'We Aim To Preserve Or Transplant Trees In Our Projects': Kishan Govindaraju

By Manu Sharma

Environment conservation is a continuous process and must be carried out by every citizen. For developers the responsibility is doubled since development poses challenges. 

'Globally, we are in the midst of an environmental crisis. With the ill effects of global warming affecting all parts of our lives, I believe we as developers should come up with innovative ideas to make our projects as environmentally friendly as we can,' advocates Kishan Govindaraju, Director, Vaishnavi Group, a leading builder based in Bengaluru. 

On the occasion of World Environment Day, Manu Sharma of Silicon Village caught up with Kishan, who talks about how trees can be preserved & transplanted in developments, what type of technology can be used for doing that and how water conservation is crucial. Excerpts:

Manu Sharma: As a developer, how much importance do you attach to trees ?

Kishan Govindaraju: Trees are a great asset to everyone. Not only do they add value to the landscaping but they also have great health benefits such as purifying the air and also providing shade where necessary. We handle trees in our projects with care and aim to conserve or transplant many of the trees in our projects.

MS: You have reportedly saved a number of trees while developing properties. How did you manage that and what are the number of trees you claimed to have saved ?

KG: In one of our projects, Vaishnavi Rhapsody, we have used LIDAR technology which can exactly pinpoint the spread of the trees and build the structure around it and not damage the trees. We made sure most of the trees on this site were retained.

MS: Have you undertaken transplantation of trees ?

KG: Yes we have undertaken the transplantation of trees. In our project Vaishnavi Gardenia, we undertook the transplantation of 80 trees. We had moved trees which were clashing with the roads or building structure and moved them to the landscaping area of the project.

MS: What do environmental laws mean to you ?

KG: We believe environmental laws are of paramount importance in today’s day and age.  All our projects are compliant with the relevant environmental governing acts.

MS: How do you ensure that you projects are environment friendly ?

KG:  I believe that there have been major advancements in construction technology which helps to keep our carbon footprint low, and not damage the environment in and around the project.  We mostly use precast construction technology for our project which reduces the need for water at site by almost 35%. It is very precise in terms of the material required during the production process and hence the material wastage is greatly reduced. The sites are very clean and noise and air pollution also drastically reduces.

MS: How according to you can developers work hand in hand with nature and carry on developmental work while parallel preserving the environment ?

KG:  I strongly advocate for the use of technology at the start of the development so the preservation can begin at an early stage. Also water conservation methods such as proper drainage systems, creating rainwater harvesting systems, reusing the water within the project for landscape with efficient STPs (Sewage Treatment Plant), having percolation pits throughout the project will help make the development more environmentally friendly. 

Most of our projects are either IGBC Platinum or Gold certified and we have to keep that going for all future projects. I strongly believe that we should take environmental concerns very seriously and do whatever we can be it as a company or an individual to preserve the world we live in.

Discovery India, UN India And WWF India Partner To Launch A Thought-Provoking Campaign #StopTheMelt On World Environment Day

By Manu Sharma

The multi-channel campaign aims to drive awareness on how every individual holds equal responsibility to be a change agent by taking small yet important steps for a greener and a healthier earth Eminent celebrities like Malaika Arora, Suresh Raina, Rana Daggubati, Pratik Gandhi, Dia Mirza, Sania Mirza, Neeraj Pandey, Shital Bhatia and many others come in support of Discovery India’s #StopTheMelt campaign on World Environment Day Bengaluru, June 05, 2021: Discovery, India’s leading real-life entertainment channel in partnership with UN India and WWF India today announced the launch of a path-breaking campaign, #StopTheMelt. With Ecosystem Restoration being this year’s UN World Environment Day theme, Discovery India aims to throw light on the ailing state of the planet. A problem so big can only be highlighted with a drastic action and hence, this World Environment Day, Discovery India for the first time changes its logo to deepen understanding of the impact of global warming, and to encourage people to take action today for a better tomorrow.

A special soul stirring film is released in partnership with UN India and WWF India to raise awareness and rekindle hope within every individual with simple yet impactful call to action like tree plantation, avoiding plastics usage et al. To watch the campaign film #StopTheMelt, click here: https://youtu.be/ip1af5XRCR0

The campaign is backed by captivating creatives across Discovery Network social media platforms which symbolises the harsh effects of Global Warming and leaves an alarming question for all the human beings. Leading influencer names like Malaika Arora, Suresh Raina, Rana Daggubati, Dia Mirza, Pratik Gandhi, Neeraj Pandey (Filmmaker), Shital Bhatia (Film producer), Sania Mirza and environmentalist Ivan Carter, Nigel Marven among many others have lent their support to champion the cause of self-reflection to re-analyse habits and save the environment.

Speaking about the campaign, Megha Tata, Managing Director, South Asia- Discovery Inc says, “We remain steadfast in our commitment to driving awareness about the need for reduction of human impact on the environment. We are proud to extend our partnership with UN India and WWF India, two most powerful and recognized forces working relentlessly towards environment conservation. As leaders in real-life entertainment, it is also our responsibility to continue drawing attention towards important issues beyond this day alone and work towards championing more action for a better tomorrow.” 

“2020 was a year of reckoning – a global pandemic that’s wreaked havoc in every part of the world, and a climate crisis that continues to deepen. This year, as we enter the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration, we must vigorously renew our commitment to tackle climate change head-on through collective action – plant more trees, change our diet, say no to plastic and pledge to re-use, reduce and recycle. That is the call to action of our new campaign #StopTheMelt, in partnership with Discovery Network and WWF. Each one of us – together with our government, civil societies and communities – can do our bit to restore our planet,” says Renata Dessallien, UN Resident Coordinator in India. 

Sharing his thoughts, Mr. Ravi Singh, Secretary General & CEO, WWF India said: “By acting together now, we can solve the dual threats of climate change and nature loss. This year, on World Environment Day, the focus is to invest our efforts to conserve, protect and restore our ecosystems, which is the solution to a sustainable future. WWF India has always taken pride to partner with Discovery India for campaigns driving the message to conserve nature and to secure a better future by putting both the health of people and our planet first.”

To drive a deeper engagement with audiences, Discovery Channel will air a 5 hour-long gripping slate of content specially curated for World Environment Day, including Wild Karnataka, The Story of Plastic, Jeremy Wade – Mighty Ganga, Great Global Clean-up, and India 2050 on 5th June from 12 Noon to 5 PM.

About Discovery India:

Discovery Communications India, country’s leading real life entertainment player, is dedicated to satisfying curiosity, engaging and entertaining viewers with high-quality content through its portfolio of 14 channels including Discovery Channel, Discovery HD, Animal Planet, Animal Planet HD, TLC, TLC HD, Investigation Discovery, Investigation Discovery HD, Discovery Science, Discovery Turbo, Discovery Kids, DTamil and sports channels Eurosport and Eurosport HD.  The company recently launched India’s first aggregated real-life entertainment streaming app Discovery Plus. Available on Android, iOS and on the desktop / mobile web and Fire TV, the app offers more than 40,000 hours of content, across 40+ genres including Science, Adventure, Food and Lifestyle, in the language of your choice. 

About UN India

The United Nations system in India includes 26 organisations that have the privilege to serve in India. The Resident Coordinator, the designated representative of the UN Secretary-General to the Government leads the UN Country Team to advocate the mandate of the United Nations, while drawing on the support and guidance of the entire UN family. 

About WWF India

WWF India is committed to creating and demonstrating practical solutions that help conserve India’s ecosystems and rich biodiversity. Completing 50 years of conservation journey in the country, WWF India works towards finding science-based and sustainable solutions to address challenges at the interface of development and conservation. WWF India is part of the WWF network, with offices in over 100 countries across the world. WWF India works in over 20 states, across thematic areas including the conservation of key wildlife species and their habitats, management of rivers, wetlands and their ecosystems, climate change adaptation, driving sustainable solutions for business and agriculture, empowering local communities as stewards of conservation, combatting illegal wildlife trade and inspiring students and citizens to take positive action for the environment through outreach and awareness campaigns.

