UAE Based Retail Conglomerate Tablez Launches India’s First Kids Super Store ‘House Of Toys’, In Bangalore

Tablez, a leading Abu Dhabi-based retail and F&B group with a substantial presence in India, has opened its first toys retail store, ‘House of Toys’ in Bangalore. Catering to kids and pre-teens, this one-stop shop is spread across 5100 square feet and is India's first superstore of its kind.

The store offers a wide choice of merchandise alongside a comprehensive variety of toys and other essentials for children aged 0 to 14 years. The product categories include fashion, infant care, nursery, toys, wearable tech, sports accessories, stationery, music & instruments and more.

The store was inaugurated by Mr. Adeeb Ahamed, Managing Director, Tablez, virtually, and Mr. Vishal Malhotra, Brand Advocate and Indian Actor & Host, at a high-profile launch ceremony. The launch was followed by a meet and greet session and in-store activities for kids, such as juggling, face painting, and a bubble show that lasted till late evening.

Engaging, interactive and hands-on, ‘House of Toys’ will provide an unrivalled experience for both kids and pre-teens. The brand promises one of the best in-store experiences, including an exclusive, state-of-the-art 3D holographic experience center that takes virtual and augmented reality to a different level, alongside a “Build-a-Bear” workshop, where children can experience the fun of making their own soft toys.

Commenting on the launch of the toys superstore, Adeeb Ahamed, MD of Tablez, said, "As an active stakeholder in the Indian toy industry for the past six years, we are excited to continue this journey with the grand launch of India’s first toys superstore. The concept of ‘House Of Toys’ has been derived in a way to deliver a holistic and technology-driven playtime experience for kids and pre-teens, in a modern, contemporary setting. The Indian toy industry is witnessing a strong growth and we are confident the launch of ‘House of Toys’ will revolutionize the way parents shop for their children. Our product range has something for everyone and keeps in mind the need to stimulate the young mind in an immersive, educative and fun-filled manner.”

Commenting on the store launch Mr. Balakrishnan Vasudevan, COO of Tablez, said “We are excited to announce the opening of our first Kids' Superstore, 'House Of Toys,' in Bangalore. With a purpose to redefine the shopping experience in India and give our consumers world-class exposure, we are looking at an omnichannel expansion in the natal, baby care, kids and preteens category. Our primary objective is to make international high-street sensibility available in India through our strategic alliance with global brands.”

Tablez plans to take the omnichannel approach, integrating the new and upcoming House Of Toys stores with its recently launched e-commerce platform ‘tablez.com’.

About Tablez

Tablez, which has introduced leading global brands in F&B, toys, lifestyle, and apparel to India, is the master franchisee of brands like Desigual, Build-A-Bear, GO Sport, YOYOSO, Cold Stone Creamery, and Galito’s. In addition, the company has also successfully developed its home-grown brand Bloomsbury’s and aims to replicate its success across the toy industry as well. Tablez currently operates 78 brand stores in India and plans to expand the number to 250 over the next five years.

Karnataka Digital Economy Mission Shines At The TiE Global Summit 2021 Dubai

* KDEM highlights the need for building grassroots entrepreneurship for digital growth

* Promises collaborative efforts to strengthen the global start-up ecosystem

* KDEM enables 5 start-ups to compete on a global scale 

Continuing with its mission to contribute to India’s $1trillion digital economy with a robust innovation and start-up ecosystem, the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission successfully participated in the two-day TiE Global Summit 2021. Through this Global Summit, KDEM underscored the value proposition the development of clusters brings in the overall economic development and how they have become the preferred choice of investments for GCC countries. 

The TiE Global Summit 2021, an annual flagship conference for entrepreneurs that was attended by world leaders, technology experts, industry leaders, mentors and investors saw a successful collaboration of TiE Chapters across the world including the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission from Karnataka, India. KDEM was at the forefront of positioning Karnataka’s technology trends and inspiring panel discussions on the ecosystem of accelerators and entrepreneurship.

To recognise the proliferation of Indian start-ups and enable global competitiveness, KDEM provided a platform for start-ups to showcase their ideas, innovation, and dominance in smart-tech. The five start-ups from Karnataka, namely, Phyllo, LivNSense Technologies Pvt Limited, MAKERINME Technologies Private Limited, Chipspirit, and Saigeware Technologies Pvt Ltd. participated to pitch to the TiE Angels Investing Program at the Summit. These start-ups will receive further mentoring support from global experts and a chance to meet international VCs. This is part of KDEM’s vision of Karnataka assuming a leadership role in India’s innovation ecosystem by creating even growth across the state through nurturing talent in cluster cities such as Mysuru, Hubli, Mangaluru.

Speaking at the concluding event, Mr. Ravindra Krishnappa, Managing Partner of July Ventures LLP, representing KDEM said, “It is a prestigious moment for Karnataka to showcase India’s smart tech and digital dominance at a global platform such as the TiE Global Summit. Through various initiatives of the KDEM and especially our association with TiE, we aim to bridge the knowledge-gap between the industry and the governments while supporting the entrepreneurial community. Our aim will always be to foster a robust start-up ecosystem by handholding investments through tech-enabled service industries.”

Harish Rawlani, Founder, MAKERINME Technologies Pvt Ltd said, “KDEM and TiE presented start-ups such as ours with this wonderful platform where we could network and learn from some of the best brains in the industry. While technology is the future of global economic growth, the pandemic put a bigger thrust on technological innovations to accelerate this further. Platforms such as KDEM and their vision play a significant role in taking tech expertise to a larger audience and inspire and nurture talent for a formidable future.”

Speaking on the need for a robust start-up ecosystem, Shri BV Naidu, Chairman, Karnataka Digital Economy Mission said, “KDEM was conceptualised to be an enabler to technology and innovation start-ups that help build a strong digital economy while promoting Indian talent on a global platform. We have always strived to provide maximum outreach to local talent while recognising, rewarding, and reaffirming their capabilities. Among several initiatives, KDEM provided these five start-ups with a platform such as the TiE Global Summit 2021 to showcase their innovation while providing an enriching environment and network to match global standards. We will continue to be a collaborator for homegrown talents through such programs.”

Hosted by Dubai Chapter, the 2021 edition of the TiE Global Summit was addressed and attended by 3,000+ delegates including Government Agencies, Angel Investors, Venture Capitalists, PEs, Global Industry Leaders, Global Wealth Entrepreneurs, Thought Leaders, Academia, Nobel Laureates, Policy Makers, and TiE Members from Global Chapters.

About Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM)

With an objective to increase the share of the Digital economy in the state, the Government of Karnataka set up the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM), a Section-8 organization, which acts as a knowledge bridge between the industry and the government. To meet the objectives, KDEM has been working towards the five focus areas, viz. IT Products & Services, BPM & GCC promotion; Innovations & Start-ups; ESDM; Beyond Bengaluru; and Talent Accelerator.

Alankit Limited Participated In The Smart Card Expo In Bengaluru

* Focuses on expanding their Identity and Access Management (IAM) services by offering secure and cost-effective Smart Card printing solutions

Alankit Limited, one of the leading e-Governance service providers of the country participated in Smart Card Expo that started on 16th December 2021 and will end on 18th December 2021 in Bangalore. In collaboration with IDP Card Printers, Alankit Limited showcased various data card printers at the expo stall. Alankit Limited's key e-Governance service offerings include countrywide Identity and Access Management (IAM) services.

With more than two decades of deep industry and functional expertise, the Company has been able to deliver reliable, exceptional, and unparalleled services to its clients, and has achieved notable milestones along the way. Alankit is currently embarking on an ambitious plan to expand its business activities in areas of Identity and Access Management (IAM) by providing secure and cost-effective Smart Card printing solutions.

During the occasion, Mr. Ankit Agarwal, Managing Director, Alankit Limited said, “We are delighted to participate in the expo which mainly focuses on showcasing Smart Card Technology. It is an excellent platform to find high magnitude future projects leading to global expansion. We have successfully carried out projects in the smart card domain and we are currently embarking on an ambitious plan to strengthen the quality of services while expanding the business activities in diversified areas.”

Alankit Limited is associated with IDP Card Printers which brings industry-leading innovations to the table that are known for making desktop ID printing simple and economical. So far, Alankit as the sole distributor of Smart Card printers has printed more than 92 million cards for various prestigious projects. Cards such as Aadhaar, Voter ID card, Ayushman Bharat, PMJAY Cards, MMJAY, Political Party, Membership Cards, Health Cards, Driving, License, and Student ID Cards, etc have been served by the Company and look forward to more such projects in the future.

Some prestigious projects that are undertaken by the Company in smart card printing services so far are Sarva Sikhsha Abhiyaan in Assam, Health Card printing services for CGHS, SDMC, and EDMC, Voter ID card printing services for Additional Chief Electoral Officer, Voter ID Card Printing Services in Manipur and many more of the likes. They are planning to expand their service portfolio further by adding new services to the existing service list.

