Massive Drive in Every Indian District to Go Cashless By Paytm

Paytm announced it has launched a massive drive across India to inform merchants and customers in every district about the benefits of using its payments platform. This is a part of the company’s long-term vision to bring half a billion Indians to the mainstream economy by 2020.

The company has instituted its team of to sensitize the public about the convenience of using Paytm. The team is conducting sessions and workshops across schools, colleges, village panchayats and trade bodies. This is to serve the dual purpose of informing customers about the benefits of digital payments and tap into the widest set of merchants across India.

Kiran Vasireddy, Snr. Vice President - Paytm said, “We have received an overwhelming response to our efforts in helping every Indian merchant accept Paytm. Hundreds of thousands of people have reached out to us over the last couple of weeks with their queries and feedback. To further fuel this growth, we have set up awareness camps across all major cities, towns and villages. Our aim is to reach every single market across all district and assist millions of Indians in their efforts to adopt a digital lifestyle.”

Paytm has also made its user interface in Android available in 10 regional languages - Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya and Punjabi. With this move, the company has expanded its reach to over 80% smartphone users in India who prefer internet-based services in regional languages, thus making mobile payments and commerce now accessible to all.

Anti-Tefton Activity Picks Up in India; Karnataka Government Likely to Join In Research Funding & Awareness

If you use your Teflon or non-stick pots and pans on a daily basis, you may unknowingly be exposing your family to hidden dangers. That's because non-stick cookware is made using a carcinogenic chemical called perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which starts emitting toxic fumes that you inhale every time you cook with a non-stick pot or pan! However, the Bengaluru-based Hairline International after initiating research has started to build awareness among Indians on the use of Teflon products and its harmful effects. The centre is now getting the Government of Karnataka involved to fund the project and also likely ban on Teflon products in the state.

Research indicated that at high temperatures, the coating of non-stick cookware will also break down into a chemical warfare agent known as PFIB, and a chemical analog of the WWII nerve gas phosgene.

Teflon has been in commercial use since the 1940s. It has a wide variety of products used in clothes, food and even water because it is extremely stable (it doesn’t react with other chemicals) and can provide an almost frictionless surface. Most people are familiar with it as a non-stick coating surface for pans and other cookware. It is also used in many other products, such as fabric protectors.

Hairline International Research Report

Hairline International Research and Treatment Centre released a report on the effects of Teflon that contains Perflurooctanoic Acid (PFOA), on hair fall. The report was released by Dr. S. Sacchidanand, Director of Medical Education, Government of Karnataka. In this recently concluded study, it was proven that 80% of the cases visiting the clinic with hair fall are PFOA positive. What is alarming is that of these cases, 65%, irrespective of gender developed high cholesterol. 70% of the women developed Polycystic Ovarian Disease (PCOD) and 65% developed hypothyroidism.

Speaking on the release of this research, Dr. Sacchidanand said, “There are a number of products we use on a daily basis thinking that they are good for our health and lifestyle. However, research such as the one released by Hairline International today shows that there is a need to examine such products and substances in depth to truly understand their impact on us in the long run”.

Dr. Dinesh G Gowda, Dermatosurgeon Hairline International Research and Treatment Center says, “Once PFOA is in the system, it is metabolized by the kidneys and liver, affecting the larger organs significantly in the long run. There are a range of diseases that the average human is now exposed as a result of lifestyle changes and the hectic pace of life in general. What was once perceived as a move towards a healthy lifestyle can now be the cause of illness.”

Dr. Premalatha V, Dermatosurgeon, Hairline International Research and Treatment Center says, “We have routinely carried out numerous researches on the various elements patients are exposed to and their possible connection to hair loss. Teflon (PFOA) is a commonly occurring element in households and even in water, and we found it important to look into its connection with hair loss. This research provides a new approach to dealing with hair loss and looks beyond known causes usually found in textbooks. This approach takes into account the new lifestyle diseases that are now afflicting people”.

Bani Anand, Founder and Managing Director, Hairline International says, “Hairline’s research wing has, over the years undertaken numerous researches which have helped us enhance the medical management of hair and skin that we are dedicated to doing. Internationally, a number of researches have been conducted on the possible harmful effects of PFOA and it has been found to have negative effects. This research helps us understand how an everyday element can wreak havoc on hair and how it may be countered”.

