds is headquartered in Bangalore, India with operations in the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia and Middle East.

Max Bupa Launches ‘Senior First’ Plan To Make Healthcare More Accessible For Senior Citizens In The Country

 ·    ReAssure benefit:Triggered by the first claim, this benefit has unlimited sum insured. Customers can claim unlimited number of times under this benefit. Any one claim can be upto the base sum insured.

·     No Sub-Limitsapplicable: No capping for treatment of common health conditions like cataract, joint replacements and more.

·     No sum insured and age-based pre-policy medical check-up: Pre-issuance medical check-up is not mandatory.Seniors can take this policy without having to undergo any sum insured and age-based pre-policy medical check-up.

·     Annual Health Check-ups from day 1: No linkage to claim or renewal. Customers can claim for health check up from the first day of policy itself.

·     Safeguard Add On: 100% coverage for non-payable expenses such as PPE Kit, Gloves, Oxygen masks, Conveyance charges and more. Inflation adjusted increase in base sum assured every year, with no impact on No Claims Bonus if claims in a policy year are up to INR 50,000.

·      All Day Care Treatments Covered: Coverage for expenses incurred during Day Care Treatments requiring more than 2 hours of hospitalization, including angiography, dialysis, radiotherapy and more.

·     Reduce co-payment or swap it with deductible options: An optional benefit to reduce co-payment from 50% to 40%/30%/20%. Alternatively, customers can opt fordeductible and enjoy a co-payment free health cover.

·     Easy to understand: Policy terms and conditions written in simple, plain manner without much jargons.

Max Bupa – one of India’s leading standalone health insurers, today announced the launch of ‘Senior First’–a tailor-made planfor senior citizens, designed to provide unconditional support and care to seniors in their golden years. Senior First plan includes coverage options of up to 25 lacs with no sub limits on common health conditionslike cataract, knee replacement, etc. To help customers overcome the current challenges faced while purchasing health insurance for senior citizens and to provide them ease of policy issuance, the Senior First plancomes with several attractive features including no mandatory pre-issuance medical tests, heath check-ups from day 1, hassle free claims process and more.

One of the highlight feature of Senior First product is the ReAssure benefitwhichis triggered with the first claim itself and is an unlimited sum insured benefit. Any one claim paid from this benefit can be up to the base sum insured. One can make as many claims as required in the same policy year, for same or different illnesses.In a nutshell, this feature will enable senior citizens to never fall short of coverage which is critical to protect against unforeseen medical expenditure towards all kinds of diseases, including Covid-19. Even in case of critical illnesses like kidney failure, dialysis or cancer, when patients often need hospitalization multiple times in the same year.Unlimited coverage in the product will prove to be extremely useful.

Commenting on the launch of Senior First, Mr. Krishnan Ramachandran, MD and CEO, Max Bupa Health Insurance, said,“Our product has been designed to address the current gaps in providing quality healthcare services to senior citizens. Currently, senior citizens face several challenges while purchasing health insurance. This includes undue hassles of going through mandatory medical tests, policy denial due to chronic pre-existing conditions, high premium, inadequate coverage, high co-pay options, amongst others.

Senior First plan has been carefully designed keeping in view the financial security needed for seniors amidst growing medical inflation. We realize that people want to be financially secured in these difficult times, hence a truly cashless product will ensure there is no financial burden on them once they opt for this policy.’’

Senior First is a truly cashless product and with Safeguard benefit offers 100% coverage for otherwise non-payable expenses such as PPE Kit, Gloves, Oxygen masks, Conveyance charges and more.The product also covers expenses incurred during allday Care Treatments, requiring more than 2 hours of hospitalization, including angiography, dialysis, and radiotherapy. Senior First plan also includes No Claim Bonusbenefit to reward customers for staying healthy. Additionally, policy buyers can also choose their own co-payment as per their financial health and can swap co-payments for deductible.