About Alankit Limited:

Alankit Limited is the flagship company of Alankit and a leading e-Governance Service Provider in India. Alankit is a conglomerate comprising of 13 Group companies with diversified business operations into the e-Governance, Financial Services, Insurance, and Health Care verticals. Alankit Limited is listed on both the premier exchanges of the country; National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange Limited (BSE). It has a strong customer base of over 25 Million that is climbing the graph yearly.

Alankit Ltd.’s primary services include GSP (GST Suvidha Provider), Aadhaar Services, Business Correspondent (BC), National Distributor for ID card Printers, POP- National Pension System (NPS), Authorised Person (AP) for National Insurance - Policy Repository (NIR), Facilitator for Atal Pension Yojana (APY), Manpower Services, FASTag services, and many more. Alankit acts as the last mile between the Government and the citizens of the country.

India, United States Commit To Strengthening Bilateral Collaboration In The Areas Of Climate And Clean Energy

Bangalore – The United States-India Science & Technology Endowment Fund (USISTEF), in partnership with Social Alpha, announces a call for Ignition Grants titled Technology-based Energy Solutions: Innovations for Net Zero to select and support new technologies that address climate change and clean energy challenges.  

Climate Change is one of the biggest challenges facing our world today, spurring the call for global collaborations to tackle this crisis.  The launch of the U.S.-India Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 partnership in April 2021 reiterated the commitment of both nations to work together to achieve their ambitious climate and clean energy targets and to strengthen bilateral collaborations.

The “Technology-based Energy Solutions: Innovations for Net Zero” program addresses the pressing need for solutions that leverage cutting-edge, disruptive clean energy technologies to accelerate progress toward net zero.   The program aligns with the goals of the U.S.-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership and will be administered by the bi-national Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF).

The objective of the Ignition Grants program is to identify and support “technology showstoppers” - promising joint U.S.-India S&T based entrepreneurial initiatives that address the development and implementation of new technologies, tools, and systems that tackle climate and clean energy challenges in the areas of Next generation Clean and Renewable Energy, Energy Storage and Carbon Sequestration.

The Program was formally launched by the USISTEF Co-Chairs, Mr. Sanjeev Varshney, Adviser & Head, International Bilateral Cooperation, Department of Science & Technology, Government of India and Mr. John Speaks, Minister Counselor for Energy, Environment, Science and Technology (Acting), U.S. Embassy, New Delhi. In his remarks, Mr. Varshney highlighted the spirit of entrepreneurship and said “The role of collaboration in Science and technology to deliver innovative solutions to address a global challenge is appreciable. A good demonstrable technology innovation to address a specific challenge in the focus areas having a commercial viability is expected under the partnership of IUSSTF with Social Alpha”. Mr. Speaks remarked “USISTEF’s new initiative targeting innovations for net zero is another example of the robust U.S.-India Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.  It shows the United States and India working together to trigger the development of new joint clean energy technologies to address the urgent climate crisis”.

Speaking of the Ignition Grants Progam, Mr. Manoj Kumar, Founder & CEO, Social Alpha, said, “Breakthrough technologies can accelerate the planet’s transition to net-zero emissions. However, they need institutional support for solution development, pilots and deployment. We have to grow the innovation pipeline at an unprecedented pace and invest heavily to reduce green premiums on critical clean technologies and attract entrepreneurial talent to create new markets and industries. This is the only way we can transition to Net Zero, while making sure everyone has access to clean, affordable and reliable energy.” Dr. Nandini Kannan, Executive Secretary USISTEF and Executive Director IUSSTF said “Achieving the ambitious climate and clean energy goals laid out in the U.S. India 2030 Partnership requires the creation of an ecosystem that fosters and supports S&T-based innovation, and encourages partnerships.  Technology-based Energy Solutions: Innovations for Net Zero is a Call to Action, urging the Entrepreneur and Research communities in India and the United States to come together and develop transformative solutions to tackle critical climate and sustainability challenges.”

A panel of experts discussed the critical role of stakeholders, including Industry, Academia. Financial institutions, Government Agencies, Policy and Foundations, in the development of an enabling ecosystem to address clean energy and sustainability challenges.  Speakers included Ms. Seema Paul, Program Director, Sequoia Climate Fund, Mr. Prashanth Prakash, Founding Partner, Accel, Dr. Praveer Sinha, CEO, Tata Power and Dr. William Tumas, Associate Laboratory Director, National Renewable Energy Laboratory. .

More information about the Ignition Grants can be accessed at www.iusstf.org.

About USISTEF: The U.S.-India Science and Technology Endowment Fund, established in 2010 by the governments of the United States of America (through the Department of State) and India (through the Department of Science & Technology), aims to support and foster joint applied R&D to generate public good through commercialization of technology achieved through sustained partnerships between U.S. and Indian researchers and entrepreneurs.  USISTEF has thus far supported over 50 joint U.S.-India entrepreneurial projects through 11 Calls.

About Social Alpha: Social Alpha has been designed as a multistage innovation curation and venture development platform for science and technology start-ups that aim to address the most critical social, economic and environmental challenges. Since its inception in 2016, Social Alpha has supported more than 150 start-ups including 60+ seed investments. For more information, please visit www.socialalpha.org

About IUSSTF: The Indo-U.S. Science & Technology Forum (IUSSTF) is an autonomous, bi-national organization jointly created by the Governments of India and the United States of America in 2000. IUSSTF’s broad mandate is to promote, catalyze and seed bilateral collaboration in science, technology, engineering and innovation through substantive interaction amongst federal agencies, academia and industry. 

Hero Motocorp Launches Retail Finance Carnival For Customers Across The Country

In keeping with its commitment to a customer-centric approach, Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters, today launched a special Retail Finance Carnival.

Adding more cheer to the year-end festivities, the Retail Finance Carnival brings a range of new and exciting retail finance schemes through Hero MotoCorp’s finance partners. Through this initiative, the company also aims to promote accessibility, availability, awareness and innovation in retail finance for customers across segments. 

Commencing from today, the Retail Finance Carnival will go on till the December 31, 2021. The Carnival allows customers across segments in the nation to have convenient access to finance and increases their purchasing power with attractive and first-in-segment offers such as Zero Down Payment, Zero Rate of Interest and Zero Processing Fee.

In addition to the main offers, the Carnival also provides innovative financial products to customers, such as Kishan Kisht, No Hypothecation and Suvidha (no bank cheque).

Hero MotoCorp has also launched an Aadhaar based loan application scheme, under which customers are only required to present their Aadhaar Card to be eligible for vehicle financing.

Customers can visit authorized Hero MotoCorp dealerships and online channels to avail the schemes.

Kalyan Jewellers Launches Brand New Showroom At Global Malls In Rajajinagar

* Brings brand’s presence to 7 stores across prime locations in Bengaluru

Kalyan Jewellers, one of India’s most trusted and leading jewellery brands, today launched its new showroom at Lulu Group’s ‘Global Malls’ in Rajajinagar, Bengaluru. The launch of the new showroom brings the company’s footprint in Bengaluru to a total of seven showrooms, which will help serve our existing and new customers. 

Talking about the new showroom, Mr. Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director, Kalyan Jewellers said, “We are extremely delighted to launch our new showroom in Bengaluru. With over a decade of our presence in the city, we have been successful in establishing Kalyan Jewellers as one of the most-preferred jewellery brands. Over the years, we have built a significant presence across key markets in the state and the opening of our 16th showroom in Karnataka reiterates the company’s commitment to this market. Our investment in this region is part of our strategy to establish a stronger presence in the state and also make Kalyan Jewellers more accessible to customers. We are committed to continuing to offer a best-in-class buying experience while ensuring the safety and health of our patrons and the community at large by providing a hygienic and personalized shopping environment.”

As part of the launch offer, customers can maximise the value of their purchases with upto 25% off on diamond jewellery and upto 20% off on uncut and precious stone jewellery. Kalyan Jewellers has also announced huge discounts on the making charges for its gold jewellery segment. As part of its Gold Rate ‘Big Bachat’Offer, customers can avail an instant discount of Rs. 225 per gram on the prevailing gold price of the day. This unique offer is applicable on purchases above Rs 2.5 lakh, on select plain gold jewellery and can be claimed against making charges. These offers are valid until 31st December 2021 at Kalyan Jewellers showrooms across Karnataka.

As part of Kalyan Jewellers’ ‘We Care’ COVID-19 guidelines, the company has instituted the highest level of safety and precautionary measures across all showrooms to safeguard the health and safety of both customers and staff alike. The company has also appointed a ‘Safety Measure Officer’ to ensure safety protocol guidelines are strictly followed.