What is Teflon?

Teflon coated pans are a common occurrence in most home, especially considering that these products are marketed for the health conscious. One of the substances it comprises is PFOA. Most of the fast food packaging as well as candy wrappers and pizza box liners contact food contact papers that have traces of PFOA in them. PFOA has also been found in industrial waste, stain resistant carpets, carpet cleaning liquids as well as in house dust, microwaveable popcorn bags, food and water.

Once ingested in humans, PFOA has an average elimination half-life of about 3 years. There are also reports that have shown in animal based testing that there is a connection between PFOA and the occurrence of bladder, colon and prostate cancer.

Understanding the Research; Research Methodology, Observation and Inference

Hairline International has conducted an observational study across 6 centres of the organization for a period of one year from October 1, 2015 to October 30, 2016 to understand the effects of PFOA in the blood and its correlation to hair loss. 500 cases and 500 controls were taken for the study.

A detailed history was taken of each the cases to understand their lifestyles and the number of times they use non-stick cookware in a week.

It was seen that 401 out of the 500 cases (chosen from the urban areas) examined tested positive for PFOA in the blood. These results were primarily from the age group of 18 years to 44 years and those working professionals who were regular in consuming food made in non-stick cookware at least 4-6 times a week.

The 500 controls, on the other hand, were Bengalureans from lower strata of society- mostly physical and manual labourers, who used earthen pots and steel or aluminium cook ware to cook or warm their food. Only 15 subjects were found to be PFOA positive.

The study thus concluded that 80% of the cases visiting the clinic with hair fall are PFOA-positive. High PFOA levels leads to a higher incidence of PCOD, hypothyroidism, and high cholesterol, all of which indirectly cause hair fall. Further studies are needed to clearly identify clinically meaningful aspects of PFOA-associated hair loss. Larger studies may be required to draw definitive conclusions.

CoWrks Workspace at RMZ Infinity Attracts MNC’s Like Boeing & GE

CoWrks, a Bengaluru headquartered co-working community venture has opened its doors to their second co-working facility on Old Madras Road (OMR) at RMZ Infinity. Some of the major companies taken workspace includes: Boeing India R&D, GE Wind Power India, Style Lumia among others have taken space in the private studios.

An ode to the technological and entrepreneurship spirit of Bengaluru, the facility boasts of a large format offering of 400 desks across 30000 square feet of space. An estimated 1100 people making up a homogenous mix of professionals from small scale enterprises, startups to a pool of freelancers, independent professionals & entrepreneurs and Fortune 500 companies are expected to move in within the next month.

The concept of “Coworking” is a style of work that involves a shared working environment, often an office, and independent activity. Unlike in a typical office environment, those coworking are usually not employed by the same organization. Typically it is attractive to work-at-home professionals, independent contractors, or people who travel frequently who end up working in relative isolation. 

Sidharth Menda, Founder and CEO, CoWrks said, “The concept of shared, collaborative spaces has gained a tremendous thrust in India in the recent years. The innovation possibilities that this category brings with it, remains a key driver for us. As a brand, community building and bringing like-minded people within the same ecosystem remains core to our business. Old Madras Road is an emerging destination where IT/ITeS influence from the neighboring areas and rapid infrastructure development have resulted in considerable growth in a short time. Keeping the uniqueness and diversity of this megacity in mind, we have upped the ante on the design front for the OMR space specifically to suit the needs of the likes of an independent artist to a large MNC team.”

The creation of this vibrant and diverse community at the two spaces has set the stage perfectly for the launch of their community-building mobile app ‘CoWrks Connect’. An important milestone in their goal of merging technology and physical spaces, the app will allow users to bring further efficiency to their everyday work. In phase 1, tasks like membership management, booking of meeting rooms, printing files, filing support tickets and keeping track of events will be streamlined. Commenting on the long-term vision for the app, Nikhil Sud, CTO, CoWrks said, “As our community grows, we aim to create a layer of technology to supplement and enhance our physical presence. This will empower one of India’s most dynamic and fastest growing network of millennial professionals as they collaborate, share industry expertise and grow in their careers. In the long term, we will bring in more high-tech features like an artificially intelligent chat-bot and an online knowledge-sharing forum to bring in even more social collaboration and convenience to our members. We are confident that insights gained from usage patterns will help us understand their needs better and enhance our offerings right from location selection to space design.”