Aegon Life Elevates Manish Falor As The New Chief Financial Officer

Aegon Life, a pioneer in digital life insurance, has announced the appointment of Manish Falor as its Chief Financial Officer. In his new role, Manish Falor will lead the company’s finance function with the aim to strengthen the business performance and growth of the company.

Manish joined Aegon Life in 2008. During his professional tenure of nearly two decades, he has led various functions of financial control, reporting, and business planning operations.

Satishwar Balakrishnan, MD & CEO, Aegon Life, commented on the appointment “We are delighted to have Manish take over the new role within the organization. His unique expertise in business planning and proficiency in accounts and financial management has helped us create value among our key stakeholders over the past 12 years. We are certain that Manish, in his new role, will help in Aegon Life’s growth in years to come. His clear vision, and leadership skills will position us for greater success.”

Speaking on his appointment, Manish added, “I am excited to take over the new role at Aegon Life. With the help of advanced technology, innovation, and a fresh approach towards insurance, Aegon Life has paved the way for digital life insurance in India. We have many firsts to our merit when we speak of innovation in the Indian life insurance industry, and we are gearing up to transform the way customers buy life insurance policies in India. It has been an amazing journey so far and I look forward to taking our business transformation to a new level.”

Prior to Aegon Life, he worked with Lovelock & Lewes and Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC, London), engaging with multiple insurance and investment management clients. Manish is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and a Cost and Works Accountant (CWA) by qualification. He has also completed a management certification program on Digital Disruption in Insurance from INSEAD, France.

About Aegon Life:

Aegon Life, India’s leading digital life insurance company, was the first life insurance company to launch Online Term Insurance Plans in India. By focusing on innovative digital-first solutions, its vision is to enable customers to lead tension free lives and be the most recommended new age Life Insurance Company. The company’s Direct to Customer focus establishes a direct dialogue with the customers to make for greater clarity and transparency. Being the online protection specialists, Aegon Life has a dedicated customer service team that is geared to provide superior customer experience.

Godrej Interio Reveals Its Sustainability Goals Ahead Of World Environment Day

* As part of Godrej & Boyce’s EP100 commitment, Godrej Interio will also be doubling energy productivity and aim to reduce carbon intensity by 60% by 2030 

* Plans to invest 60 million Rs. in renewable energy projects in next 3 years and targets 45% revenue share from Good & Green products y-o-y till 2031 

Godrej & Boyce, the flagship company of the Godrej Group, announced that its business Godrej Interio, India’s leading furniture brand in-home and institutional segments revealed its sustainability goals in areas of energy efficiency, water conservation, carbon neutrality, increasing renewable energy share. In alignment with Godrej & Boyce’s EP100 commitment, Godrej Interio has also committed to doubling its energy productivity by 2030.

As part of its sustainability goals, Godrej Interio aims to have a third of its portfolio revenues comprising good and green products and services. In FY2020-21, 22 products were added to the Good & Green products offerings thus taking the cumulative count to 120. They plan to increase number of Good & Green products from 120 to 130 in FY 21-22. While Godrej Interio has already achieved 45% revenue share from Good & Green products in F.Y. 2020-21, it aims to continue to target 45% revenue share from Good & Green for the foreseeable future.

Commenting on the sustainability goals, Mr. Anil Sain Mathur, COO, Godrej Interio, “At Godrej Interio, our sustainability strategy is aligned with Godrej & Boyce’s ‘Good & Green’ initiative which underscores our deep and abiding belief that innovation and sustainability must go hand-in-hand. Combining the two will promote our journey to ensuring employability, energy efficiency, promotion of a circular economy and greater community development. We are proud to be part of a company that commits to global causes such as EP100 initiative and that as Godrej Interio, we can help further this commitment thus helping lead the way on smarter energy usage.”

As a part of its sustainable manufacturing initiatives, Godrej Interio has adopted various technologies across all the manufacturing locations to reduce energy consumption. These technologies include use of VFDs on pumps and blowers, use of waste recovery technologies such as heat pipes, use of heat pumps, installation of energy efficient machines and energy efficient lighting, etc.  As of FY2020-21, Godrej Interio has reduced its energy consumption by 49.5% and water consumption by 43% based on its Good & Green Vision baseline of FY2010-11. It also achieved renewable energy share of 23% in FY20-21.

The company plans to invest Rs 60 million in next 3 years in renewable energy projects.

Similarly, the recycling of water at Godrej Interio’s plants is being done through Sewage Treatment Plants (STP) or Effluent treatment plants (ETP). The water recycled through ETP is made process ready for re-use in the manufacturing processes through advanced technologies such as reverse osmosis at Khalapur, Chennai and Bhagwanpur. In FY2020-21, around 40,440 Kiloliters of water was recycled and reused which is 31% of the total freshwater usage across Interio’s manufacturing plants. They plan on increasing this percentage to more substantial levels in the years to come.

About Godrej Interio:

Godrej Interio (GI) is India’s premium furniture brand in both home and institutional segments with a strong commitment to sustainability and centers of excellence in design, manufacturing, and retail.

Led by the largest in-house design team in the country in the furniture category and awarded with 37 India Design Mark Awards till date, GI aims to transform spaces with its thoughtfully designed furniture to create brighter homes and offices with products that have the highest design quotient in aesthetics, functionality and technology. With consistent pursuit of excellence and a special focus on health and ergonomics, GI’s product portfolio comprises a massive range.

Today, we design and manufacture furniture for office spaces, homes, educational institutes, healthcare facilities, laboratories and more. Along with furniture we offer Audio Visual and 360 Degree Turnkey solutions. Each of our product range revolves around comfort and aesthetics while delivering well-designed, fun and functional furniture solutions. Briefly, Godrej Interio transforms dream spaces to life!

Godrej Interio has 7 manufacturing facilities situated at Mumbai, Khalapur, Haridwar, Shirwal, and Bhagwanpur. GI’s Shirwal Plant is Green Co Platinum Certified, and Mumbai Plants are Green Co Gold Certified. GI is widely known for its comprehensive sustainability certifications for its products in furniture category.

GI commitment to the environment has resulted in manufacturing products with lesser environment footprint. Our pioneering efforts include designing less environment burdening products, usage of eco-friendly materials and setting up less polluting and consuming processes, ensuring eco-friendly packaging and transportation and finally the extended responsibility of recycling/reuse of used furniture and scrap, thus ensuring a lifecycle approach to green. GI has the widest range of green choices for our customers which not only includes products but also services such as green interiors and recycling.

Currently present in over 650 cities with 250 exclusive showrooms and 800 dealers, GI is one of the largest divisions of Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd., part of the Godrej Group, one of India's largest engineering and customer product groups.

The brand boasts of noteworthy awards received so far- CII Exim Bank Award for Business Excellence 2016, Superbrands 2017-18, Reader’s Digest Most Trusted Brand 2018 Gold (Home Furniture and Modular Kitchen), TRA’s India’s Most Consumer focused brand 2019, GreenCo Star Performer Award 2019, National Energy Leader Award at CII National Award for Excellence in Energy Management 2018.

Happiest Minds Technologies Starts COVID-19 Vaccination Drive For Its Team And Family Members

Happiest Minds Technologies Limited (NSE: HAPPSTMNDS), a ‘Born Digital. Born Agile’, a digital transformation and IT solutions company today announced that it has launched a vaccination drive for Happiest Minds and their immediate family members.

To start with, the vaccination drive will cover the company’s facilities based out of Bengaluru and will later be expanded to cover other locations. Happiest Minds has tied up with Fortis Hospitals for the vaccination drives in Bengaluru and has started the vaccination drive on 2nd June, 2021. 

Ram Mohan C, President & CEO, Infrastructure Management & Security Services, Happiest Minds Technologies, said, “The entire country is facing unprecedented challenges on account of this pandemic. Vaccination is an important measure that can help us tide over the ongoing crisis, also ensuring the safety and well-being of the company’s core assets i.e. our people. We are ensuring that our team and their families are vaccinated at the earliest.”

