ISRO’s Launch of 103 Satellites is to Maximise Capacity Not Set Record: Kiran Kumar

With less than a month left for the proposed launch of 103 satellites at one go, Indian Space Research Organisation today said its aim is to maximise capability with each launch and not set a record.

“We are not looking at it as a record or anything. We are just trying to maximise our capability with each launch and trying to utilise that launch for the ability it has got and get the maximum in return,” ISRO Chairman A S Kiran Kumar told reporters here.

Of the 103 satellites that ISRO’s workhorse PSLV-C37  is expected to carry, 100 are foreign.

“They are all actually a constellation, they are getting into a constellation of satellites providing observation of earth,” Kumar said in response to a query on the sidelines of Karnataka ICT Summit 2017.

The three Indian satellites are Cartosat-2 series, weighing 730 kg as primary payload, INS-IA and INS-1B,  weighing 30 kg.

An official from the space agency said it was earlier planned to launch 83 satellites in the last week of January, of which 80 were foreign, but with the addition of 20 more foreign satellites the launch was delayed by a week and would now take place in the first week of February.

Kumar also said ISRO was working on having more frequent launches and make use of each launch or maximise the capability of the launch vehicle itself.

“The next one is going to carry a number of satellites from various companies along with our own Cartosat-2 series satellite and immediately following that we have GSLV Mark III and Mark II…. In the first three months that’s what we are targeting, but beyond that we are trying to work for almost one launch a month,” he said.

“The prime driver for all of this is to increase the  capacity. Though we have the number of satellites in operation, we require many more for providing the necessary services that is needed,” he added.

After the success of the Mars mission, ISRO, which is currently conducting experiments for its second moon mission said another mission to Mars, Venus and Jupiter are on the horizon and studies are underway.

“As we are progressing, we need to look at long-term. So what we are looking beyond Chandrayan-2, for which we are already working on an approved programme,” Kumar said.

“Beyond that, Mars second mission and Venus mission are all on the horizon, we have to go through the various studies and then formulate, get the approval and move. Right now, they are all in the study phase,” he added.

ISRO is conducting tests for hazard avoidance for  Chandrayaan-2 as it lands at its facility in Challakere in  Chitradurga district of Karnataka, where simulated lunar  craters have been created to evaluate the performance of the  system.

The ISRO Chairman and French Space agency (CNES) President Jean-Yves Le Gall in the presence of visiting French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Marc Ayrault had on Monday signed a partnership agreement in satellite launch technology.

To a question on the agreement, Kumar said “Currently we are working with them on Oceansat-3… And then we are working for a future payload, on an infrared imaging sensor.”

“We are also looking at possibilities of working with  them in various areas of future developments of satellites,  launch vehicles,” he added.

ISRO in the past had worked with CNES on sounding  rockets, SARAL satellites programme and had also launched  satellites for them.

Agencies

VMware Releases 2016 State of the Digital Workspace Report

VMware, Inc, a global leader in cloud infrastructure and business mobility, has introduced the 2016 State of the Digital Workspace Report, a global survey of business and IT decision makers, practitioners and influencers. The report unveiled that organizations taking a digital workspace first approach that aggregates devices, applications and services while securely managing them through unified common access and identity – experience business, operational, and financial benefits while those that wait are falling behind.

Respondents acknowledged that game-changing IT relies on organizations adopting a digital workspace that includes security and identity management as vital components. With realistic prospects of achieving astounding return on investment (ROI), even businesses that cited obstacles to adoption may want to consider taking another look at business mobility initiatives.

“As we enter 2017, the industry is moving into the next phase of enterprise mobility where businesses have to deliver access to applications and resources to end-users, customers and partners using any connected device in any location,” said Dave Grant, vice president, product marketing, End-User Computing, VMware. “The State of the Digital Workspace Report shows that business and IT leaders recognize the significant tangible benefits digital workspaces can offer to an organization. The guiding principle of consumer simple and enterprise secure applied to VMware’s digital workspace solution, VMware Workspace ONE, delivers a simple and secure platform that can help customers in any industry with their digital transformation journey.”

Triple Digit ROI and Significant Cost-Savings with Embrace of Digital Workspaces

·  ROI from business mobility investments averaged 150 percent overall.

·  41 percent of IT and business decision makers saw improvements in total management costs after successfully executing on digital workspace efforts

·  That said, only 30 percent of their non-executing peers realized improvements.

·  39 percent of decision-makers realized cost improvements to support end–users after embracing digital workspaces (compared to 23 percent among those that did not).

Businesses Can Introduce New Revenue Streams Faster

·  Nearly half of organizations (48 percent) that have successfully executed mobility initiatives saw improvements in their ability to more rapidly introduce new revenue streams, compared to 34 percent among organizations that have not executed a single initiative.

·  Among those organizations executing 10 or more business mobility initiatives, 52 percent saw improvements in their ability to more rapidly bring new revenue streams online.