This latest phase of its market expansion comes hot on the heels of the tremendous success witnessed at its first facility at RMZ Ecoworld in August earlier this year which is already at full capacity. CoWrks is now focused on opening 10 facilities, across 4 metros in the next 6 months as part of a growth strategy encompassing both, entering key markets, and member growth. The two facilities combined, now offer 1.9 lakh square feet of space including 3200 desks designed to stimulate a work culture that dwells on collaboration between communities of like-minded individuals.

London Bridge, Dragon, Demonetisation Shankar Nag Star Attractions at 2016 Annual Cake Show in Bengaluru

The 42nd annual cake show, organised in association with the National Consumer Fair, was inaugurated on Friday at St Joseph's Indian High School grounds. The show will be open to the public from 11 am to 9 pm daily till January 1, 2017.

The big attraction this year is the London Tower Bridge, a 24X7 feet structure made entirely of sugar and weighing over 500 kg. Making the individual towers, suspension cables, and getting the Victorian Gothic style right took over 700 man hours. Sam Ramachandran, one of the cake artists, said, "It took a lot of patience because everything has to be according to measurements. It is much like engineering."

Other major attractions include Thanjavur painting of a female dancer, with finely detailed with edible lace and jewellery. The creator, Purva Sadvilkar took special Thanjavur painting classes six months in advance to prepare for the final piece.

The issue of demonetisation in icing- new Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes blooming on a money tree atop an India-shaped mountain. Explaining the concept, Apoorva Bhargava and Khadijah Madar said, "The rising sun behind the mountain shows that though people are struggling, they are hopeful about benefits of the move. The river flowing down is cleansing the system of black money."

Another star attractions is the model of actor Shankar Nag in icing, a two-storey dollhouse made of cookies, a Rajasthan wedding themed cake, a queen in a Victorian Gown, a book coming alive with tale of 'Jack and the Beanstalk' are among the other attractions.

C Ramachandran, started the cake shows back in 1974 with a 14-foot model of the Eiffel tower. "I learned the art of cake decoration in West Germany and England. I want this art to continue growing," he said. The 76-year-old has now handed over the cake show to students from the Institute of Baking and Cake Art. 

Air Ambulance Service to be Operational in Karnataka from Jan 2017

The state will get its first air ambulance facility in the New Year.While Chief Minister Siddaramaiah formally launched the air ambulances on Friday, commercial operations will begin in January 2017.

Speaking to journalists after the launch at the HAL airport here, Arun Sharma, managing director, Aviators Air Rescue Limited, the service provider, said necessary clearances have been sought from the Director General of Civil Aviation to operate air ambulances. The services are from one airport to another as company didn't get permission to land on site.
The air ambulance would help patients reach destinations faster besides helping transport organs, blood units, drugs or medical equipment, he explained. H130 helicopters are medically configured with emergency medical services, advanced life support medical equipment and a stretcher. The air ambulance will have a doctor and a paramedic. If the patient is minor, an attendant will be allowed to fly. The ambulance can support a patient for 90 to 180 minutes, said Sharma.

The service provider has tied up with several private hospitals in Bengaluru. Patients would be picked up from their homes or hospitals by road and taken to a nearby airport. From there, they would be flown to an airport closer to their chosen destination. "It is a subscription-based model. For an individual subscription, the cost would be Rs 9,000 a year while a family subscription would cost Rs 18,000. Once the subscription is availed of, the service can be used any number of times throughout the year. Individuals without subscription would have to pay Rs 1.75 lakh per hour."


The company has plans to launch similar services in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Kerala to begin with and later extend them to other states. To avail of the service one can call the emergency number 155350.