The latest initiative follows the company’s contribution to COVID 19 relief measures done last year.  Key initiatives toward COVID relief include:

•             Happiest Minds developed VSafe - Vaccination Tracking System application to track the vaccination status of all Happiest Minds and their families

•             Mithra - the Good Samaritan Program consists of a team of volunteers who are committed to counsel Happiest Minds and be available to listen to them, in safety, acceptance and confidentiality

•             Internal First Responders (IFR) Team: The IFR team member assists in guiding the Happiest Mind to the various resources that are available, such as, leave, loan, advance, hospitalization, oxygen, medication, etc.

•             Wellness Programs facilitated by the HappiZest team

•             Medical Tele-consultation for Happiest Minds and their families

•             Procuring Oxygen Concentrators for the use of Happiest Minds and family on a need basis

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, and more. 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 the Middle East.

Blue Dart’s Digital Initiatives Go Green This "World Environment Day"

* Introduces paperless transactions in line with the Group’s New Sustainability Roadmap 

Blue Dart, South Asia's premier express air and integrated transportation & distribution company, part of the Deutsche Post DHL Group (DPDHL), announces paperless transactions on their new Digital Portal for all its Vendor Partners this “World Environment Day” on 5th June 2021. The online launch event of this paperless technology is a registered event with UNEP for the celebrations of World Environment Day. Under the Group’s New Sustainability Roadmap, Blue Dart has made significant investments in developing future-ready technology that can protect the environment and at the same time deliver excellence in a sustainable way. 

The United Nations has proclaimed 2021- 2030 as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. With collaborative efforts, efficient risk mitigation strategies and sustainable use of resources; ecosystem restoration is expected to create tremendous business opportunities in line with the environmental, social and governance (ESG) parameters. Blue Dart has committed this decade to its efforts towards ecosystem restoration.  

Blue Dart recognises the importance to fight climate change and is integrating robust ESG mechanisms into this decade of ecosystem restoration. Blue Dart has executed over 50% of its customer invoices online and is working towards achieving a 100% transition. Manufacturing paper is energy-intensive; one A4 sheet requires approximately 50 watt-hours. Going paperless will help conserve energy, reduce CO2 emissions, avoid deforestation, protect the natural habitat and strengthen forest-based livelihood opportunities for the surrounding communities. Through this initiative, Blue Dart will not only protect the environment but also commits to planting a significant number of trees every year. Currently, Blue Dart plants 111,000 trees every year, in order to offset 22,20,000 kg carbon per year on maturity.  

Balfour Manuel, Managing Director, Blue Dart said, “We are a purpose-driven organisation and have always kept sustainability and living responsibility at the centre of all our operations. This initiative is our endeavour to inculcate sustainable business practices and at the same time raise the bar on innovation. Blue Dart is a market leader and we believe that if we navigate through our sustainability roadmap, we will be able to contribute to reducing India’s and in the larger scheme of things, the World’s climate change issue – one step at a time. It is up to the world’s large organizations and the conglomerates to change the future landscape of Global Warming and Blue Dart is proud to be taking several steps forward to aid this cause.” 

Aneel Gambhir, CFO, Blue Dart said, “In the journey of being an ESG compliant organisation, we have identified sustainable ways to carry out business operations. We are committed to giving back to the community in which we operate and at the same time, we are doing all that it takes to restore and protect our environment. The pandemic era combined with climate change emphasises the urgent need for organisations to invest in the ecosystem, before it’s too late.” 

As part of DPDHL, Blue Dart’s New Sustainability Roadmap calls for Clean Operations for Climate Protection, a Great Company to Work for all as well as building a Highly Trusted Company. The Express Logistics Provider has launched many initiatives to ensure it is doing its bit to aid the world in its battle against climate change and global warming. The company aims to make all their owned or leased facilities operate at Net Zero Carbon by 2025, drive increased efficiency and use cleaner fuels within their fleet of 6 Boeing 757 freighters, support customers with sustainable and optimized packaging solutions and design greener products and services through their comprehensive solutions.  

Under its credo of Connecting People, Improving Lives, Blue Dart undertakes ‘Go Programs’ that focuses mainly on three aspects namely GoTeach (Championing education), GoGreen (Protecting the environment) and GoHelp (Disaster management response), all three of which have been successfully impacting communities and the environment. These initiatives are in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, a universal call to action by the UN to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. 

Blue Dart aims to achieve Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050 under the DPDHL Goal ‘Mission 2050’, wherein, the brand’s goal is to limit global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius. The brand aims to drive its business towards zero emission logistics as well as set the standard for the future of the express logistics sector and do its part to help the world. Under the Mission 2050 initiative, over four years, Blue Dart has contributed to over 10% of the DPDHL Group’s global target of planting 1 million trees each year. In addition to this, in December 2011, Blue Dart announced India’s first end-to-end GoGreen Carbon Neutral Service across international and domestic markets. This service has been subscribed by over 2,871 environmentally responsible customers till 2020. 

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 DHL 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). 

now.gg launches Mobile Cloud; Brings Gaming To The Next Billion

* Powered by nowCloud OS, now.gg PaaS is already adopted by several leading mobile game developers worldwide

now.gg, the mobile cloud company, today launched a mobile cloud platform for game developers. Mobile cloud Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) from now.gg drastically changes the reach, potential and business model for game developers by solving for accessibility, shareability and monetization. Already adopted by leading game developers like Perfect World, PerBlue and Lilith Games, now.gg’s mobile cloud aims to revolutionize the way mobile game developers reach new users around the world.

For the first time ever, game developers can deliver the same graphics and high performance interactive play regardless of device, OS or regional constraints through the now.gg mobile cloud. Their gaming communities can play games on any mobile device or OS, share games instantly on social channels they already use and make in-game purchases through payment channels they already have.

Today, almost 40 percent of mobile phones cannot keep up with power gaming and 60 percent of the smartphones in the global market are low- or mid-range and cannot handle compute, storage and performance intensive games. By removing the friction previously associated with mobile gaming, it is now possible to bring the next billion users to gaming.

In addition to bringing the next wave of gamers to mobile, now.gg makes games instantly shareable through the click of a link. Instead of waiting for cumbersome downloads and installs, gamers can immediately share, click and access games. Users simply click the link to instantly play the game and make in-app purchases -- no download or install needed until they are ready to commit. They can even play on third-party apps like Discord and Snapchat without leaving the platform. With 1.3 million new users joining social media every day, game developers can reach the next billion mobile gamers as they receive and share their favorite games through their social channels.

Game developers can monetize their new users with the mobile cloud without relying on credit cards. 45 percent of all online purchases are made via digital wallets and this amount is expected to rise to 51 percent by 2024. now.gg gives gamers the freedom to pay through digital payment channels they already have on the cloud, like digital wallets, cryptocurrency or game top-ups. This will enable gamer developers to attract many more new users and to also increase their margins.

Through the cloud deployment of Arm®-based server processors now.gg delivers an exciting new gameplay experience to users and developers that was not possible until now. By serving Arm-native Android or IOS games from AWS Graviton2-powered instances, publishers avoid architecture incompatibility issues, resulting in a seamless end-to-end developer experience. Such instances deliver 40 percent better performance per dollar compared to comparable current generation x86 instances, which can both reduce developer hosting costs and allow them to serve more customers per instance.

“now.gg empowers mobile game developers to acquire an entire spectrum of new users that would otherwise have been constrained by device and app store specs,” said Rosen Sharma, now.gg CEO. “The mobile cloud democratizes access to mobile gaming by removing all friction and device requirements from experiencing a new game. This unleashes an unprecedented new era of possibilities for game developers to acquire the next billion mobile gamers. The next generation of mobile gaming is here.”

now.gg is powered by its proprietary distributed Android stack on Arm-based servers, called nowCloud OS. nowCloud OS allows game developers to easily enable their existing Android apps for the cloud and build cloud native in the future. This lets now.gg adapt to the characteristics of the endpoint, bandwidth, and latency constraints and optimize the cost performance of the cloud. Game developers across the world simply need to host their game on the now.gg cloud and publish the link on their websites to bring global access to their games.