Dr. Bhabatosh Mishra, Director – Products, Underwriting & Claims, Max Bupa Health Insuranceon the launch said,“Seniors are one of the most impacted sections of the country when it comes to health. Unfortunately, the need is highest for this age grouphowever affordability is atits lowest. At that age,when continuous income has stopped, many tend to compromise on their health, given the high premium and other related challenges. The Senior First plan will enable senior citizens to get comprehensive coverage which is critical to protect against unforeseen medical expenditure towards all kind of illnesses, including Covid-19. It’s also a great way children can protect their parents against unforeseen health challenges’’

Max Bupa’s Senior First plan is available in Gold and Platinum range, with sum insured ranging from INR 5 lakhsup to INR 25 lakhs.

Cybercrime Thrives During Pandemic: Verizon 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report

* Increase in phishing and ransomware attacks - along with continued high numbers of Web Application Attacks - underscore a year of unprecedented security challenges

What you need to know:

●  Report analyzes 29,207 quality incidents, of which 5,258 were confirmed breaches

●  Phishing attacks increased by 11 percent, while attacks using ransomware rose by 6 percent

●  85 percent of breaches involved a human element, while over 80 percent of breaches were discovered by external parties

●  Breach simulations found the median financial impact of a breach is $21,659, with 95 percent of incidents falling between $826 and $653,587

The Verizon Business 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report (2021 DBIR) examines more breaches than ever before, and sheds light on how the most common forms of cyber-attacks affected the international security landscape during the global pandemic. This year’s report saw 5,258 breaches from 83 contributors across the globe, a third more breaches analyzed than last year.

With an unprecedented number of people working remotely, phishing and ransomware attacks increased by 11 percent and 6 percent respectively, with instances of Misrepresentation increasing by 15 times compared to last year. Additionally, breach data showed that 61 percent of breaches involved credential data (95 percent of organizations suffering credential stuffing attacks had between 637 and 3.3 billion malicious login attempts through the year).

The report also highlighted the challenges facing businesses as they move more of their business functions to the cloud - with attacks on web applications representing 39% of all breaches.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on many of the security challenges organizations are currently facing,” said Tami Erwin, CEO, Verizon Business. “As the number of companies switching business-critical functions to the cloud increases, the potential threat to their operations may become more pronounced, as malicious actors look to exploit human vulnerabilities and leverage an increased dependency on digital infrastructures”.

This year, the Incident Classification Patterns the DBIR report team uses to classify security threats have also been improved and refreshed. The updated report patterns explain 95.8 percent of analyzed breaches and 99.7 percent of analyzed incidents over all time, and should provide customers with a better understanding of the threats that exist, and how their organizations can best avoid them. 

Industries under the spotlight

The 2021 DBIR includes detailed analysis of 12 industries, and shows that, while security remains a challenge across the board, there are significant differences across verticals. For example, in Financial and Insurance industries, 83 percent of data compromised in breaches was personal data, whilst in Professional, Scientific and Technical services only 49 percent was personal. Further highlights include:

Financial and Insurance – Misdelivery represented 55 percent of Financial sector errors. The Financial sector frequently faces credential and Ransomware attacks from External actors.

Healthcare - Basic human error continues to beset this industry as it has for the past several years. The most common Error continues to be Misdelivery (36 percent), whether electronic or of paper documents.

Public Administration - By far the biggest threat in this industry is the social engineer. Actors who can craft a credible phishing email are absconding with Credentials data at an alarming rate in this sector.

Retail Trade - The Retail industry continues to be a target for Financially motivated criminals looking to cash in on the combination of Payment cards and Personal information this sector is known for. Social tactics include Pretexting and Phishing, with the former commonly resulting in fraudulent money transfers.

Regional trends

The 83 contributors involved with the 2021 DBIR have provided the report with specific insights into regional cyber-trends highlighting key similarities and differences between them.

Asia Pacific (APAC) - Many of breaches that took place in APAC were caused by Financially motivated attackers Phishing employees for creds, and then using those stolen creds to gain access to mail accounts and web application servers.

Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) - EMEA continues to be beset by Basic Web Application Attacks, System Intrusion, and Social Engineering.

Northern America (NA) – NA is often the target of Financially motivated actors searching for money or easily monetizable data. Social Engineering, Hacking and Malware continue to be the favored tools utilized by actors in this region.

Alex Pinto, Lead Author of the DBIR, comments, “When you read the contents of the report, it is tempting to think that a vast array of threats demands a sweeping and revolutionary solution. However, the reality is far more straightforward. The truth is that, whilst organizations should prepare to deal with exceptional circumstances, the foundation of their defences should be built on strong fundamentals - addressing and mitigating the threats most pertinent to them.”

About the DBIR

The 2021 DBIR - its 14th edition - analyzed 29,207 security incidents, of which 5,258 were confirmed breaches (a significant increase on the 3,950 breaches analyzed in last year’s report. Data collected from 83 contributors, with victims spanning 88 countries; 12 industries, and 3 world regions.

The complete 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report as well as Executive Summary is available on the DBIR resource page.

Join us - virtual event: Cybercrime and the pandemic - May 13 at 8amET

Join our virtual fireside chat with Nasrin Rezai (Chief Information Security Officer, Verizon), Sampath Sowmyanarayan (Chief Revenue Officer, Verizon) and Chris Novak (Director Professional Services, Verizon) as they discuss the security challenges heightened by the pandemic and the cybercrime trends that will continue to shape business security. 

JK Tyre’s Subsidiary Cavendish Industries Records 16% Growth In Sales And Highest Ever Profit For FY21

Cavendish Industries Ltd. (Cavendish), a subsidiary of  JK Tyre & Industries Ltd. has reported a record performance for Q4 and the year 2020-21:

i)                  Sales at Rs.2571 crores up by 16%

ii)               EBITDA at Rs.398 crores jumps by 54%

Dr Raghupati Singhania, Chairman, stated “we have achieved all time high capacity utilization and the best ever operating efficiencies on several parameters in second half of the year following the business disruption in first half due to Covid-19 pandemic. Increased volumes in all categories,  Operational excellence apart from tighter control on costs led to best ever profitability”.

He further mentioned, “the recent surge in Covid-19 is a cause of worry.  Our first priority is safety of the people and the Company is leaving no stone unturned to ensure this”.

He further mentioned that, “the Company expects to maintain the tempo of growth despite current pressures on costs due to commodity price rising significantly in the last 3 months”.

About Cavendish Industries Ltd:

Cavendish Industries Ltd. (CIL), houses 3 Tyre Business Undertakings of Birla Tyres and was acquired by JK Tyre in 2016.  The plants are located at Laksar (Haridwar) which manufacture a range of tyres, tubes and flaps.  With this acquisition, JK Tyre now has 12 tyre plants - 9 tyre plants in India & 3 in Mexico.

CIL is a subsidiary of JK Tyre with majority shareholdings through direct holdings and the balance through its subsidiaries & Associates.  

Cold-Chain Marketplace Celcius Raises Undisclosed Amount In Seed Funding Round

* The round saw participation from EVAN, MaGEHold, Keiretsu Forum and other investors

Cold-chain marketplace startup, Celcius, announced that they have received an undisclosed amount as seed funding in a round led by Mumbai based Eaglewings Ventures Alliance Network (EVAN), Venture Capital & Private Equity firms MaGEHold, Keiretsu Forum and other investors.

The six-month old startup was founded by Swarup Bose along with co-founders, Rajneesh Raman, and Arbind Jain in November 2020 with a vision to bridge the gap between shippers and transporters across the country by effectively utilising the existing infrastructure. The Celcius platform serves as a unique aggregator platform that offers solutions for both Reefer logistics and cold storage warehousing. With the business model validated, this round of seed funding will be utilized to further scale up the partner base, enhance the tech platform, and expand geographically.