Kalyan Jewellers will offer its patrons Muhurat, the bridal jewellery line curated from across India along with exclusive sections featuring Kalyan’s popular house brands such as Tejasvi (Polki jewellery), Mudhra (handcrafted antique jewellery), Nimah (Temple jewellery) and Glo (dancing diamonds). Other sections at the showroom include Ziah (Solitaire-like diamond jewellery), Anokhi (uncut diamonds), Apoorva (diamonds for special occasions), Antara (wedding diamonds), Hera (daily wear diamonds) and Rang (precious stones jewellery). Kalyan Jewellers will draw from its portfolio of over one lakh contemporary and traditional designs and will offer selections for everyday as well as bridal wear and festive occasions.

*T&C Apply

Photo Caption (L-R): Mr. Rajesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director – Kalyan Jewellers, Mr. T S Kalyanaraman, Chairman and Managing Director – Kalyan Jewellers and Mr. Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director – Kalyan Jewellers.

Tata Motors Joins Hands With The Government Of Maharashtra, To Support Setting Up Of A Vehicle Scrapping Facility

Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Maharashtra, through the Industries, Energy and Labour Department, Government of Maharashtra, with an intent to support setting up a Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility (RVSF) in Maharashtra. The MoU was signed at the Conference on Investment Opportunities in Highway, Transport and Logistics in Mumbai, Maharashtra, in presence of Hon’ble Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Government of India, Mr. Nitin Gadkari and other delegates. The proposed scrappage centre will have the capacity of recycling up to 35,000 vehicles a year for end-of-life passenger and commercial vehicles.

Industries, Energy and Labour Department will support in facilitating the necessary approvals as per the rules and regulations of the State Government of Maharashtra and the draft vehicle scrappage policy released by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) for setting up of the RVSF. It will address the intent of all stakeholders with benefits such as low import bill for scrap and crude oil, job opportunities for MSMEs, the possibility of upside in new vehicle sales for OEMs, low operation cost for vehicle owners, safer and cleaner vehicles for consumers and a sustainable environment for all. Tata Motors will set up the scrapping centre in association with a partner. Tata Motors had earlier signed a MoU with the Government of Gujarat for setting up a Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility (RVSF) in Ahmedabad and will continue to work with other Government bodies to more initiatives to support the vehicle scrappage policy.

Commenting on the partnership, Mr. Girish Wagh, Executive Director, Tata Motors, said, “We are happy to partner with the Government of Maharashtra to support in setting up a scrapping facility in Maharashtra. Besides the well-known benefits that appropriate vehicle scrapping offers – boosting the setup of a circular economy, this initiative will also help in reiterating our commitment to strengthen our leadership in sustainable mobility space. We are proud to partner with the policymakers on this initiative of setting up scrapping facilities across the country. It is the beginning of a new chapter and a step in the right direction for India’s transportation sector.”

About Tata Motors

Part of the USD 109 billion Tata group, Tata Motors Limited (NYSE: TTM; BSE: 500570 and 570001; NSE: TATAMOTORS and TATAMTRDVR), a USD 34 billion organization, is a leading global automobile manufacturer of cars, utility vehicles, pick-ups, trucks and buses, offering extensive range of integrated, smart and e-mobility solutions. With ‘Connecting Aspirations’ at the core of its brand promise, Tata Motors is India’s market leader in commercial vehicles and amongst the top three in the passenger vehicles market.

Tata Motors strives to bring new products that fire the imagination of GenNext customers, fueled by state of the art design and R&D centers located in India, UK, US, Italy and South Korea. With a focus on engineering and tech enabled automotive solutions catering to the future of mobility, the company’s innovation efforts are focused to develop pioneering technologies that are sustainable as well as suited to evolving aspirations of the market and the customers. The company is pioneering India's Electric Vehicle (EV) transition and driving the shift towards sustainable mobility solutions by preparing a tailor-made product strategy, leveraging the synergy between the Group companies and playing an active role liasoning with the Government in developing the policy framework

With operations in India, the UK, South Korea, Thailand, South Africa, and Indonesia, supported by a strong global network of 103 subsidiaries, 9 associate companies, 4 joint ventures and 2 joint operations as on March 31, 2021, Tata Motors’ commercial and passenger vehicles are marketed in countries, spread across Africa, Middle East, South & South East Asia, Australia, South America, Russia and other CIS countries.

Precision Manufacturing Co. Maini Precision Files For IPO To Raise Rs 900 Crore

Bengaluru-based Maini Precision Products Limited (MPPL), an end-to-end solution provider engaged in process design, engineering, manufacturing, testing, and supply of a variety of precision products with close tolerances of upto 3 microns and assemblies, has filed preliminary papers with capital market regulator Sebi to raise funds through an initial share-sale. As per market sources, it is understood that the company will raise anywhere between Rs 800-900 crore via initial public offering.

The initial public offering (IPO) with a face value of Rs 2 per equity share consists of a fresh issue of equity shares aggregating to Rs 150 crore, and an offer for sale of up to 2,54,81,705 equity shares, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP).

As a part of the OFS, promoters will offload 60,20,765 equity shares, individual shareholders to sell up to 6,45,865 equity shares, up to 5,13,390 by other selling shareholders and 1,83,01,685 equity shares by investor shareholders.

Proceeds from the fresh issue will be used to repay/prepay – Rs 112.5 crs of its borrowings and will be used for general corporate purposes.

Promoted by Sandeep Kumar Maini, Gautam Maini and Chetan Kumar Maini, the company was incorporated in 1973. Maini is capable of diverse and critical manufacturing and finishing processes, including machined castings, die castings, machined forgings, bar route machining, plate machining, surface treatment, heat treatment, critical assembly, as well as ancillary activities such as end of line testing, export packing and warehousing, which encompasses end-to-end solutions for its customers both domestic and global.

MPPL has a diversified business, wherein the products are classified into two business, being aerospace, which it ventured into in 2004 and comprises precision products manufactured for aerospace and defense; and automotive and industrial, which comprises precision products manufactured for clean internal combustion engines, fuel injections and transmissions (internal combustion engines, fuel injections and transmissions collectively referred to as “Clean Powertrain”), hydraulics and industrial, agriculture and legacy automotive.

Its new generation products include hybrid electric shaft motors, low pressure turbine nozzle guide vanes for the LEAP Engine, Landing and Braking System Parts for aircrafts, BLDC Motors, E-Axles and Transmission Systems for Electric 2/3 Wheelers & LCVs

Some of the customers in the aerospace business include companies such as Safran Aircraft Engines, Marshall Aerospace and Defense Group, Eaton Aero, ITP Externals SLU, Parker Aerospace, and Woodward Inc., and in the automotive and industrial business include, Bosch Limited, Eaton Vehicle Group, Danfoss, Marelli Powertrain India Private Limited, Volvo Group India Private Limited, Cummins India Limited and BorgWarner Cooling Systems India Private Limited.

Being an export oriented business primarily exporting to United States of America, France, Sweden, Italy, Slovakia, England, Japan, Spain, Poland and Germany, its revenue from operations stood at Rs 560.30 crs for FY19, Rs 570 crs for FY20 and Rs 427.36 crs for FY21, 65.26%, 71.99%, 66.23% of its revenues being attributed to exports.

Automotive components are expected to remain the largest contributor of the precision parts market over FY21-25 at ~60% with the rest of the market catering to non-automotive sectors like aerospace, defence and allied, engineering and capital goods and power. Precision engineering is expected to log a 9-11% CAGR between fiscals 2021-2026, aided by growth in the domestic auto components and export demand and indigenous manufacturing for the defence segment

ICICI Securities Limited, IIFL Securities Limited are the book running lead managers to the issue.

3i Infotech To Hire 500 Employees For Its BPS Division In Hyderabad

* The company will offer voice-based technology-led solutions to its customers 

3i Infotech Limited (BSE: 532628, NSE: 3IINFOTECH), a global Information Technology company, committed to accelerating business transformation, has announced its plans to ramp up hiring for its newly set up BPS division in HITEC City, Hyderabad. As part of a major recruitment drive, the company plans to hire over 500 employees in the span of next two months, which will be facilitated through social, digital platforms via referral programs and other offline initiatives. To attract the right talent, the company is adopting a unique approach of 3i Infotech on wheels. Building on its legacy offerings in this space, the company will be pivoting to a voice-based technology-led model to drive substantial cost savings by 20% for its customers. 

In the first phase, 3i Infotech would be looking to hire local talent within Hyderabad to serve its regional and market specific clientele and would later scale its’ operations to include other geographies and markets. The entire portfolio of offerings under this division will encompass - Application, Automation & Analytics Services (AAA) to be offered either inhouse or through engagement with leading partners in this space. It will cater to customers across various domains to include - retail, ecommerce, telecom, BFSI, media & entertainment, manufacturing etc. 