“now.gg has built a platform that leverages the global scale of AWS to provide a valuable business model to game developers worldwide. We see this as one of the most exciting use cases of our ARM servers on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2),” said Johan Broman, EMEA Gaming Solutions, AWS. “By leveraging the mobile cloud from now.gg, and AWS Graviton2 instances, game developers can run mobile games natively, encode the rendered graphics and stream the games directly to a mobile device. This allows game developers to provide a consistent gaming experience for all mobile devices and a much more enjoyable and seamless process for the gamers.”

“Data centers running servers powered by Arm-based processors are helping to eliminate compatibility issues for mobile cloud developers, ensuring smartphone applications are readily available in the cloud,” said Eddie Ramirez, senior director of Marketing, Infrastructure Line of Business, Arm. “Through our collaboration with now.gg, we are solving for this new era of cloud-hosted gaming to enable a rich game play experience, while driving more efficient revenue streams for developers and cloud providers.”

“One of the biggest challenges game developers face is appealing to their existing community, expanding their reach, and providing an excellent experience. now.gg revolutionizes gaming by uniquely solving for user acquisition, game shareability and monetization. Regardless of device or location, gamers can now instantly access any game with a frictionless gaming experience, which is an entirely new and exciting concept. In our pilot with the technology, we saw a significant uptick in both acquisition and retention,” said Bai Xue, producer at Perfect World, a leading game developer known for popular games like Perfect World Mobile.

now.gg mobile cloud is available for use immediately. 

About now.gg:

now.gg is the mobile cloud company changing the gaming experience for game developers and consumers. With the first global mobile platform-as-a-service for game developers, now.gg enables gaming communities to play games on any device or OS, share games instantly on their social channels and pay in-game through payment channels they already have. No longer constrained by geography, device or attribution, now.gg opens the world of consumers to game developers and unlocks entirely new revenue streams. 

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, now.gg shares a parent company with game.tv, the world's No. 1 mobile esports platform, and BlueStacks, the largest Android gaming platform on PC. Leading game developers use now.gg to delight the world with their games. 

Swaraj Tractors Launches ‘Mera Swaraj Education Support Program’

* Supporting students with financial assistance & opportunities to work on live agri-mechanization projects

* Nurturing young engineering talent for industry

Swaraj Tractors, a part of the USD 19.4 billion Mahindra Group, has launched the ‘Mera Swaraj Education Support Program’, an early career development initiative for engineering students across the country that aims to create a future pool of competent engineers. The program is designed to expose first-year engineering students to critical and holistic industry experiences necessary for long-term career development. Students from top engineering colleges offering Agri-engineering will be targeted for this program.

For its first year, Swaraj Tractors has selected thirty-seven students for internships from eight engineering colleges across the country. The students will be subsumed into Swaraj’s final placement process. As a part of their internships, they will also work on live farm- mechanization projects mentored by industry experts.

Harish Chavan, Chief Executive Officer, Swaraj Tractors said, “At Swaraj we aim to nurture and create a competent pool of engineers for the future by engaging students early on in their careers and giving them the opportunity to appreciate varied mechanisation possibilities for new age agriculture. Through the ‘Mera Swaraj Education Support Program’ we not only hope to support deserving students pursuing engineering education but acquaint them with modern tools and technologies through practical exposures in industry.”

Through the ‘Mera Swaraj Education Support Program’, students will receive financial support for four years, subject to consistent academic performance.

This year, students selected for the program primarily have farming backgrounds, in line with Swaraj’s USP of ‘Made by the farmer, and for the Farmer’.

About Swaraj

Swaraj Tractors a division of the USD 19.4 billion Mahindra Group and is India’s second largest and fastest growing tractor brand. Established in 1974, Swaraj has sold over 1.5 million tractors since inception. Based in Punjab, the grain bowl of India, Swaraj is a brand that is made by the farmer, for the farmer as many of its employees are also farmers. They bring real world performance and create an authentic, powerful product with assured performance and enduring quality, designed with one purpose – enabling the Indian farmer to Rise. Swaraj Tractors, consistently ranked among top players in Customer Satisfaction in India, manufactures tractors in the range of 15HP to 65HP and also provides complete farming solutions.  

Tydy Launches “The State Of Digital Onboarding” Report Of 2021

Tydy, an Onboarding Experience Company, has launched The State of Digital Onboarding report- capturing data and trends in global onboarding in the times of the pandemic. The report looks at data from February 2020 to March 2021 giving insights into the trend curve on digital onboarding through the pandemic and beyond. The report highlights onboarding numbers during a year when Work from Home and job losses were reported to be the highest over time and throws light on the ways global businesses automated their people processes. 

The State of Digital Onboarding 2020-21 report is based on data from employers across FMCG, IT & Digital Transformation, Pharma, Manufacturing, Financial Services and Telecom. The digital onboarding trend was seen across a data set of 100,000+ employees who were onboarded from March 2020 to April 2021.

Launching the report, Kiran Menon, Co-Founder, Tydy, said, “Global economic activity, cross-border investments and onboarding numbers were booming until April 2020 and WHO called it a pandemic. The first two quarters were spent in adapting to the new normal and it wasn’t until Q3 2020, that we witnessed a bounce back, when hope reigned supreme for businesses. Digital Onboarding enabled and empowered companies to continue to onboard their new hires in the safest way possible. With zero paperwork, low-code functionalities, automated workflows and intelligent insights - HR and IT teams have been able to onboard anyone, anywhere. Since Q1 2021, Digital Onboarding has seen a 2X growth globally.”

The report brings to light the following insights:

* With the start of pandemic, with hiring freezes, cost cutting and businesses going belly up, there was 25% month-on-month decline in March 2020 with a further 50% decline by May 2020.

* Q3 2020 was the beginning of the plan of revival, witnessing a strong bounce back with August witnessing 65% month-on-month uptick.

* Companies started seriously looking forward to 2021 and thinking about investments that needed to put in to grow their business.

* In Q4, the numbers stabilized. Holiday season brought down hiring but while the curve flattened, it was an optimistic time.

* The optimism reflected in Q1 2021, with Digital onboarding witnessing a 200% growth from January to February 2021

* The upward trend continues through April 2021, despite the second wave. 

Bayer Consumer Health Partners With FICCI To Promote Responsible Self-Care In India

* At the ‘Self-care for a Self-reliant India’ conference, co-convened with FICCI, Bayer Consumer Health Division launched India’s first Self-Care Council and also plans to launch a national self care knowledge service

* Responsible self-care scales access to everyday health solutions for minor ailments, reducing the pressure on healthcare practitioners while bolstering productivity

Bayer Partners With FICCI To Promote Responsible Self Care In India

Bayer Consumer Health Division, along with The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), today convened the ‘Self-care for a Self-reliant India’ conference. The event was graced by key industry representatives and consumer health experts, fostering a discussion on everyday consumer health solutions and the important role they will continue to play in the current pandemic and beyond.

In India, adults have a tendency to overlook minor illnesses, thus failing to prioritize everyday healthcare. This can take a toll on overall health, wellbeing and productivity. An average Indian’s peak productive period lasts only seven years as per a Lancet study, with India ranked 158 among 195 countries in ‘expected human capital’ or the number of years an individual can work at peak productivity is between the ages of 20 and 64.[1] Further, India also ranked below all other countries in the South Asian region in functional health status, which assesses prevalence of impairments and diseases that affect learning and productivity. The advent of responsible self-care can help address these gaps, promoting proactive health-seeking behaviours which can contribute to an optimized quality of life and the maintenance of a healthy workforce. Moreover, given that India may have the world’s largest workforce by 2027,[2] consumer health can play a significant role in bolstering productivity by reducing lost labour time and lowering hospitalization costs.[3],[4]

Self-care solutions, which offer multifold benefits for individuals and the economy, also ease the pressure on healthcare practitioners. There is only one doctor for every 1,511 people in India, against the World Health Organization’s stipulated 1:1000 doctor-patient ratio[5]. Consumer health offerings can reduce the need for clinic visits, thus sustaining proactive everyday healthcare and reaching underserved consumers across the nation. This can enable communities to bounce back beyond the pandemic with enhanced health and productivity.