“We are ecstatic to announce our seed funding round and are thankful to all our investors. In a short span of six months, we have transported over 2800 tonnes of perishable cargo for sectors like Dairy, Pharma, Fruits, and Seafood across 85 cities in India and have also ventured outside the country. Our aim is to build a technology-driven solution to the problems of the conventional cold-chain network in India.”, said Swarup Bose, Founder and CEO, Celcius.

There has been an increase in demand for cold chain solutions in India in the wake of the pandemic. The nation’s most pressing requirement - the COVID-19 vaccine is heavily dependent on a robust and seamless cold-chain network for effective distribution. Apart from this, most customers have also moved online in pursuit of contactless options to procure their day-to-day needs. Therefore, it is also a crucial requirement at this point to ensure that people can stay indoors and yet have access to fresh provisions.

Commenting on the investment, Atul Javeri, CEO, EVAN, Mumbai said, “As our first foray into the cold-chain logistics segment, we are extremely delighted to support the Celcius mission of seamless and efficient deliveries of temperature sensitive products. From incubating the company to becoming investors on board this year, we want to stay committed to the team and look forward to actively supporting their growth.”

"India lacks the Cold chain infrastructure and now with the backdrop of COVID, Celcius is at the right place at the right time. From facilitating vaccine delivery, curbing food wastage, empowering regional transporters to building a last mile delivery network, Celcius is ensuring an impactful presence in the ecosystem. With an experienced and mature team, there is a tremendous potential for them to grow.”, added Poojit Jain, Angel Investor, EVAN.

Bowie Lau, MD, MaGEHold Pte. Ltd, Singapore added, “Cold storage supply chain is a critical yet challenging part of a country’s growth infrastructure. It ensures a longer shelf life for perishable and temperature-sensitive goods and allows the distribution of such products even to the hinterlands. The team at Celcius have uniquely solved this challenge by establishing a pioneering Cold-Chain Online Marketplace for a complete cold storage supply chain in India. Also, within a short period we were able to establish a good working relationship with the founder and are excited to become part of the Celcius story. We look forward to actively supporting their growth and expansion plans in India and beyond.”

Celcius, India’s first online cold-chain marketplace, offers a technology-driven approach to build a well-connected network of shippers and transporters across the country while accounting for the time spent in transit.

About Celcius:

Celsius is a cold-chain marketplace startup, based out of Mumbai. It is the only aggregator platform in India offering solutions for both Reefer logistics and cold storage warehousing. Its key target markets include Dairy, Pharma, Fruits, Seafood, and also the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine. Within just 6 months of operations, Celcius had transported over 2800 tonnes of perishable cargo, covering more than 85 cities across India. Celcius has also raised an undisclosed 8 figure amount as seed fund from Eaglewings Ventures Alliance Network (EVAN), MaGEHold, Keiretsu Forum and other investors.

EaseVenture Helps Business Organizations To Maximize Their Sales And Revenue

EaseVenture Pvt. Ltd., an Indian enterprise headquartered in Chennai, invests and builds businesses with sustainable futuristic technologies through its portfolio companies. EaseVenture is committed to build robust technology solutions to serve the hospitality, travel and digital media industry using cutting-edge AI and smart solutions. This helps the Hotels and all types of stay providers to get all the solutions that they need at one place and be a leader in the market.

The company also provides smart and intelligent customer acquisition solutions and tools for enhancing hospitality and travel sector with focussed Digital marketing and social media advantage. Current EaseVenture portfolio companies provide end-to-end technology solutions to hotels so that hotels can save cost and serve their customers efficiently, thereby increasing their profitability.

·  EaseRoom: A smart Hotel operating solution that helps hotels to distribute and manage its inventory across all channels.

·  EaseMedia: A Digital marketing agency focussed at smart customer acquisition and Digital brand building across all social media platforms.

·  EaseTours: A comprehensive Tour & MICE operator with curated and unique Tour offerings.