Thompson P. Gnanam, Managing Director & Global CEO, 3i Infotech said, “This marks a significant milestone in 3i Infotech’s transformational journey. With the onslaught of the pandemic, we have seen a surge in organizations adopting automation & digitization. To navigate this change, 3i Infotech’s BPS arm has come up with a unique technology-led solution that is poised to become a game changer and a disruptor in the outsourcing space, both domestic & international.” 

A first in India's outsourcing space, the company has introduced a series of unique differentiators under its BPS division that is set to create new benchmarks within the industry. The key features include – Smart Hire - Intelligent Recruitment Platform that identifies the right skill and the agent for the role; Automated Quality Monitoring that use ‘Speech to Text’ that does 100% audits of calls as against the traditional approach; AI ML powered Work Force Management platform to drive the overall KPI’s; Virtual Coach which adopts the behavioural traits of agents and provides real time nudges for higher outcome and finally ADDIE based training framework that enables training ‘on the go’ with a  globally accepted digital training platform that provides higher output. 

Amitabh Vartak, Senior Vice President & Global Delivery Head, BPS, 3i Infotech said, “We want to offer our customers the very best, and this investment into our new facility in the tech hub of Hyderabad, will open up several avenues, and will create an ecosystem where talent, innovation and newer possibilities emerge. Our new hires would largely benefit from our work culture that reflects agility, passion, empathy, openness and inventiveness and where ideas are nurtured from inception to implementation.” 

About 3i Infotech 

Headquartered in Mumbai, India, since inception in 1993, 3i Infotech has been committed to driving business value across multiple industry verticals. 3i Infotech, today, has emerged as a leading name in propelling the current wave of digital transformation initiatives, with deep domain expertise across BFSI, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Retail and Government sectors. The Company has over 4500 employees in 32 offices, 15 countries and across 4 continents. With a wide range of IT services, 3i Infotech has successfully transformed business operations of 1,200+ customers across 50 countries. The Company has a very strong foothold and client base in geographies like North America, India, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 

Website: https://www.3i-infotech.com/

Bengaluru’s Towering Totem - Phoenix Marketcity Presents The “80 ft Tallest Christmas Tree” In The Country

Christmas is around the corner, which means it is time for the magical Christmas celebrations to begin at Bengaluru’s favorite shopping and lifestyle destination. Santa has arrived at Phoenix Marketcity Bengaluru, and how! The mall is all set to take Christmas celebrations to a whole new level this year with its mesmerizing Christmas décor to spread the festive cheer! Visitors to the mall will be welcomed with the beautifully lit larger-than-life Christmas tree with an inimitable European design at the courtyard. The tree stands tall and proud at 80 ft, making it the tallest Christmas tree in the country. The shimmering display of lights, motifs, Christmas greens and baubles resemble fireworks, and the tree perfectly showcases the feeling of festivity, love and light this season. 

Shoppers will be spoilt for choice as ‘Christmas@ Phoenix’ this year promises to be bigger and better than ever before with trending accessories, cute artifacts, home decor products and other exciting festive merchandise. This Festive Season gets more rewarding with Rs. 1cr worth prizes to be won on shopping. It will be pouring deals at Phoenix Marketcity where customers can stand a chance to win grand prizes like car, bike and much more. That’s not all, Santa will be welcoming every visitor at Phoenix Marketcity by handing out presents to the little ones to spread the festive cheer. 

Yet another highlight of the ‘Christmas @Phoenix’ is the European Christmas market. This market will feature well over 1,00,000 exquisite Christmas merchandise from across the globe. It will boast of everything from chocolates to home décor, and red-nosed reindeers. There’s everything you can imagine here, from Christmas trees, Santa Claus toys, sparkling baubles and beautiful tinsels to snowflakes and icicles, artistic Christmas balls, handmade décor, stockings, wooden birds, home décor lights and tons more. Acclaimed artists sing carols, while Santa hands out gifts to lucky visitors spreading joy and smiles. 

Mr. Gajendra Singh Rathore, Director Malls – South India, The Phoenix Mills Ltd said “Christmas at Phoenix has always been a special affair. We bring something unique and different every year to surprise our customers and add to the festive cheer for our patrons. This year, we are geared to welcome our customers with a truly global experience.  Given the pandemic situation, we will ensure our customers are able to celebrate without compromising on their safety.” 

Undoubtedly, Christmas celebrations at Phoenix Marketcity is one of the most awaited events for Bangaloreans, and for good reason too. There is a host of performances lined up to add sparkle to the celebrations – Carol singing, jugglers, international carnival dancers, DJs, EMCEEs, and lots more! Apart from these, as usual, Christmas special events like the Carnival on Christmas Day and Eve will witness world class performances and spectacular events. 

Twin Health Expands Its Operations In India; Appoints Prabh Singh As Its New CEO

Twin Health, makers of the Whole Body Digital Twin™ technology, today announced the appointment of Prabh Singh as the CEO for its India operations. Founded in 2018, Twin Health invented the Whole Body Digital Twin™ to reverse and prevent chronic metabolic diseases like Type 2 Diabetes, while improving energy and physical health.  The health tech firm had recently raised $155 million Series C funding to scale its presence in India and the U.S.

Prabh Singh will head the India operations for strategy, marketing, regulatory, public policy, go-to-market, product, and technology divisions. He will be responsible for scaling Twin Health in India as the country has the second highest number of lifestyle-related diseases in the world after China. Prabh is currently serving as EVP and Head of Subscriptions at the Disney-owned video streaming service Hotstar and will take over his new position at Twin Health in January 2022.

"I am delighted to have the opportunity to transform the quality of life for millions in India through the revolutionary technology invented by Twin Health. Twin Health’s consumer-centric technology will be a game changer in reimagining and redefining healthcare in India. I look forward to partnering with Twin Health’s missionary founder - Jahangir, who wants to make a huge and positive impact on the World." said Prabh Singh.

Commenting on the development, Jahangir Mohammed, Founder and CEO, Twin Health said, “I am excited to welcome Prabh to the Twin Health family.  Prabh is a tremendous leader and has demonstrated expertise in strategically growing strong businesses.  His track record, experience and excitement about joining our team makes him an ideal leader for India as we continue to grow the business, transform healthcare and impact lives."

Prabh has two decades of consumer and technology experience across India and Asia. He has worked at Hindustan Unilever, Google and most recently with Hotstar, where he is credited for building Hotstar as the #1 subscription service in India and the largest contributor to Disney+ global subscribers. Prabh is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow and College of Business Studies, University of Delhi.

Twin Health is backed by Sequoia Capital India, ICONIQ Growth, Perceptive Advisors, Corner Ventures, Tru Arrow Partners, LTS Investments, Helena and Sofina.

About Twin Health:

Twin Health invented the Whole Body Digital Twin to empower people to reverse and prevent chronic metabolic diseases, improve energy and physical health, and extend lifespan.  Headquartered in Silicon Valley, USA, and Chennai, India. To learn more, visit https://www.twinhealth.com

Eight-Day Design Festival DesignUru 3.0 By IIID Begins In City

* Lambani woman from Karnataka showcases live demo of embroidery, mirror work

The Institute of Indian Interior Designers (IIID) Bengaluru Regional Chapter inaugurated the design Fest 'DesignUru 3.0' amidst much fanfare at the Rangoli Centre, MG Road, Bengaluru.

Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra, an organisation working on the ground level with the local artisans brought  a Lambani woman, a tribal artisan in traditional dress. She demonstrated embroidery and mirror work which was the star attraction of the first day of the fest.

Local folk artists of Karnataka performed lively theatrical folk dance - Dollu Kunitha to add a traditional touch to the fest.

The theme of this year’s DesignUru 3.0 is 'Vocal for Local'. For this, IIID BRC has tied up with four organisations who will be bringing artisans across Karnataka and other parts of India- Vimor, Madhurya Creations, Kadam Haat and Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra. Each of the 4 organisations will be hosting a two- day participatory workshops / demonstrations on each day involving the traditional artisans during the Design festival week. The week-long design festival will also host a crafts bazaar by Naisargik Santhe, supporting the works of artisans.

Speaking at the inauguration, Kavita Sastry, chairperson, IIID Bangalore Regional Chapter said, "The grand design festival will have each day being curated by a renowned Architect firm or an Institute. The key events of the 7 day fest starting from 16th December to 22nd Dec are ‘Save the Artisan Campaign’, ‘Installation made from waste’, ‘provoking a conversation on our urban spaces’, ‘Presenting a Sensory Garden’, ‘Beekeeping and its architecture connect’ and ‘Earthworks’.”

Concerned about Urban space of Bengaluru City she said, "Many a time the design of the urban space is ignored and so is its impact on not only functionality, mobility, usability, aesthetics but also on the mental health of the residents using the spaces. The fact that a badly designed urban space not only restricts mobility but also causes acute stress is at most times not recognised."