·  Meanwhile, among the organizations executing fewer than five mobility initiatives, only 38 percent saw improvements. 

Executives View Digital Workspaces as Way to Address Top Concerns

·  Concerns about security were top of mind among executives and nearly half of executives (45 percent) viewed a digital workspace solution that includes the necessary elements of security and compliance tools, mobile device management software, and identity management as a way to address compliance and security risks.

·  In particular, 43 percent of financial services leaders pointed to identity management software as a necessary element in the financial services segment.

India-Portugal Partner to Boost Trade and Investment in the Future

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) along with FICCI and Assocham organized a Business Meeting with António Costa, Prime Minister of Portugal and his accompanying delegation in the city. The Business meeting aimed at boosting trade and investment between India and Portugal brought together Industry representatives and Industry bodies including FICCI and ASSOCHAM in an effort to fast track business relation between the two nations.

Assuring full support of his Government for Portuguese companies to export or invest in India and for Indian companies to come to Portugal. António Costa, Prime Minister Portugal said that, it is well known that Portugal and India have centuries old relationships based on historical cultural and personal ties but despite the old ties the commercial relationship between Portugal and India is still quite insignificant. Portugal export only 1200 million Euros a year to India and India exports only 500 million Euros to Portugal. Tourist flows and balance of service between the two countries is also very low. It is this situation that needs to change. The aim of my visit to India is to review and adapt our relationship to address both present and future challenges. We want to enhance our relationship and extend it to a strategic partnership with ambitious targets in new areas of cooperation.

India and Portugal have complementary economies and can take advantage of being part of different regions and markets. There are great opportunities that can be explored both in terms of trade and investment. Portugal has a long tradition of openness to foreigners and to foreign direct investment. The Portuguese government has been focusing in creating a better global framework for investment, putting investment at the heat of its strategy to foster growth. Portugal has a strategic position to access key markets, it is the nearest European country to the United States and Canada, it is a country in the same time zone as the United Kingdom and Ireland and it has high connectivity to African and Latin America. The goal of this seminar is to expose both business communities to opportunities that they can explore either in Portugal, in Indian or even in CPLP countries.

Manuel Caldeira Cabral, Minister of Economy Portugal said that  Portugal is a very open economy open for trade and Investment from different countries, it has a long history of building bridges and today Portugal is open to being the doorway for India to enter the European Union (EU) market. Portugal is also a platform for doing business with Portuguese speaking countries all-around the world particularly in Africa and Latin America. The country witnessed the highest growth rate in the EU in 2016, investment is recovering with a strong base of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the country is inviting cooperation in sectors such as science and technology, Infrastructure, renewable energy, startups, agriculture and food processing, water and waste management, tourism, pharmaceuticals, automotive products and defense.

Ravi Raghavan, Chairman CII Karnataka, extended a warm welcome to the Prime Minister of Portugal. He said that there is a strong need for the two nations to build on their historical relationship and transform it into a 21^st Century technology driven business relationship. Portugal and India are very strong in industry verticals such as information technology, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, alternative energy, tourism, agro products, fisheries and a host of other sectors, and he called upon both countries to realize the full potential that a combined effort can bring about. He appreciated the support offered by Portugal in India’s bid for a permanent set at the UNSC.

Industry representatives including Shekar Viswanathan, Chairman FICCI Karnataka, R. Shivakumar, Chairman ASSOCHAM Karnataka, spoke on the need to strengthen business ties between Portugal and India.

NASSCOM Foundation, Atos Partner to Launch Digital Literacy Centre at Vadodara

Atos, an international leader in digital services, and NASSCOM Foundation has jointly announced the launch of National Digital Literacy Mission (NDLM) centers dedicated to training and imparting digital literacy at Vadodara Gujarat. The NDLM centers will conduct skill development programs in the area of Information Technology for the aspiring persons interested to undertake IT literacy programs. Atos in collaboration with NASSCOM Foundation, will endeavor to leverage the IT training as envisaged under the NDLM Scheme with the objectives of appreciation of Digital Literacy - that aims to make a person IT literate, so that he/she can operate digital devices, like mobile phones, tablets among other electronic devices and send & receive emails and search the internet for information among other things. Atos in India will facilitate the training infrastructure and the trainers at these NDLM centers with the help of NASSCOM nominated NGO’s at its respective location centers. These centers together will provide training on all digital devices, specifically, computers and mobile phones. Once trained, the beneficiaries will be able to send emails, connect on social media, buy from e-Commerce websites, and will even know how to use internet to avail various government services such as registering for AADHAR Cards, Ration Cards, PAN Cards, and other such internet enabled services.