Addressing the need for a paradigm shift in consumer health in India, Bayer Consumer Health Division has launched India’s first Self-Care Council with the aim to navigate and address pressing topics and misconceptions about health and sustainability. This council, a multi-stakeholder body, will comprise members across a broad spectrum of sectors, including media, industry associations, technology, infrastructure, and other organizations. Through this council, Bayer Consumer Health also plans to launch a national self-care knowledge service,  a first of its kind digitally-enabled solution backed by scientific expertise to empower consumers with uninterrupted access to reliable and credible information on self-care. This service can prompt proactive health management for improved quality of life and increased productivity.

The ‘Self-care for a Self-reliant India’ conference, through panel discussions with eminent speakers including Mr. Sandeep Verma, Country Head, Bayer Consumer Health Division, India, Ms. Manjari Gharat, Academician & President, Indian Pharmaceutical Association, Dr. Avula Laxman, Senior Deputy Director, Indian Council of Medical Research and Dr. VG Somani, Drugs Controller General of India, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation examined the current landscape of self-care in India and the need to accelerate the adoption of responsible self-care practices in the country. Over a fireside chat, Mr. N.K. Ahuja, Drugs Controller, Haryana and Mr. Arun Mishra, FICCI OTC Task Force elaborated on the direction in which regulatory change and a well-developed framework is needed for a comprehensive OTC policy to build a sustainable consumer health sector, setting the foundation for Aatmanirbharta in self-care.

Addressing the conference, Dr VG Somani, Drug Controller General (India), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India said that while there are predictions of a third wave hitting the country, there have been continuous efforts to find newer solutions. “Although the third wave might be milder in nature, it will, probably, effect various age groups. We need to be prepared to deal with this. As India combats the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to accelerate the momentum for adoption of consumer health solutions, to ensure the national health system is supported at this time. By raising health awareness and putting in place well-defined regulations, consumers can be empowered to take proactive measures to manage minor ailments while also undertaking preventive action to boost immunity, thus reducing the need for healthcare practitioner interventions,” he said.

Sandeep Verma, Country Head, Bayer Consumer Health Division – India commented, “The current times have highlighted the need for self-care, which can enhance productivity and one’s quality of life, driving India’s goal towards Atmanirbharta and becoming a $5 trillion economy in the next few years. At this crucial juncture, easing the burden on India’s healthcare infrastructure is imperative, while simultaneously equipping and empowering more than one billion Indians to make informed choices and pursue better health and nutrition. Bayer Consumer Health is committed to working collaboratively with stakeholders through the country’s first Self-Care Council to enable responsible self-care in India, driving forward our vision of ‘Health for All, Hunger for None’. Through this endeavour, we hope to expand access to safe, convenient and effective daily health solutions.”

Dilip Chenoy, Secretary General, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) said, “The advent of self-care in India reflects the emergence of new and sustainable care paradigms that will transform the nation’s healthcare system. We aim to encourage responsible health decisions amongst consumers and the need for accessible consumer health in the country. During these unprecedented times, self-care solutions are needed more than ever, towards positive change and better health outcomes for all.” 

Bayer Consumer Health’s Global Chief Marketing and Digital Officer, Patricia Corsi, who also leads the first Global Creative Council for self-care, highlighted the importance of collaboration. “Globally, the goal of our creative council is to elevate the work done across Consumer Health in order to support and educate consumers, thus promoting optimal health outcomes. We, at Bayer Consumer Health, are excited to extend this mode of collaboration to India with the country’s first-ever Self-Care Council, through which we hope to develop and exchange global insights and best practices to facilitate everyday health and access to care in the nation.”

Bayer’s Consumer Health division in India, encompasses a strong portfolio of 10 trusted and legacy brands across analgesics, nutrition, allergy, and dermatology categories. As a part of its Global Sustainability Goals, Bayer’s  Consumer Health Division aims to expand access to everyday health for 100 million people in underserved communities around the world. The division leverages digital opportunities across the entire value chain to scale access to healthcare and personalized self-care solutions, raise awareness and provide reliable health information.

About Bayer

Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are designed to help people and planet thrive by supporting efforts to master the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to drive sustainable development and generate a positive impact with its businesses. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability, and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2020, the Group employed around 100,000 people and had sales of 41.4 billion euros. R&D expenses before special items amounted to 4.9 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.

About FICCI

Established in 1927, FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organisation in India. A non-government, not-for-profit organisation, FICCI is the voice of India's business and industry. From influencing policy to encouraging debate, engaging with policy makers and civil society, FICCI articulates the views and concerns of industry. It serves its members from the Indian private and public corporate sectors and multinational companies, drawing its strength from diverse regional chambers of commerce and industry across states, reaching out to over 2,50,000 companies.

[1] 15th Finance Commission Report

[1] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)31941-X/fulltext

[2] Bloomberg News analsysi of United Nations (2019) Population-Projection data: https://population.un.org/wpp/

[3] The Economics of Self Care in Mexico. (Rep.). (2017). Asociación de Fabricantes de Medicantes de Libre Acceso.

[4] Association Européenne des Spécialités Pharmaceutiques Grand Publi, A. (2004). The Economic And Public Health Value Of Self-Medication (Rep.). Brussels, Belgium: Association of the European Self-Medication Industry.

[5] 15th Finance Commission Report

Marking Its 17th Anniversary, Vestige Celebrates Spirit Of Togetherness Amid Pandemic - ‘Ek Saath – Unbeatable Together’

* Vestige announces growth at CAGR of 30% and aims to expand its network in Asia & Africa  by 2025.

* Featuring at number 36 globally, Vestige is the only Indian-origin direct selling company in the 2021 DSN Global 100 list

Vestige Marketing Pvt Ltd, India’s largest home-grown direct selling company with a vast portfolio in health, wellness, and hygiene products, marked its 17th year of operations since its inception in 2004. Having grown strategically in business, markets and products, Vestige is now ranked 36, making it the only Indian-origin company to be featured in the reputed DSN Global 100 list. Along with this, Vestige has also been certified as The Great Place to Work for the third time in a row. 

Vestige has empowered and transformed the lives of millions of distributors across India and international markets providing access to health and wellness products for a better tomorrow. It has had a record growth of 30% CAGR and plans to expand its network to in Middle East, Africa and other regions by 2025.

It was the phenomenal growth in India that encouraged Vestige’s leaders to expand into international markets as well. Vestige is currently present in 6 countries including India and will soon start operations in countries like Thailand, Ghana and Philippines. 

Commenting on the significant rise of Vestige over the past 17 years, Gautam Bali, Managing Director, said, “I feel humbled when I look back on our journey and at the same time take great pride in the fact that we have been able to fulfil our vision of helping people live a life of economic independence on their own terms. It is the collective effort and the goal of shared prosperity of our distributors and employees that is reflected in the theme “Ek Saath” for the 17th year anniversary. I am immensely grateful to all Vestigians for their trust and faith in the brand.” 

He further added, “In India, over 65% of the population is below 35 years, and direct selling is a great opportunity to leverage for employment and income creation. The market is right now waiting to realise its full potential. We are committed to enable our vision of providing economic independence by creating entrepreneurs in tier 2 and 3 markets.”

In the FY 2018, as per industry studies there were 5.7 million direct sellers engaged in direct selling which is set to increase to 18 million by 2025. And according to ASSOCHAM, the direct selling industry is expected reach a value of INR 15,930 crore by end of 2021.

As the company completes its 17 years, it celebrates its position as a torchbearer of the country’s grassroots entrepreneurial skills to enable an Atmanirbhar Bharat. Since its inception in 2004, Vestige has been at the forefront of leading the direct selling revolution in India and has expanded its product portfolio exponentially in each category, offering over 300 products in 19 different categories. In India it has expanded to 3,500 online and offline touch points to enhance customer experience. Innovation and research are at the core of Vestige’s product development. Its manufacturing partners have state-of-the-art facilities and are GMP, HALAL and ISO certified. The products are made by following high quality standards and globally recognized best practices.