·  MysoftIndia:  An intelligent PMS (Property Management System) for smart Hotel & other stay properties management. 

EaseVenture is helping business organizations to sustain and grow more efficiently with future ready technology solutions.

Mr. Alok Jha, Managing Director & CEO, EaseVenture, says “Our focus is to partner or invest in technologies that will help and grow Hospitality, Travel and Digital Marketing businesses. We understand the currant situation is tough, and our effort is to help companies survive and fight this phase for a better tomorrow.”

About EaseVenture:

EaseVenture Private Limited (EVPL), as an enterprise is committed in investing in businesses and technologies to help the Hotels and Travel Industry to build in efficiency and futuristic outlook to serve their customers effectively and grow their business. At the same time EaseVenture also, invests and build in, proactive and robust marketing and communication platform and services. Currently, it has a growing portfolio of companies serving Hotels, OTAs and Travel segments.

MIT, MUTBI Conducted National Technology Day & MIT Foundation Day

* Opportunities for Technology Development in all Domains: C N Raghupathi, Senior Vice President & Head, India Business, Infosys

“There is a lot of opportunity for technology development not only in the digital domain but also in other areas of Science & Engineering” said Mr. C N Raghupathi, Senior Vice President & Head, India Business, Infosys. He was delivering the keynote address during the Online National Technology Day & MIT Foundation Day program jointly organized by Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT) and Manipal Universal Business Incubator (MUTBI), Manipal on May 11, 2021. He shared his experience of technology development in the areas of Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, and Chemical Engineering. He also explained how technology has advanced in the field of cancer diagnosis & treatment and other fields of medical science. He narrated how digital revolution was possible because of simultaneous development of IC technology and software domain. Mr. Raghupathi also highlighted, how the type of problem, associated cost, scalability and ecosystem development could lead to success of technology.

As a remembrance of Pokhran nuclear tests of 1998 and India's technological advancements, National Technology Day is celebrated every year on May 11. The theme for this year is “Science & Technology for a sustainable future”. 

Presiding over the function Lt. Gen. (Dr.) M. D. Venkatesh, Vice Chancellor, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) mentioned about contribution of Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India during the last 50 years. He also urged faculty, students and alumni to come forward and make use of facilities at MAHE & its Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) and develop technologies for the benefit of society.

Speaking on this occasion, Dr. D Srikanth Rao, Director, MIT narrated the story of genesis of MIT, way back in 1957 on this day. He continued to share the story of development of Innovation Center and MUTBI to support Innovation, technology development and startups. Today, not only students, but also faculty and alumni of MIT are involved in technology development and have their startups in the campus. MAHE has two TBIs supported by DST, Government of India and Government of Karnataka. More than 50 technologies have been developed at MAHE and currently 30 startups are working in the campus on technology development in various domains of Health Science and Engineering. He narrated a classic story of how a faculty PhD work was converted into a startup towards commercialization of technology. 

Dr. B H V Pai, Joint Director, MIT welcomed the gathering and Dr. Mohammad Zuber, Assistant. Director (Innovation & Incubation), MIT proposed vote of thanks. Dr. Y Shrihari Upadhyaya, CEO, MUTBI moderated the program. 

Fino Payments Bank Goes Live With Enhanced Deposit Limit Of ₹2Lakh

* Encourages financial inclusion, benefits MSMEs, small traders and retail customers

In line with RBI’s revised guideline Fino Payments Bank has increased the end of the day account balance limit to ₹2 lakh for its customers. The bank, which became profitable in the fourth quarter of FY20, went live with the enhanced limit effective 1st May 2021.

As per the initial payments bank guidelines issued by RBI in 2014, the deposit limit was set at ₹1 lakh. A notification from RBI dated 7th April 2021 stated, “After reviewing the performance of payments banks and to encourage their efforts for financial inclusion it was decided to enhance the limit of maximum balance at end of the day from ₹1 lakh to ₹2 lakh per individual customer.”