Vivek Vasudev Kamath Appointed New Managing Director of MSD India

MSD in India has announced leadership change. K. G. Ananthakrishnan (KG) current Managing Director of MSD in India will retire in the beginning of 2017 and Vivek Vasudev Kamath will assume role of Managing Director Designate from December 16, 2016. MSD in India operates its business in India through three legal entities, MSD Pharmaceuticals Private Limited, Organon (India) Private Limited, and Fulford (India) Limited.

Vivek joined MSD in India in July 2012 and is currently the Business Unit Director for Cardiovascular Metabolics and Market Access. KG and Vivek will work together to ensure smooth transition of business responsibilities.

Announcing the leadership change, Jan Van Acker, President Asia Pacific Region, MSD said, “I thank KG for his leadership and his contributions to MSD over the past ten years and congratulate Vivek on assuming the role of Managing Director of MSD in India. MSD has a robust succession planning process through which Vivek was identified to lead MSD in India and to deliver on our commitment to patients and communities in the Country. He has successfully led our Cardiovascular Metabolics and Market Access businesses and has fostered collaborative relationships with our customers and business partners, while delivering strong growth”

Vivek Vasudev Kamath has over twenty five years of experience across India, South Asia and ASEAN markets. He brings rich experience with leading Indian and Multinational healthcare organizations in marketing, sales and general management. He has managed portfolios in prescription, over-the counter (OTC) and Diagnostics segments, partnering with healthcare professionals, consumers, diverse trade channels and Government/ non-Government healthcare entities. 

Microsoft’s Unveils Dynamics 365 and AppSource Services Across India

Microsoft has unveiled its Microsoft Dynamics 365 suite and Microsoft AppSource in India. These services will be delivered to customers as Software-as-a-Service (Saas) from its datacenters in India. Dynamics 365 is a cloud based suite of applications that integrates CRM and ERP capabilities to provide the full power of advanced data analytics, machine learning and intelligence to high growth, new age companies in India. Microsoft AppSource is the new destination for business users to find and try out line-of-business SaaS apps from Microsoft and its partners. Presently, AppSource contains more than 200 business SaaS apps, add-ins and content packs, including exclusive new industry-specific business apps. 

Organizations from across multiple industry sectors in India are using Dynamics CRM. These include Max Healthcare, Yes Bank, Reliance Life Insurance Company, SOTC, VLCC, Cloudnine Group of Hospitals, Annik, Mastek and many more. In the retail sector, Microsoft Dynamics is used by 55 Retail and DMS customers serving 74 retail brands, empowering 14,000 outlets, enabling 25,000 users in India.

Peter Gartenberg, General Manager, Enterprise Business, Microsoft India said, “With Dynamics 365 we now bring the combined power of CRM and ERP on a secure and flexible local cloud platform. Our retail, BFSI and manufacturing customers now don’t need to invest in expensive and time consuming deployments to start their digital transformation. Backed by decades of research and investment, we have built Dynamics 365 to deliver the most advanced analytics and machine learning intelligence capabilities to our customers in India.”

Anup Purohit, Chief Information Officer, Yes Bank said, “Yes Bank has been using Microsoft Dynamics CRM for the past one year to deliver optimum services to its retail banking customers. Since inception, we have believed in using the power of technology to offer a superior banking experience to our customers, and through Microsoft Dynamics, we have been able to improve processes, get real-time business intelligence and make it easier for people to work together through collaboration across multiple devices. We see huge potential in Microsoft’s latest innovative solution, Dynamics 365, in terms of enabling banks to enhance their end-customer experience by leveraging real time insights and intelligence.”

With the app-based subscription model customers will only pay for the app they need, licensed to a particular user. By using these new plans, customers get one holistic subscription to have all the information at their fingertips, and they could save four to five times the cost of traditional CRM providers. Customers will have the option to choose which of the apps they adopt so they can scale on demand.

Businesses that embrace digital transformation generate an average of $100 million (or 8% points) more operating income each year than those who do not. There is a new speed of business that companies must adapt to, along with the rapidly evolving customer engagement mechanisms. There is a critical need to innovate in real-time, and all of this, with finite resources at their disposal. In such a scenario, Dynamics 365 offers a cost-effective, agile and easy-to-implement solution that enables personalization and greater productivity, allows real-time innovation, delivers deeper insights, and adapts to business needs.