Corning Introduces Revolutionary Fiber Designed To Accelerate Network Transformation To 5G, Cloud, And Beyond

* Corning SMF-28 Contour Optical Fiber Offers A First-Of-Its-Kind Combination Of Bend Resilience, Compatibility, And Industry-Leading Low Loss

Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) has introduced its latest innovation, Corning SMF-28® Contour optical fiber, to help telecommunications operators address the ever-expanding number of connected devices, build-out of 5G networks, and advances in cloud computing.

Networks perform at their best when errors are minimized during fiber installation and when existing infrastructure is used efficiently during upgrades. Corning engineered SMF-28 Contour fiber to meet those needs. This groundbreaking product will allow customers to seamlessly upgrade their optical infrastructures, enabling the cost-effective deployment of future-ready networks. The fiber offers:

Superior bendability designed to reduce the impact of errors during installation and optimize reach in densely cabled environments where 5G networks are being deployed. SMF-28 Contour fiber is an ITU-T G.657.A2 fiber that has 10 times the macrobend resilience of G.652.D fibers and seven times the macrobend resilience of G.657.A1 fibers. The associated increase in microbend resilience enables dense, high-fiber-count cables needed to meet the demands of future high-capacity networks.

Exceptional compatibility with legacy networks while providing superior bend protection, which can mean up to 50% faster installation by minimizing corrective splice-loss work. Other G.657.A2 fibers also provide bend protection but with a compromised, lower mode field diameter. SMF-28 Contour fiber does not compromise, providing both G.657.A2 bend protection and a matched 9.2-micron mode field diameter in the same product.

Wide spectrum and industry-leading low-loss transmission across all the wavelengths that constitute the communication systems of today and tomorrow. First, SMF-28 Contour fiber’s industry-leading low attenuation delivers 10% longer reach in all networks and up to 20% wider access-network coverage. Second, SMF-28 Contour fiber’s bend loss protection enables up to twice the network reach in new long-wavelength fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) systems. Together, these features enable larger FTTH subscriber areas and greater revenue potential.

SMF-28 Contour fiber is available in a standard 242-micron configuration and a smaller 190-micron configuration. Smaller-diameter designs are increasingly important because while bandwidth demands have grown, the space available for network infrastructure has not. The 190-micron version of SMF-28 Contour fiber enables smaller cables with higher fiber counts – maximizing use of existing infrastructure.

“Corning’s revolutionary SMF-28 Contour optical fiber is the latest example of our ability to solve tough industry challenges,” said Dr. Bernhard Deutsch, vice president and general manager, Corning Optical Fiber and Cable. “Operators today are looking to deploy future-ready networks as efficiently as possible, often in densely cabled environments, and we’ve designed this new product to answer those needs. Fifty years after Corning scientists invented the first low-loss optical fiber, we’re proud to help drive a new era of industry growth and network transformation.”

Corning will highlight SMF-28 Contour fiber at the virtual Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition, held June 7 through 11. Visit the SMF-28® Contour fiber product page to view detailed technical specifications and see Corning’s media resources page for more information.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

The statements contained in this release that are not historical facts or information and contain words such as “will,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “seek,” “see,” “would,” and “target” and similar expressions are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and include estimates and assumptions related to economic, competitive and legislative developments. Such statements relate to future events that by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. These estimates are subject to change and uncertainty which are, in many instances, beyond our control. There can be no assurance that future developments will be in accordance with management’s expectations. Actual results could differ materially from those expected by us, depending on the outcome of various factors. We do not undertake to update forward-looking statements. 

Although the Company believes that these forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions regarding, among other things, current estimates and forecasts, general economic conditions, its knowledge of its business, and key performance indicators that impact the Company, actual results could differ materially.  The Company does not undertake to update forward-looking statements.  Some of the risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: the duration and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and its ultimate impact across our businesses on demand, operations and our global supply chains; the effects of acquisitions, dispositions and other similar transactions; global business, financial, economic and political conditions; tariffs and import duties; currency fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and other currencies, primarily the Japanese yen, new Taiwan dollar, euro, Chinese yuan and South Korean won; product demand and industry capacity; competitive products and pricing; availability and costs of critical components and materials; new product development and commercialization; order activity and demand from major customers; the amount and timing of our cash flows and earnings and other conditions, which may affect our ability to pay our quarterly dividend at the planned level or to repurchase shares at planned levels; possible disruption in commercial activities due to terrorist activity, cyber-attack, armed conflict, political or financial instability, natural disasters, or major health concerns; loss of intellectual property due to theft, cyber-attack, or disruption to our information technology infrastructure; unanticipated disruption to equipment, facilities, IT systems or operations; effect of regulatory and legal developments; ability to pace capital spending to anticipated levels of customer demand; rate of technology change; ability to enforce patents and protect intellectual property and trade secrets; adverse litigation; product and components performance issues; retention of key personnel; customer ability, most notably in the Display Technologies segment, to maintain profitable operations and obtain financing to fund ongoing operations and manufacturing expansions and pay receivables when due; loss of significant customers; changes in tax laws and regulations; the impacts of audits by taxing authorities; the potential impact of legislation, government regulations, and other government action and investigations; and other risks detailed in Corning’s SEC filings.

For a complete listing of risks and other factors, please reference the risk factors and forward-looking statements described in our annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.

Web Disclosure

In accordance with guidance provided by the SEC regarding the use of company websites and social media channels to disclose material information, Corning Incorporated (“Corning”) wishes to notify investors, media, and other interested parties that it uses its website (https://www.corning.com/worldwide/en/about-us/news-events.html) to publish important information about the company, including information that may be deemed material to investors, or supplemental to information contained in this or other press releases. The list of websites and social media channels that the company uses may be updated on Corning’s media and website from time to time. Corning encourages investors, media, and other interested parties to review the information Corning may publish through its website and social media channels as described above, in addition to the company’s SEC filings, press releases, conference calls, and webcasts.

About Corning Incorporated

Corning (www.corning.com) is one of the world’s leading innovators in materials science, with a 170-year track record of life-changing inventions. Corning applies its unparalleled expertise in glass science, ceramic science, and optical physics along with its deep manufacturing and engineering capabilities to develop category-defining products that transform industries and enhance people's lives. Corning succeeds through sustained investment in RD&E, a unique combination of material and process innovation, and deep, trust-based relationships with customers who are global leaders in their industries. Corning’s capabilities are versatile and synergistic, which allows the company to evolve to meet changing market needs, while also helping our customers capture new opportunities in dynamic industries. Today, Corning’s markets include optical communications, mobile consumer electronics, display, automotive, and life sciences.

'We Must Take Ownership And Take Remedial Measures To Restore The Ecosystem': Anil Lala

By Manu Sharma

The theme of World Environment Day 2021 is 'Ecosystem Restoration'. ‘Mankind has been abusing the environment since hundreds of years - industrialisation, chemical effluents, petroleum and plastic products, air pollution and hazardous emissions have all taken a toll on "Mother Earth". We human beings should take ownership and understand that this earth belongs to us and take appropriate remedial steps to restore the ecosystem and aim for a better environment and lessor pollution.’  Manu Sharma, Editor of Silicon Village caught up with serial entrepreneur, industrialist and Managing Director of a luxury fan brand, Mr Anil Lala who feels environmental laws are acts that guide us towards following best practices to reduce the pollution and help this earth become cleaner.  Mr Lala talks about this and much more in an email interaction. Excerpts: 

Manu Sharma: How to reduce your carbon foot print at the office/factory? Over the years what steps have/will you take(n)? 

Anil Lala: a. We should generate least quantity of garbage for which we need to use reusables 

b. Consume least or no plastic. Try to use only recyclable products

c. Follow minimalistic lifestyle with least wastage 

d. Learn to donate things that we don't use 

e. Minimise water consumption

f. Make sure that all left over food scraps are composted  

M S: Your inputs on the loss of forests area, more concrete buildings coming up everywhere and global warming affecting the country?

A L: Urbanisation will always be at a cost of losing our forests and green cover. More the concrete jungles come up, there will be more pollution by human beings, chemical & plastic waste, industrialisation, polluting vehicles, waste of water etc. Global Warming is a result of urbanisation and if we the human race do not contain it now, it will be too late and our coming generations will curse us for leaving a filthy world for them.