"Noting the importance of good design in an urban space and the need to address it, promote it, IUDI Karnataka Chapter, will be hosting an exhibition on Urban Design that will be open on all the 7 days of the design festival. The exhibition will have 5 verticals, with each vertical focusing on a specific aspect of urban space," Sastry stressed.

The DesignUru 3.0 was inaugurated by IAS Shalini Rajneesh, Additional Chief Secretary at Planning Department. Speaking at the event, Dr.Shalini Rajneesh, Additional Chief Secretary at Planning Department, said, "Bengaluru is already an IT capital,  garden city and now we have rightful claim to be a design capital."

"Bengaluru has all the qualities and naturally qualifies to be Design capital of India and the Designuru which started in 2016 is step in the direction and could give impetus to the  movement for official government recognition and acknowledgement. BIt's time for Bengaluru to be recognized as Design Capital," concurs Dr. Prashanth Reddy, Chairman, Real Estate Expert Committee, BCIC , which has signed an MOU with IIID to jointly promote design and create awareness among common people.

Others present at the inauguration were Mr Dinesh Verma, Convenor of Design Uru and Mr Vishwanath, Hon Secy of IIID BRC'

The DesignUru will be on at Rangoli Centre, MG Road till December 22, 2021.

December, 15th  and 16th - Lambani women will be in traditional dress and she will be there at the designated artisan demonstration space, demonstrating her embroidery and mirror work

December, 17th  and 18th - Tanjore painting, channapatna toys, wood carving and grass mats live demo and exhibition

December, 19th  and 20th - Traditional artisan with a small travelling loom to weave and another to do embroidery. Their artisan stalls will be selling weaves and embroidery work.

December, 21st and 22nd - Artisans from West Bengal and Orissa will be weaving mats, baskets from grass and demonstrating both the days. Their artisan stall through the week will sell mats, baskets, bags, trays etc made from different kinds of locally sourced grass such as Golden grass, Sabai grass, Moonj grass, Bamboo grass, Sital Pati, Willow wicker etc.

Accenture Launches 360° Value Reporting Digital-First Experience

*  Combines financial and environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting into digital-first experience 

*  Comprehensive view of goals, progress and performance enhances transparency for all stakeholders 

*  Also announces plan to plant 674,000 trees—one for each person at Accenture 

Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has launched its 360° Value Reporting Experience to demonstrate the multiple ways the company creates, drives and measures value, both in serving its clients and operating its business.

Accenture defines “360° Value” as delivering the financial business case and unique value a client may be seeking, along with striving to partner with its clients to achieve greater progress across these dimensions: Client, Talent, Inclusion & Diversity, Experience, Sustainability and Financial. The company applies these same categories of value to how it operates its business.

“Our goal is to create 360° Value for all our stakeholders—our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities,” said Julie Sweet, chair and CEO of Accenture. “This goal reflects our growth strategy, our purpose, our core values and our culture of shared success, and we measure our own success by how well we are achieving this goal. Today we are proud to launch this new way to share our progress on how we are creating this value.”

The Accenture 360° Value Reporting Experience enables its stakeholders to see all the company’s reporting and data in one place, offering a comprehensive view of the company’s goals, progress and performance across its financial and environmental, social and governance (ESG) measures. The experience also features stories that illustrate how Accenture creates 360° Value with its clients.

Stakeholders can easily access the metrics that are most important to them and explore the frameworks and standards that Accenture currently reports against, as well as the company’s annual report, proxy statement and United Nations Global Compact Communication on Progress.

In its reporting this year, the company has added three ESG reporting frameworks—the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosure (TCFD) and the World Economic Forum International Business Council (WEF IBC) metrics—while continuing to report against with the GRI Standards, the UNGC Ten Principles and the Carbon Disclosure Project. With the launch of the Accenture 360° Value Report Experience, Accenture has shifted its annual ESG reporting from March to December.

Building on Accenture’s Commitment to Net Zero

The company also announced today that it is planting 674,000 trees—one to represent each person at Accenture—as part of its commitment to reaching net zero by 2025.  Additionally, in September 2021, the company announced its investment in nature-based carbon removal projects, which will reforest land, rebuild biodiversity, make agriculture more sustainable, help create green jobs and allow natural ecosystems to rebound and thrive. These projects are expected to physically remove more than 13 million metric tons of carbon from the atmosphere over the next 20 years.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services — all powered by the world’s largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 674,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at accenture.com.

Samsung Announces Lucky Draw Prizes Worth INR 4 Crore On Purchase Of Its Home Appliances

* Buy Samsung Home Appliances from December 15, 2021 – January 26, 2022, and register on the contest microsite

* Around 600 consumers stand a chance to win Samsung AirDresser, Refrigerator & Microwave  

* Additional offers include cashback of up to 20% and EMIs starting as low as INR 990

Samsung, India’s largest and most trusted consumer electronics brand, has announced a New Year lucky draw contest on its range home appliances to make the Christmas and New Year celebrations merrier.

Around 600 consumers buying Samsung Refrigerators, Washing Machines, Microwaves, Dishwashers and AirDressers from December 15, 2021 – January 26, 2022 will stand a chance to win Samsung AirDresser, Refrigerator or Microwave worth INR 4 crore.

All they need to do is register on the microsite and upload the invoice once their purchase is complete. The winners will be announced on four different occasions during the contest period. The contest participation is applicable on purchase of Samsung Home Appliances from all leading retail stores across the country (except Tamil Nadu).

For consumers in Tamil Nadu, Samsung has introduced another contest wherein they need to enter a slogan on the microsite along with the invoice of the Samsung Home Appliance they have bought. 18 lucky winners from Tamil Nadu will be announced at the end of the promo period.

Additionally, consumers across India during the offer period can avail offers such as additional cashback up to 20% and EMIs starting as low as INR 990.

“As the year 2021 comes to an end, we at Samsung would like to help our consumers make the most of Christmas and New Year celebrations by rewarding them for their love and commitment for us. We have curated a unique contest aimed at providing them with an opportunity to upgrade their homes with premium technology and products from Samsung,” said Raju Pullan, Senior Vice President, Consumer Electronics Business, Samsung India.

For more details regarding the contest visit: https://www.samsung.com/in/offer/newyear%20contest/  

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.?

Samsung inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies. The company is redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, digital appliances, network systems and memory, system LSI, foundry and LED solutions. For the latest news on Samsung India, please visit Samsung India Newsroom at http://news.samsung.com/in. For Hindi, log on to Samsung Newsroom Bharat at https://news.samsung.com/bharat. You can also follow us on Twitter @SamsungNewsIN

Accenture Q1 Result Read-Through: Stellar Revenue Performance; Raises FY22 Revenue Growth Guidance

* Strong traction continues in consulting and outsourcing businesses: Accenture's (ACN) revenues rose 27% YoY to USD14.97bn (27% in local currency), well ahead of the upper end of its guided range of USD13.9bn-USD14.35bn. ACN saw strong, broad-based demand across industries, services and geographic markets, resulting in robust overall operating performance and strong order booking with a stable win rate. The company posted healthy double-digit growth in local currency in Cloud, Industry X and Security strategic priorities, while Interactive saw strong double-digit growth. All three service lines - Strategy & Consulting, Technology and Operations - reported robust double-digit growth during the quarter. Consulting revenue grew 33% YoY to USD8.39bn in Q1, continuing the strong momentum seen in Q4FY21. Revenue growth in the outsourcing business was healthy at 21% YoY to USD6.57bn. New bookings were at a record high of USD16.8bn (30% YoY, book-to-bill 1.1x) in Q1 and were broad based across verticals and service lines. Consulting bookings stood at USD9.4bn (41.4% YoY, book-to-bill 1.1x) and outsourcing bookings came in at USD7.4bn (17.6% YoY, book-to-bill 1.1x). The operating margin expanded by 20bps YoY to 16.3%. Utilization was stable at 92%. Quarterly annualized voluntary attrition moderated to 17% from 19% in Q4FY21. The company added 50,057 net employees (~8% addition QoQ) during the quarter.

* Broad-based growth across verticals: Growth in Q1 was driven by Products (34% in local currency), Communication, Media & Technology (32% in local currency), Financial Services (24% in local currency), Health & Public Services (23% in local currency), and Resources (17% in local currency). The company is seeing secular demand across its verticals and expects to sustain broad-based growth momentum in the coming quarters.

* FY22 revenue growth guidance revised upwards to 19-22%: ACN revised its FY22 revenue growth guidance upward to 19-22% in local currency from 12-15% guided earlier (organic 14-17% vs. earlier 7-10%) on the back of superior revenue performance in Q1 and robust demand trends. The guidance assumes a negative 3% foreign exchange impact on USD revenues (earlier expected 0.5%). The operating margin is expected to expand by 10-30bps to 15.2 to 15.4%. ACN expects Q2FY22 revenues to be in the range of USD14.3-14.75bn, up 22-26% YoY in local currency. The company expects OCF and FCF to be in the range of USD8.4-8.9bn and USD7.7-8.2bn, respectively.