Announcing the roll out of the new deposit limit Mr. Ashish Ahuja, COO, Fino Payments Bank said, “Following RBI directive, we have updated our processes and systems and went live on 1st of May. The increased deposit limit allows our customersto save more money in their account. Further, our existing sweep account mechanism continues with our partner bank wherein customers can save funds in excess of ₹2 lakh.”

Up to ₹2 lakh in Fino account, existing savings interest rate will be applicable. Funds in sweep account will get interest rates as set by Suryoday Small Finance Bank, the partner bank. It may be noted that the Bank deposits are insured under the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the RBI.

“The raise in limit also enhances the cause of financial inclusion as more people will join the banking fold. MSMEs, small traders and merchants are expected to make use of this offering to save time and better financial planning,” added Mr. Ahuja. 

Fino Payments Bank’s micro ATM and AePS enabled financial services distribution network brings banking closer to the masses. At these banking points, people can open a new bank account, get debit cards, do deposit, withdrawal or money transfer transactions, pay utility bills, loan EMIs, and buy health, life and motor insurance. All in the neighbourhood, completely paperless and Hamesha!.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Announces The Customer Connect Program 2.0

 

Driven by the commitment of providing the highest level of quality service, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) today announced “Customer Connect Program 2.0” to support and provide a sense of assurance to customer in the uncertain times.

With the objective to maximize support and in line with the ‘Customer First’ philosophy the company announced a host of initiatives to ensure hassle free maintenance and benefits such as:  

- *Extension of Vehicle Warranty & Customer paid Extended Warranty

- *Extension Free Maintenance Services

- *Extension Pre-Paid Service Package [SMILES]

Safety is one of the key priorities, TKM has been implementing measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 infections. As a part of this customer connect program 2.0, the company is offering Toyota Bactaklenz, a non-chemical fumigation treatment, at a special price for both Toyota as well as non-Toyota vehicles. Further, all dealerships are being informed to strictly follow preventive protocols by adopting highest standards of safety and hygiene practice. TKM is also encouraging contactless service where customer can book service appointment through TConnect mobile App, WhatsApp or Website and choose to pick up & drop services, and dealership will make all the efforts to delight and meet customer requirements. Additionally, extensive outreach to engage and educate our customer on tips for protection of parked vehicles and the importance of periodic maintenance has been undertaken.

Commenting on the new announcement, Mr. Naveen Soni, Senior Vice President, TKM said, “We are aware of the extreme difficulties faced by our customers during this pandemic and the uncertainties it has brought. Our “Customer Connect Program 2.0” is a step further to build confidence and show our commitment to our valued customers by ensuring seamless communication and hassle-free processes to ensure customer convenience & utmost safety. Our dealerships will continue their efforts to support our customers, and as a responsible corporate citizen we are extending our support to even take care of vehicle sanitization used by frontline warriors. Taking this opportunity, we would also like to sincerely request all our customers to stay at home and follow the guidelines announced by the Government.”

*In case of lapse then, validity extension of these products / programs will be upto 1 month, in the cities/states where the lockdown or movement restrictions are imposed.

Keysight Enables Customers To Test Performance Of Millimeter-Wave Innovations In 5G, Aerospace/Defense And Satellite Communications

Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: KEYS), a leading technology company that delivers advanced design and validation solutions to help accelerate innovation to connect and secure the world, announced the Keysight N9042B UXA X-Series signal analyzer solution, which enables customers to test the performance of millimeter-wave (mmWave) innovations in 5G, aerospace & defense and satellite communications.

At mmWave frequencies, signals are more susceptible to impairments that affect the signal quality, such as IQ modulation errors, phase noise, distortion, signal-to-noise ratio, amplitude, and phase linearity. Keysight’s new N9042B UXA X-Series signal analyzer provides wide analysis bandwidth and deep dynamic range to help customers solve their most difficult mmWave challenges including tight design margins and timelines, complex modulation and stringent standards.