M S: As an industrialist, what efforts are you taking in reducing the carbon footprint in your organisation?

A L: Before being an Industrialist I am a human being who has received the gift of living on this earth and personally I am involved in planting urban forests thru my Rotary Club where we have earmarked an ambitious project to plant urban forests and so far, we have successfully planted more than 90000 trees. In terms of our workplace, we educate our work force to follow best practices in terms of conservation of water, minimise wastage in every way, we use all LED lights and use maximum cross ventilation for fresh air. 

M S : How eco-friendly are your products i.e. fans today? Going forward what changes would you like to bring in your products to make them more eco-friendly?  

A L: Our products are very energy efficient compared to comparative brands. About 50% of our models come with DC motors which consume about 30% of the electricity consumed by a conventional local fan. There are many models for which we use wooden blades instead of plastic. 

Our target is to have 100% models with DC motors for energy efficiency and minimise use of plastic. There is a study if all fans in India are changed to DC motors, we can save up to 3 MW hours of electricity which can result into a huge power saving annually. In fact, there would be no shortage of power in any state any longer.

M S : Presently what kind of cars do you own? Are you considering switching to a hybrid or electric vehicle? If yes please give the details?

A L: At the moment we have petrol and diesel vehicles but surely, we plan to change all of them to electric vehicles. We are just waiting for the ecosystem within the country to get set up with the charging stations. I believe Tatas have tied up with one of the leading fuel pump company to set up 2000 charging stations all over India and I am certain other companies will follow suit. Hence it is a matter of time when we will all start making the switch.

M S: Since you often travel to more advanced countries in Europe and America, what kind of green changes would you like to see in your country/city in order to save the environment and reduce pollution?

A L: If you drive around Germany, you will notice hundreds of homes sporting solar panels on the roof of their homes, they not only generate and consume their own electricity they are also able to pump in the excess energy into the Grid and get paid for it. I believe there are similar regulations in India where you can set up solar panels on your rooftops, use your own energy and sell the excess. I will be extremely happy if our government educates the population and develops a seamless system for individuals and commercial buildings to follow this path. This can generate many MW of renewable electricity and reduce our carbon foot print significantly. I also think that our pollution control boards should tighten and enforce laws for industries and control the illegal pollution specially in the disorganised sector.

M S : Have you undertaken planting trees in your locality/office?

A L: We have planted lots of trees at our plant at Tamil Nadu and we have also planted trees in our office building and warehouse compounds. We have changed all our light fixtures to LED and fans to DC motor fans in all our ware houses to conserve electricity. We also are actively looking to set up solar panels above our buildings to make us self-sufficient in generating our own electricity. We also actively support various green initiatives. If each one of us takes these steps in a responsible manner I am certain we can change our world and make it a much better and pollution free place to live in and breathe purer air quality. 

A Shot In The Arm In India’s Fight Against Covid: Samsung Vaccinating Over 50,000 Employees & Beneficiaries

Samsung India has got the ball rolling on vaccinating over 50,000 employees, adding a shot in the arm for India’s united fight against Covid.

This week, on-site vaccination camps were organised for employees at the Company’s Southwest Asia headquarters at Two Horizon Centre in Gurugram, at SRI-Noida, one of Samsung’s three R&D centers in the country, at Samsung Opera House in Bengaluru, the world’s largest mobile experience center and several branch offices around the country. A vaccination camp was also organised at the Sriperumbudur factory, near Chennai.

Employees came to the vaccination sites with great enthusiasm, with the Company ensuring strict Covid protocols and appropriate Covid behaviour. In some locations such as the Gurugram RHQ, family members of the employees also joined the vaccination programme. More vaccination drives have been planned over the next few weeks across cities.

As part its people welfare initiatives, Samsung will cover the vaccination costs for over 50,000 eligible employees and beneficiaries in India. This will also include all Samsung Experience Consultants (store promoters), who work at electronics retail stores across the country.

This is in addition to Samsung India’s CSR initiatives, announced last month, which included Covid care support through oxygen concentrators, oxygen cylinders and innovative Low Dead Space syringes, and donations to the Centre and state governments to support their own Covid care programmes.

“I am very happy to see the enthusiasm of our employees in the vaccination program and contributing to this fight against Covid. At Samsung, we are driven by the idea that a company is its people. Post Covid-19, Samsung India has taken several initiatives for employees and their families, which includes medical care, home assistance as well as mental wellness support. The vaccination drive will cover employees and some other beneficiaries and ensure their safety and wellbeing as nobody is safe till everyone is safe,” said Sameer Wadhawan, Senior Vice President & Head of Human Resources, Samsung India.

“It is a great feeling when you know that your employer will not only take care of you, but your family as well,” says Indu Kapoor from the Consumer Electronics division at Samsung India.

“It is a feeling of security when your employers care for you. I salute our HR colleagues who have throughout this pandemic, especially during the recent crisis, worked day and night to ensure that the employees could get the care they so much required in terms of oxygen, hospital beds, medicines, and even emotional support,” says Hasit Mankodi from the Customer Service team at Samsung India.

At Samsung, employee health, safety and well-being are absolute priority. To help employees and their families with information and access to medical supplies as well as hospital facilities and home-care, we have set up in-house facilities and teams across the country. Samsung has also offered medical care, home assistance and mental wellness support by experts on personal loss, grief, vaccination myths, stress as well as pandemic fatigue.

To provide extensive medical care support, Samsung has partnered with Dhani Healthcare to provide employees with free online consultations at any time of the day with a year-long validity. Samsung is also running a home assistance program to support employees by sharing verified contacts for emergency services like hospitals, oxygen suppliers, chemists, blood banks, testing centers and ambulances.

In addition, employees have been assisted with health insurance top-up for Covid care and homecare treatment cost has been included in the group health insurance policy for employees and their dependents. Samsung is also providing a corporate health insurance buffer equal to the base policy amount for any employee in need.

Kylas, An Enterprise-Grade SaaS CRM For SMBs Priced At $99, Launches In India

* Uniquely designed for Indian SMBs to enable their digital transformation journeys

Kylas, a new age enterprise-grade Customer Relationship Management (CRM) product, has been launched in India. Kylas is an agile, easy to use and customizable SaaS product that is uniquely positioned to help small and medium businesses streamline their sales efforts, engage with customers effectively and grow faster. During the last one year, SMBs in India have been severely impacted with the uncertainties of start-stop lockdowns, unreliable cashflows and disrupted supply chains. Covid-19 has forced SMBs to accelerate digital adoption and ensure business continuity in this challenging environment. Kylas was launched with a vision to make an high quality CRM software accessible to small businesses with a differentiated pricing of USD 99 (INR 7499) per month with unlimited features, unlimited users, and no hidden costs so that the SMBs can focus on reviving their businesses without the additional burden of increase in technology costs.

Kylas comes built-in with a host of productivity and collaboration features to improve sales team productivity. It seamlessly integrates with commonly used lead generation platforms such as– Facebook, Whatsapp, IndiaMART, Shiksha.com and many more to accelerate the end-to-end customer journey of Indian SMBs. Additionally, Kylas is launching a unique ‘SMB Upskilling Program’ with an aim to educate, enable and advise growing businesses about their digital transformation roadmap and operations. This is a special 4-week program, during which SMBs will learn about using technology and platforms for business continuity & resilience, marketing (including digital and social media), lead generation and overall digital transformation. The program will be led and conducted by the leadership team and subject matter experts at Kylas.

Ketan Sabnis, CEO and Founder, Kylas, said, “While large enterprises have the resources and wherewithal to undergo rapid digital transformation, SMBs face various challenges such as lack of accessibility to technology, cost constraints and shortage of talent with relevant digital skills. To bridge this gap and to help SMBs to digitize their end-to-end customer journey, we have built Kylas: The Honest CRM. It has been designed keeping in mind the needs of the SMBs and we believe that our customers can benefit from its enterprise-grade CRM capabilities at an all-inclusive value-pricing. Additionally, our customer service, SMB upskilling initiative and our future product roadmap will further strengthen the key value propositions of Kylas.”