* Earnings call takeaways: 1) Q1 revenues came in USD600mn higher than the upper end of ACN's guided range, aided by broad based over-delivery across geographies, verticals and services. Management indicated that the increasing need for speed, compressed transformation initiatives and acceleration in cloud journey is driving better than expected demand. 2) ACN is seeing an extraordinary demand environment as companies continue to invest in their multi-year digital transformation journey. 3) In FY22, it expects strong double-digit growth in consulting (better than earlier expectations as per management) and double-digit growth in outsourcing (vs. earlier expectations of high-single digits to low-double digits); 4) The company added 15 diamond clients in Q1 (compared to 13 in FY21), taking the total to 244. 5) ACN plans to invest ~USD4bn on M&A in FY22 (invested USD1.7bn on acquisitions in Q1) and the guidance continues to assume ~5% revenue contribution from M&A. 6) ACN signed deals worth over USD100mn with 20 clients in Q1FY22 (18 in Q4FY21). 7) ACN promoted over 90,000 employees in Q1FY22 with 1,030 new managing directors and 143 new senior managing directors. 8) ACN is seeing pricing improvements in many parts of its business. 9) Management indicated that only ~30% of payload has moved to cloud so far, which offers significant growth opportunities.

* Read-through for Indian IT peers: ACN's revenue beat in Q1FY22 (USD600mn beat) and a strong upward revision in revenue growth guidance for FY22 (~USD3.5bn increase) indicate a robust demand environment. Broad-based healthy demand, strong outsourcing order booking (17.6% YoY in Q1 on the back of 21% in FY21) and upgrade in FY22 growth expectations in the outsourcing business (double-digit growth vs earlier high-single digits to low-double digits) augur well for Indian IT peers. Though attrition remains an issue across the industry, clients have become more amenable to price increases. ACN has also indicated that it is seeing an improvement in pricing in many parts of its business, which should support margins. The Nifty IT index rose 1%/27%/58% in the last 3M/6M/12M vs. -2.2%/9%/26% of the Nifty. We believe that a strong demand environment, sustained acceleration in revenue growth and robust order booking will support higher valuations. We prefer INFO, TECHM, HCLT and TCS in large caps, and PSYS, FSOL, MPHL, BSOFT and eClerx in mid-caps.

Godrej Appliances Bags CII Design Excellence Award 2021 For Washing Machine ‘Edge Ultima - Steelnox’

* Godrej Appliances recognised as sole winner in the Consumer Appliances segment

Godrej & Boyce, the flagship company of the Godrej Group, announced that its business Godrej Appliances has won the CII Design Excellence Award 2021 for its recently launched Godrej Edge Ultima SteelNoxWashing Machine in the category of Product Design for Consumer Appliances.

The primary evaluation criteria for the award included creativity and innovation, human perspective, sustainability among others. Acing all the parameters of evaluation, Godrej Appliances was recognised as the sole winner among consumer appliance category. The award celebrates organizations that strive to create new paradigms of design in India.

The Godrej Edge Ultima Steelnox blends aesthetics, durability and sustainability perfectly. It has a unique borderless design with soft shut, tinted toughened glass lids. Additionally, the control panel is protected with toughened glass to ensure no water seeps in. Both the wash & spin drums are made of rust proof stainless steel. The bezel design makes the lid usage convenient for consumers. In keeping with the brand’s commitment to the environment, the machine also comes with a 5star BEE rating that helps conserve energy and water. These innovative feature and designs make it a high performing product in the competitive landscape. The machine comes in two attractive colours - Crystal Blue & Crystal Grey.

On receiving the award, Mr. Kamal Nandi, Business Head & Executive Vice President, Godrej Appliances said, “Our relentless focus on innovation, customer centricity and environment has enabled us to create award winning products like ‘Edge Ultima Steelnox’. This recognition will propel our teams further to continue innovating for our consumers, in line with our brand philosophy of ‘Soch Ke Banaya Hai / Things Made Thoughtfully’. We have been investing in product design – both in terms of people and infrastructure, and the same is reaping dividend for the brand.”

Further, adding his comments, Mr. Rajinder Koul, Product Group Head – Washing Machines, Godrej Appliances said, “We are delighted with the recognition which is a testament to our spirit of innovation, and we remain committed to developing new and improved products for our consumers across segments. The Edge Ultima Steelnox machine offers semi-automatic consumers a best-in-class choice, and more such offerings are being rolled out across all washing machine segments.”

About Godrej Appliances:

Godrej Appliances, a business unit of Godrej & Boyce, is one of the leading Home Appliances players in India. Godrej & Boyce was the first Indian Company in 1958 to manufacture Refrigerators and since then Godrej Appliances has expanded its portfolio across many other categories like Washing Machines, Air Conditioners, Microwave Ovens, futuristic Thermo-electric cooling solutions, Air Coolers, Deep Freezers, highly specialized Medical Refrigerators and more recently, UVC Technology-Based Disinfecting devices and Dishwashers, all powered by the driving philosophy of 'Things Made Thoughtfully’.

This thought extends from human-centric design to planet centric design. Environment is a core value at Godrej. Both manufacturing units of Godrej Appliances became the first in the country to win the coveted Platinum Plus Green Co certification for their pioneering green manufacturing practices. The brand takes pride in not just its carefully designed products and environment-friendly technologies, but also best in class after-sales service delivered through over 680 service centres and more than 4500 Smart Buddy service experts spread all over the country.

Garmin India Brings Joy With ‘Give A Garmin’ Campaign In This Festival Season

* Inviting customers to reward themselves with good health as a New Year gift

Cheering the spirit of this festival season, Garmin India, a unit of Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN), has announced their new campaign ‘Give A Garmin’ to invite customers to rejoice and reward themselves with vigorous health through smartwatches from Garmin as a New Year gift.

Customers can enjoy multiple offers along with significant discounts on selected products in this ‘End of Year’ Sale period till January 10, 2022, making their new year more special and loaded with fitness and other health benefits.

Garmin India, a tech major, delivers innovative GPS technology across diverse markets, including aviation, marine, fitness, outdoor recreation, tracking, and mobile apps. The smart wearables provide an array of advanced health and fitness features like body battery energy monitoring, pulse ox meter, health snapshot feature providing an in-depth report of the workout, stress tracking, women health features, etc.

To make the Garmin smartwatches more accessible, the company is offering amazing deals up to 20% off on selected products.

The offers are as follows.

Ø  Garmin Lily (Dark Bronze, Paloma, Leather)

Offer Details: MRP- Rs. 25, 990, offer price- INR 3000 off- now available at Rs. 22,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/minisite/lily/#spec

Ø  Garmin Forerunner 745

Offer Details: MRP – Rs 51,990, offer price-INR 6000 off- now available at INR. 51,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/products/wearables/forerunner-745-whitestone/#specsTab

Ø  Garmin Forerunner 945 (Black)

Offer Details: MRP- Rs. 62,490, offer price- INR 10,500 off- now available at Rs. 51,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/products/wearables/forerunner-945-black/#specsTab

Ø  Garmin Instinct Solar (Graphite)

Offer Details: MRP- Rs. 41,490, offer price- INR 9,500 off- now available at Rs. 31,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/products/wearables/instinct-solar-graphite/#specsTab

Customers will also get a chance to win a special gift on the purchase of selected Garmin smartwatches during this period, making their experience with Garmin more joyful.

List of selected smartwatches:

Ø  Venu Sq (Shadow Gray/Slate)

Rate: Available at INR. 20,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/products/wearables/venu-sq-gray-slate/#specsTab

Ø  Venu Sq Music (Shadow Gray/Slate)

Rate: Available at INR. 25,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/products/wearables/venu-sq-music-navy-gold/#specsTab

Ø  Venu 2/2S (Venu 2 - Silver Stainless Steel Bezel with Granite Blue Case and Silicone Band)

Rate: Available at INR. 41,990

Link of Spec Sheet: https://www.garmin.co.in/products/wearables/venu-2-blue/#specsTab

For more information about the ‘End Of Year Sale’ deals, visit: https://bit.ly/3q0Pafb

About Garmin: Garmin International Inc. is a subsidiary of Garmin Ltd. (Nasdaq: GRMN). Garmin Ltd. is incorporated in Switzerland, and its principal subsidiaries are located in the United States, Taiwan and the United Kingdom. Garmin, Instinct and Trackback are registered trademarks, and Garmin Connect, Garmin Explore, and UltraTrac is a trademark of Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries. Wi-Fi is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. For more information, visit garmin.co.in.