“Understanding signal fidelity is critical to the performance of products in 5G, aerospace and defense, satellite and automotive radar markets,” said Kiran Unni, vice president, industrial technologies practice, Frost & Sullivan. “At mmWave frequencies, signals are more susceptible to impairments that affect the signal quality, such as IQ modulation errors, phase noise, distortion, signal-to-noise ratio, amplitude and phase linearity.  For designers and manufacturers, addressing these challenges is crucial when characterizing and testing the true performance of mmW products.”

Keysight’s N9042B UXA X-Series signal analyzer delivers the following customer benefits:

· A picture containing text, indoor, electronics, computer

Description automatically generatedEnsures designs meet the latest standards with ready-to-use measurement applications and signal analysis software.

· Sees signals clearly with an unbanded, preselected sweep from 2 Hz to 110 GHz and up to 11 GHz of analysis bandwidth.

. Tests the true performance of a 5G new radio (NR) transmitter with an advanced error vector magnitude (EVM).

· Finds out-of-band emissions or spurs quickly in radar designs with superior swept displayed average noise level (DANL).

Develops high-throughput satellite communication designs with 4 GHz of corrected analysis bandwidth.

“With the increasing demand for data, higher frequency and bandwidth, Keysight’s signal analyzer and generator solutions embody our deep expertise in mmW design and measurements, for the latest 5G wireless, radar, aerospace defense, satellite and communications research,” said Joe Rickert, vice president and general manager of high frequency measurement R&D for Keysight’s communications solutions group. “We’re excited to partner with our customers on their test and measurement needs to accelerate industry innovations.” 

Test Application Software

To ensure designs meet the latest standards with ready-to-use measurement applications for cellular communication, wireless connectivity, and aerospace/defense, the company integrated PathWave X-Series measurement applications with the UXA X-Series signal analyzer.  These applications simplify complex tasks and deliver repeatable results.  In addition, the 89600 PathWave Vector Signal Analysis software,  a comprehensive set of tools for demodulation and vector signal analysis, offers support for more than 75 signal standards and modulation types, and enables customers to explore every facet of a signal and optimize their most advanced designs.

Cellular Communications

Testing 5G components and devices per the 3GPP 5G New Radio (5G NR) standard Releases 15 and 16 requires a solution with higher accuracy, sensitivity, and bandwidth capability.

The N9042B signal analyzer tests the true performance of transmitter designs with error vector magnitude (EVM) and 5G NR signal analysis software which perform transmitter downlink and uplink measurements with one-button simplicity.

Satellite Communications

Today's satellite communication systems require a sophisticated approach to wideband component characterization. Customers need to characterize amplifiers and components at bandwidths wider than the target application. The N9042B UXA X-Series signal analyzer provides a wide analysis bandwidth and unbanded, preselected frequency range to help customers characterize the performance of their satellite designs.

The N9042B UXA X-Series signal analyzer solution enables customers to reach high levels of measurement accuracy with:

· The innovative Keysight V3050A Signal Analyzer Frequency Extender which delivers unmatched measurement accuracy of wideband signals at very high frequencies. It provides outstanding sensitivity, unbanded and preselected frequency coverage up to 110 GHz, high dynamic range and a seamless interface to the N9042B UXA signal analyzer.

· Keysight’s RCal receiver calibrator corrects system path losses and frequency responses up to 5 GHz IF bandwidth without the need for an external vector network analyzer, cabling and manual test-plane characterization. The palm-sized RCal seamlessly transfers precision factory calibration data to the Keysight X-Series signal analyzer over a USB connection, reducing the effort and complexity required to improve measurement accuracy for the test receiver system.

· Keysight's companion VXG microwave signal generator offers high output power with ultra-low phase noise and wide bandwidth for demanding wireless, as well as aerospace and defense applications. The VXG's dual-channel architecture, quickly switches from blocker and interferer tests to dual channel MIMO and beamforming tests.