As a startup, Kylas resonates with the ‘Make in India’ goals of empowering the SMBs in the country with high-quality digital technologies. Over 150 businesses have signed-up for Kylas in the past few weeks leading up to the commercial launch. Kylas draws on the learnings and legacy of its predecessor, Sell.do (co-founded by Ketan Sabnis), India’s award-winning end-to-end CRM solution for the Real Estate sector, with over 600+ clients across key global markets. 

About Kylas:

Kylas Sales CRM has been designed and engineered to help growing businesses streamline their sales efforts, engage with customers effectively and convert deals faster! Kylas is an enterprise-grade SaaS tool that is intuitive and easy to use and aims at improving product adoption by sales teams. Businesses can try Kylas for free for 15 days. With a slew of productivity and collaboration features within the app, Kylas, is a unique solution for growing businesses aiming to digitally transform their businesses. 

Manipal Hospitals Acquires 100% Stake In Vikram Hospital, Making Its 10th Hospital In Bengaluru

Manipal Hospitals, the second largest hospital chain in India, today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement with Multiples Private Equity Fund for a 100% acquisition of Bengaluru based multi-specialty hospital, Vikram Hospital, making this its 10th hospital in the city. The announcement comes close on the heels of its acquisition of the India operations of Columbia Asia Hospitals in April 2021.

Set up in 2009, Vikram Hospital is a 200 bedded high end tertiary care facility located in the central business district and is best known for its clinical expertise in the fields of Cardiac and Neuro Sciences.

Commenting on the deal, Dr Ranjan Pai, Chairman of Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG) said “We are delighted to welcome Vikram Hospital into our network. Manipal Hospitals has been the top ranked healthcare provider in Bengaluru for over two decades and this addition is reiteration of our commitment to meet the healthcare needs of the city and the region. There are two greenfield hospitals that are currently under construction and once they are complete in the next 24 months, our network of 12 hospitals with over 2,300 beds would be best placed to provide ease of access and comprehensive care to everyone across this fast growing city.”

Sharing her views on the transaction, Renuka Ramnath, Founder, Managing Director and CEO of the Private Equity Firm Multiples said “We salute the doctors, the outstanding management team and the staff of Vikram Hospital who built an iconic hospital in the city of Bengaluru. We are very pleased that we are handing over this marquee asset to an extremely worthy Manipal Hospital Group. With this larger canvas our doctors will have the ability to have a deeper impact on the healthcare needs of the city.”

With this latest addition, Manipal Hospitals now has 27 hospitals spread across 14 cities, more than 7,300 beds and a talented pool of 4,000 doctors and over 11,000 employees. The Hospital Group is also scouting to expand its footprint in eastern India and to further enhance its presence in the existing geographies.

Allegro Capital acted as financial advisors while PwC served as financial and tax diligence advisors and Trilegal as legal advisors for Manipal Hospitals on this deal.

About Manipal Hospitals

As a pioneer in healthcare, Manipal Hospitals is among the top healthcare providers in India serving over 4 million patients annually. Its focus is to develop an affordable, high quality healthcare framework through its multispecialty and tertiary care delivery spectrum and further extend it to out of hospital care. With the completion of acquisition of 100% stake in Columbia Asia Hospitals in India and addition of Vikram Hospital, the integrated network today has a pan-India footprint of 27 hospitals across 14 cities with 7,300+ beds, and a talented pool of 4,000 doctors and an employee strength of over 11,000. 

Manipal Hospitals provides comprehensive curative and preventive care for a multitude of patients from around the globe. Manipal Hospitals is NABH, AAHRPP accredited and most of the hospitals in its network are NABL, ER, Blood Bank accredited and recognized for Nursing Excellence. Manipal Hospitals has also been recognised the most respected and patient recommended hospital in India through various consumer surveys.

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa Inaugurates Vedanta Cares COVID Field Hospital In Chitradurga

* COVID Field Hospital at Chitradurga equipped with critical care facilities with 12 ICU beds with Ventilators and 88 oxygenated beds

* Vedanta setting up second field hospital in Karnataka at Hubli, adding total 200 COVID care beds in the State.

* Company delivering on its commitment to strengthen healthcare infrastructure in the State

Delivering on its commitment to enhance the healthcare infrastructure in Karnataka and support communities in the fight against Covid-19, Vedanta today commissioned its first state-of-the-art 100-bed Covid Field Hospital in the State, in Chitradurga. The Vedanta Cares Field Hospital was inaugurated virtually by Shri BS Yediyurappa, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka, in the presence of Shri. Anil Agarwal, Chairman of Vedanta.

Other dignitaries present at the inauguration included Shri B Sriramulu, Minister Social Welfare & District Minister Chitradurga, Shri Narayana Swamy, Hon'ble Member of Parliament, Shri GH Thippareddy, MLA Chitradurga, Shri P Ravi Kumar, Chief Secretary Govt. of Karnataka, Shri. M Chandrappa, Hon'ble MLA , Shri. Manjunath Prasad, ACS, Revenue, Ms. Radhika, SP Chitradurga, Smt. Kavitha S Mannikeri, District Collector, Chitradurga.

The COVID Field Hospital in Chitradurga is equipped with best-in-class medical infrastructure including oxygen and ventilators for critical patients. 

Vedanta is also setting up a second Covid Field Hospital at Hubli in Karnataka with 100-beds which is in the final stages of completion. The two Vedanta Cares hospitals in Karnataka with a total of 200 Covid care beds are in line with Vedanta’s commitment to set-up 1,000 COVID care beds across India to support the Government in combatting Covid-19.

Appreciating Vedanta’s endeavour to join hands with the Government of Karnataka to counter the second wave of Covid-19, Karnataka CM Shri. B S Yediyurappa said, "I am extremely happy to note that Vedanta Group has joined hands with Government to fight against Covid-19 pandemic. On behalf of Government of Karnataka, I extend my heartful thanks to Vedanta for helping to set up Covid Care Hospital in Chitradurga. Thank you, Anil Agarwal ji and  team, for your continued support and extensive efforts."

Mr. Anil Agarwal, Chairman, Vedanta said, “I am anguished to see the impact of the second wave of Covid-19 and loss of precious lives. Vedanta is committed to beef up the medical infrastructure and is working closely with government bodies and local administration to strengthen the country’s fight against Covid-19. The Vedanta Cares field hospital in Chitradurga is a testimony to our commitment to serving communities through state-of-the-art medical facilities. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Honourable Chief Minister Shri BS Yediyurappa Ji for taking out time from his busy schedule to inaugurate the field hospital and compliment him for providing the much-needed support to people whose livelihoods have been hit by the pandemic.”

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Sauvick Mazumdar, CEO, Iron & Steel Business, Vedanta Limited, said, “Upgradation of healthcare infrastructure is incredibly important in response to the Covid pandemic which has put tremendous stress on existing healthcare infrastructure. Our 100-bedded Covid field hospital equipped with critical care support at Chitradurga will help to take some stress off the healthcare system in Karnataka and will help to ensure the safety of our local communities around Chitradurga. We are committed to support the Karnataka Government in combating Covid and will soon be completing second Covid Field hospital at Hubli thereby adding 200-beds medical infrastructure in the state of Karnataka”

Mr. Krishna Reddy, Director, Vedanta’s Iron Ore Karnataka said, “At Vedanta we are committed to the health and safety of all our stakeholders and communities around. In this unprecedented time of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vedanta is providing relief to people through various community outreach initiatives by supporting the State & District administrations. This Covid field hospital is the testimony to our philosophy of care, and we will continue in our endeavour to partner with Karnataka Government and our country at large, to overcome this health crisis.”

During the first wave of Covid-19 last year, Vedanta Iron Ore Karnataka provided relentless support to the people of Karnataka and frontline warriors by contributing to the CM relief fund, providing masks, sanitizers and supplying groceries during the lockdown. Vedanta group is working on several initiatives to support the fight against the second wave as well and has supplied 8.26 Lakh litres of medical oxygen and set up three oxygen plants.