Earth Energy EV Successfully Tracks The Glyde SX, Aims Retail Roll Out By January 2022

* Earth Energy’s Glyde SX & Glyde SX+ Shines On Track With 97% localisation On Road Price Expected To Be Rs 75,000

* Earth Energy showcased its Glyde SX and the Glyde SX+ variants of its commuter scooter. Built ground up using only indigenous components, Earth Energy is strong in its commitment towards building the Indian EV infrastructure ecosystem.

The Mumbai-based automotive start-up Earth Energy EV has appointed distributors across 10 Indian states, these include Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa, and the retail rollout is targeted for the 1st week of January 2022 with the first batch of 460 vehicles which will be manufactured at Earth Energy’s 20,000 sq. ft. greenfield manufacturing facility in Maharashtra.

Earth Energy vehicles are compliant with all public charging stations being set up by both government and private players. The achievement of 98% localization in manufacturing and spares considerably brings down the cost of maintenance as well as availability of spare parts. This makes Earth Energy an attractive proposition for the modern commuter. 

Speaking on the development Rushii Senghani, CEO and Founder of Earth Energy, said “We are really happy with the way the Glyde SX & SX+ variants have performed. Our vehicles have been put through 7lakh testing kilometres and even today the bike has performed admirably, with it being put rigorously through its paces. The Glyde is a no fuss, reliable and efficient modern scooter that is made for the modern commuter.” 

Since its inception in 2017, Earth Energy has focused on the development of electric motorcycles, scooters, commercial vehicle & autonomous vehicle drivetrains with a strong focus on localization and high-quality offerings.

About Earth Energy EV 

Founded in 2017 Earth Energy has been a flag bearer for the Indian Electric Vehicles Industry, with a strong focus on R&D and localization. Its development of multiple OEM offerings and Energy efficient vehicles with a strong local flavour has helped push capability development in the Indian EV industry. Earth Energy EV currently operates under its parent company Grushie Energy Pvt Ltd. and is headquartered in mainland Mumbai with an R&D and Manufacturing facility in the outskirts. 

L&T Construction & Mining Machinery’s 75 years Marked By A Stamp Release

To mark the 75th anniversary of L&T Construction & Mining Machinery business, Department of Posts, Government of India, released a special commemorative stamp today. 

The corporate stamp was unveiled by Mrs. Sharada Sampath, Chief-Postmaster-General, Karnataka Circle in the presence of Mr. S.N. Subrahmanyan, CEO & MD, Larsen & Toubro, Mr. Arvind K. Garg, Executive Vice-President, Construction & Mining Machinery Business, L&T and Mr. L.K. Dash, Postmaster-General, Bangalore HQ.

Addressing the gathering, Mr. Subrahmanyan said, “L&T has a legacy of pioneering critical equipment required for nation-building and is at the forefront of continuous enhancement of engineering design and manufacturing capabilities. We are delighted that our Construction and Mining Machinery Business has been fulfilling the needs of the mining and construction sectors with high quality equipment and excellent service for the last 75 years.”

He said L&T’s Construction & Mining Machinery Business had introduced the hydraulic excavator technology to India and contributed significantly towards its infrastructure development. As an engineering conglomerate, L&T has been instrumental in partnering with the nation and bringing into India cutting-edge technologies from across the world that has enabled in accelerating the growth of the nation.

The business has supplied over 60,000 units of various equipment in India during its 75 years association with the Construction and Mining Industry. These machines have been used to create landmarks of exceptional design and have significantly contributed to the growing infrastructure of the nation.

In her address, CPMG Mrs. Sharada Sampath appreciated the efforts of L&T as the frontline engineering organization committed to building India through involvement in critical projects. She congratulated the L&T senior management for its success and extended best wishes for future initiatives.  

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Arvind K Garg said, “As L&T-ites, we are honoured to have this commemorative stamp issued on our 75th anniversary and are thankful to the Department of Posts for this acknowledgment. He said L&T has been leading the way to fulfilling the mission of Atmanirbhar Bharat with manufacture and supply of road machinery such as Vibratory Compactors and Wheel Loaders which are deployed for roads and highways development.  We reaffirm our commitment to develop and launch cost-effective technologies for Indian customers.”

L&T utilized its deep knowledge and experience gained since 1945 and developed its own ‘Make in India’ road machinery comprising of Vibratory Compactors and Wheel Loaders. These indigenously designed and manufactured machines are now aiding road construction and highway development and enabling L&T move towards fulfilling the national mission of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.

The commemorative stamp released on the occasion features various models of earthmoving equipment introduced by L&T in the last seven decades in the Indian market. During the event, a special cover was also released.

Background:

Larsen & Toubro is an Indian multinational engaged in EPC Projects, Hi-Tech Manufacturing and Services. It operates in over 50 countries worldwide. A strong, customer–focused approach and the constant quest for top-class quality have enabled L&T to attain and sustain leadership in its major lines of business for eight decades.

Jaro Education Founder, Dr Sanjay Salunkhe Announces ESOP Buyback With 400% Returns To Employees

Dr Sanjay Salunkhe - Founder, Jaro Education, a leading ed-tech firm offering world-class executive education for working professionals, has announced share buyback issued through its Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP). The company issued shares to its key employees in 2018 at a rate of Rs. 50/- per share. Now founder Dr Salunkhe offers to buy back those shares at Rs. 250/- per share by providing the employees 400% return on their investment. However, the option to sell shares will be at the discretion of their employees, and they will have all the rights to continue their shareholding with the company.

In FY 2021-2022, the company expects EBITDA to increase by 300%; and revenue by 150%; the company’s employee headcount has increased by 100%. The company is now planning to roll out its 2nd ESOP scheme by the end of March 2022, in which the ESOPs will be issued even to its new employees so that they can feel highly motivated and form an integral part of the Jaro family.

Dr Sanjay Salunkhe highlighted, “Great organizations always ensure that they make room for the learning and growth of new employees. This step will result in employees going the extra mile.”

CEO Ranjita Raman added, “Jaro Education values the commitment & hard work put in by its team members and truly believes in growing together and sharing the prosperity. That is the unified approach within our system, which has successfully managed to stand the test of time & deliver exceptional results. The company expects a large number of employees to benefit from the rollout of the second ESOP scheme.”

About Jaro Education:

Jaro Education has been India's most trusted online higher education company. The Edtech firm and a pioneer in the executive education industry was founded in 2009 by Dr Sanjay Salunkhe and has been profit-making since its inception, and it is self-funded.

The company aims to nurture executives and managers from entry-level to C-Suite level in every field and industry by guiding them to choose and select a program that caters to their requirements. Having been recognized for changing the landscape of online education in India, Jaro Education offers more than 28+ management and technology programs in collaboration with reputed institutes. They facilitate the development of management and technology-based online programs for many leading Indian and global institutes like IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Trichy, IMT Ghaziabad, Rotman School of Management (University of Toronto), and Imperial College Business School in London, and others.

It also boasts having over 800 corporate partners like Accenture, American Express, Axis Bank, Tech Mahindra. With its strong domain expertise and insight into online programs, Jaro Education has transformed the careers of over 3 lakh professionals in the last 12 years across India.

For more information, visit: https://www.jaroeducation.com

Competitive Gaming Platform: Tournafest, Secures Pre-Seed Funding Of Rs 3.05 Crores

Tournafest, a one-stop destination for the gamer community of India, has secured pre-seed funding of Rs 3.05 crores from a clutch of investors and angels. The Rajasthan based start-up was founded in April 2021 by fresh graduates of IIT Roorkee. Investors in this round include India Quotient, FirstCheque, Maninder Gulati (Global CSO Oyo Rooms), Abhinav Sinha (Global CPO and COO Oyo Rooms), and other prominent angels.

The founding members, and 2021 graduates of IIT Roorkee, Ayush Agarwal, and Kaustubh Trivedi, are assisted by Utkarsh Yadav, Arun Jhajharia, and Shubham Bhardwaj to conceptualize and establish Tournafest. The team comprises regular gamers with working experience in Esports’ diverse functions along with marketing, design, and the technical and software side.

Tournafest is exclusively designed for the fast-growing gamer community of India. It aims to provide gamers with the opportunity to compete in tournaments and practice scrims hosted by leading gaming communities of India. The gamers are part of a collaborative community of enthusiasts and can showcase their performance on the platform. At the same time, Tournafest enables organizers to conduct scalable Esports tournaments seamlessly and exhibit their verified progress to corresponding sponsors. 

Esports has gradually emerged as one of the most lucrative industries in recent years, especially post-pandemic. The gaming market in India is anticipated to be valued at $7B by 2026 and has made its mark in mainstream sporting tournaments such as the Asian Games. 

Anand Lunia, General Partner, IndiaQuotient stated, “For esports to become democratic, the tournaments have to move out of fancy pubs and go into every phone in every lane of the country, like street cricket of the future. Ayush and Kaustubh are gamers by heart, coders by skill, and platform creators by vision. IndiaQuotient backs them to join the leagues of Bharat first platforms like Sharechat, Bharat Agri, and Lokal.”

“During our college days, gaming was not streamlined, and formal tournaments were practically unheard of. Certainly,  an opportunity was hidden behind this issue. We want to reinvent how the Esports ecosystem works and move towards creating a collaborative and motivating platform where discoverability and scalability are fundamental. We believe that every gamer's skills should be recognized and respected, and this platform will deliver just that to this growing community.” added  Ayush Agarwal and  Kaustubh Trivedi, the founders. 

About Tournafest:

Tournafest™? is positioned as a one-stop destination for competitive gaming created by the gamers for the gamers. The founders Ayush Agarwal and  Kaustubh Trivedi have developed this unique platform for the Esports ecosystem, where gamers can compete and enhance their skills, organize and participate in tournaments, network with gamers, and flaunt their skills. Their core product is a platform that not only helps gamers improve their gameplays, but also creates lucrative business opportunities for Esports organizers. With Tournafest, every gamer is recognized as a professional, and their talent gets the recognition it deserves.

Signzy Enlists Former PayPal India Enterprise Business Head As Chief Growth Officer

* Siddharth Dhamija to help the startup scale BFSI transformation in EMEA and APAC

Banking infrastructure enabler Signzy, announced the joining of Siddharth Dhamija as their Chief Growth Officer (CGO) to strengthen their global expansion across Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) and Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions. The announcement follows Signzy’s recent entry into UAE and continued expansion of its C-suite leaders in the region.

Signzy has emerged as a global leader for banking technology solutions and Siddharth will help further accelerate the fintech’s growth and advance its position in the digital banking space.

An industry stalwart, Siddharth  brings more than 25 years of experience in growing the payment and enterprise business of leading fintech brands including PayPal and Razorpay. He has also spent considerable time in handling emerging markets during his tenure at Subex UAE.

Signzy Co-founder and Chief Business Officer Arpit Ratan said, “Siddharth’s wealth of experience in handling complex business challenges and enhancing customer and partner relationships will power Signzy to scale in newer geographies. As we move towards expanding our presence in the US, we were on a look out for someone to lead and grow our business in emerging markets. Given that Siddharth has helped several companions in the past to scale their business in these geographies.  We are very pleased to have him onboard.”

“I have seen the role Indian technology has played in transforming the BFSI industry globally. Signzy has been a key player in embedding technology seamlessly within the banking infrastructure – not just for some leading banks in India but globally as well. I am eager to take many of our agile and intuitive solutions to the biggest financial and fintech companies across the world within the next few months,” said Siddharth Dhamija, Chief Growth Officer, Signzy.

About Signzy

Signzy is a ‘no-code AI platform’ for financial services. Automates the back-office operations and decision-making processes into a real-time API by leveraging intelligent technology capabilities. Providing dedicated assistance & fulfilling guidelines given by the regulators, Signzy offers solutions for customer onboarding, authentication, digitization for addressing business challenges in the finance sector- powered by AI & ML. Working towards the power of change in creating meaningful value for customers, Signzy is awarded by Yalla Fintech Award, ET BFSI InnovationTribe Award, IFTA - Best RegTech Innovation Award, UK-India FinTech Award, and many others. Customers include HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI Bank, MSwip, and 200 others in India, UAE, and the USA.

fitpage Raised $3.5 M From Astra Ventures In Seed Funding. In A Fresh Round, The FitTech Start-Up Has Raised $300 K From Angel Investors

fitpage, an endurance-first fitness tech platform has raised a total of $3.7 million this year. The FitTech start-up raised $3.5 million in a seed round from Astra Ventures at the beginning of 2021. fitpage has additionally raised $300 thousand in an angel round recently. This investment came from Gaurav Jaitly – MD and head of equity, Goldman Sachs India and Maj. Manoj Verma, MD of Jaguar Security.  This takes the total investment to $3.7 million. 

fitpage has been building technology to bring personalization to the individual level to the extent that it could replace personal trainers to a large degree. 

The subscription-based platform focuses on improving cardiovascular health thereby bringing an overall improvement in the health and fitness of individuals.  The platform uses fitness, nutrition, and education as an integrated approach to achieve this. fitpage will target to raise a larger amount of funding in late 2022 for accelerating growth and acquiring complementary businesses in the related field. 

Vikas Singh, Founder & CEO, Fitpage, “Our investors believed in the vision and the team behind this to bring this to a reality. At fitpage, our goal is to democratize fitness for people. The issue of fitness has remained a tall issue to address even with the exponential growth in physical fitness facilities in the country.  It needs a much larger push and a much more personalized approach to create an impact.  fitpage, through its understanding of the cardiovascular system, designs plans that are curated for each individual and can be replicated at scale. 

“Knowing Vikas since his days at Goldman Sachs, I resonate with the problem he is trying to solve at fitpage. We have seen him grow as a professional as well as an ardent marathoner.  Through fitpage, he is trying to build a technology to solve the problem of personalization for fitness at scale and I fully support his vision,” said Gaurav Jaitly, MD and head of equity, Goldman Sachs India. 

“Vikas and team are creating something that has an exponential impact opportunity and we think they are the right team to be working on it. I am glad to come on board this journey,” said Maj. Manoj Verma, MD, Jaguar Security. 

With an MBA from Chicago Booth School, Vikas Singh has created a unique space for fitpage in the fitness industry. 

About fitpage 

fitpage is an endurance-first fitness start-up that curates deep tech-based personalized training, nutrition, and content through an integrated mobile and web platform. The app is still in the works and is due to be launched at the end of January.  The brainchild of Vikas Singh, fitpage was established in April 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

fitpage has some of the best scientists, coaches, researchers, and athletes from across the world who create research-based, non-biased, and non-sponsored content.  Since 2020, the fitpage website has become a natural destination for all things fitness and nutrition, and their podcasts feature in the top podcasts regularly.  The ‘Walk to weight loss’ podcast regularly features within the top 10 of Apple’s health and fitness podcasts and the ‘Run With Fitpage’ podcast is in the top 5% across the globe in all categories put together. 

Infogain Acquires Cloud-Native App Development Company NNT

* 400-member team brings expertise in cloud-native digital platforms, eCommerce, Blockchain and IoT

Infogain, a Silicon Valley-based global leader in human-centered digital platform engineering services, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Nggawe Nirman Technologies (NNT), a cloud-native app development company servicing customers in the manufacturing, fintech, edtech, healthcare, and software industries.

Co-founded in 2017 by Phoenix-based Rao Sadhureddy and Santoshkumar Hanaji, NNT's leadership and world-class engineering teams based in Bangalore will significantly enhance Infogain’s expertise in building AWS cloud-native applications using microservices, containerization and DevOps to power digital platforms, blockchain, automation, and IoT solutions.

NNT's clients include a billion-dollar Australia-based appliance and coffee exchange company, a US-based educational platform with more than 45 million users, and an industry-leading charitable donation platform company. NNT also has experience in blockchain, having designed and developed an AI services platform using Ethereum. Clients express high satisfaction with NNT's engineering prowess, product ownership focus, and talent.

The addition of NNT's 400 team members will take Infogain’s global employee base to over 6,000. Commenting on the signing of this agreement, Infogain’s Head of Global Delivery, Operations and M&A Eddie Chandhok said, “NNT's engineering strength is impressive, and I am confident Rao and his team will add a new dimension to our cloud capabilities as we combine experience, cloud and AI for our combined client groups. We warmly welcome NNT's clients and employees to our fast-growing Infogain family.”

NNT CEO Rao Sadhureddy said, “This is a proud moment for NNT. Our employees will now have opportunities to be involved in much larger engagements in more transformational roles across the globe.  I am also excited to introduce Infogain to NNT clients, some of which are in new geographies for Infogain.”

Several NNT technologists will join Infogain’s technology office, headed by Infogain CTO Sumant Ahuja.  Ahuja said, “NNT's expertise in AWS cloud-native app development, containerization, microservices and DevOps deepens our expertise across all three hyperscale clouds – Azure, GCP and AWS.”

About Infogain

Infogain is a human-centered digital platform engineering company based out of Silicon Valley. We engineer business outcomes for Fortune 500 companies and digital natives in the technology, healthcare, insurance, travel, telecom, and retail/CPG industries. We accelerate experience-led transformation in the delivery of digital platforms using technologies such as cloud, microservices, automation, IoT, and artificial intelligence. Infogain is a multi-cloud expert across hyperscale cloud providers – Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services.

Infogain, an Apax Funds portfolio company, has offices in California, Washington, Texas, the UK, the UAE, and Singapore, with delivery centers in Seattle, Houston, Austin, Kraków, Noida, Bengaluru, Pune, Gurgaon, and Mumbai. To learn more, visit www.infogain.com.