On the occasion, Surendrasinh Gohil, SVP and Head Global Delivery Centers for Infrastructure and Data Management Division said: “As a leading international digital services company, we are pleased to announce our association with NASSCOM Foundation in accomplishing the larger goal of Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (DISHA) or also known as NDLM Scheme. The mission is both aspiring and ambitious in its scale to train the non-IT literate citizens to become IT literate. A sound foundation starts with a modest beginning; this is quite an enabling initiative across India. We are confident that this initiative will help a part of the society, that otherwise wouldn’t have been able to access the opportunities offered by the Digital economy in India. We are happy to partner with NASSCOM Foundation and Deepak Foundation in this initiative and look forward to make this community service a success for Vadodara citizens.” Shrikant Sinha, CEO, NASSCOM Foundation said: “We believe that digital literacy is one of the most potent tool for the empowerment of the underserved communities in today's digital and cashless economy. Working in partnership with Atos, NASSCOM Foundation is proud to announce the launch of four new centres across India, taking the total Atos Centre count to eight. Being digitally literate would help the citizens access services as Vadodara leaps forward in its journey towards becoming a smart city.” The National Digital Literacy Mission is a far-sighted, dynamic and integrated platform of digital literacy awareness, education and capacity creation programme that will help rural and the under-served communities to fully participate in the global digital economy. NASSCOM Foundation is the industry partner to the Government of India to accomplish the first phase goal for NDLM or ‘DISHA’ by making 52.5 lakh individuals in India digitally literate in the next four years.

BankBazaar New App Features Helps Users Manage Finances Better

BankBazaar.com, the Personal Finance marketplace backed by Amazon, has unveiled new features on its Android App to further help users manage their finances. In the new Personal Finance section, a user views a real-time snapshot of their aggregated balance across multiple savings accounts and transaction history of individual bank accounts. Most people use more than one bank account, which makes it difficult to keep track of transactions and balances. BankBazaar.com solves this problem by displaying consolidated information in one single simple interface.

Customers can view a personalized summary of their consolidated bank balance from the Home Screen itself, with the option to view bank-specific balances too.  They can also use the app to quickly and seamlessly update their balance in real time. In addition, the app also tracks credit card spends, due and minimum due amounts corresponding to the billing cycle. All this is done in a reliable, secure, non-intrusive manner after the user signs in using their Google or Facebook login credentials.

Rati Shetty, CPO and Co-founder, BankBazaar.com says, “In our busy day-to-day lives, keeping track of personal finance transactions can take a backseat. When mobile applications help people make every aspect of their lives simpler, why should money matters be any different? We’ve simplified everyday banking transactions and accessibility to the right financial products together in one simple, secure, unobtrusive application.”

According to BankBazaar.com, the app helps reinforce responsible fiscal habits in the user in three ways:

1.       Enhance savings: The app provides a direct window into a user’s financial health and will help a user get a better handle on over-expenditure and better budgeting.

2.       Schedule payments: The app keeps track of a user’s credit card billing cycle with gentle reminders to pay their bill on time. This will help improve credit score.

3.       Easy credit access: The app delivers the best loan and credit card offers with the added convenience of instant approval, real-time application status tracking and a paperless process.

The new feature update combined with the app’s existing features such as EMI calculators, IFSC search, application tracking etc., gives the user extra fire power with absolute control over cash assets and credit card liabilities in a simple interface. This is yet another firm step in BankBazaar.com’s mission to help users access the right financial products.

GoI Programme to Push Indigenous Designing Capabilities of Indian Manufacturing Industry

The Minister of Defence, Manohar Parrikar, has announced Government of India's ambitious 'Design in India' policy, which will be an extension of the ongoing 'Make in India' programme. As he stated, the 'Design in India' policy will aim at building, enhancing and promoting designing capabilities of Indian manufacturers and entrepreneurs so that they can design products of world-class standards to compete with global counterparts and take advantage of 'Make in India' programme.

Parrikar announced the same at the inauguration of a three-day International Conference and Exhibition on Reinforced Plastics, 2017 (ICERP 2017), which commenced in Mumbai today. The Conference is organised by FRP Institute, an association of Indian Reinforced Plastics or Composites sector.

Responding to a long standing demand of Indian Composites Industry to source defence equipments, components and ancillary material domestically from Indian manufacturers of composite products and extend support under the 'Make in India' programme, Parrikar assured the players of Indian composite industry  that the Defence Procurement Policy (DPP) will soon include composite products developed indigenously. He maintained that the DPP will be updated soon and see its implementation with necessary procedures clarified.

Adding further, Parrikar said, "We are introducing a 'Design in India' policy, which will boost up a 'Make in India' programme. It will be an opportunity for domestic manufacturers to enhance designing capabilities to compete with global standards. As far as the defence industry is concerned, there is huge potential to source material, equipments domestically, but quality standards and innovations in designing are highly essential. Indian composites industry can certainly enhance supplies to the defence sector if they provide products of global standards in terms of quality and designing. We will soon include composites products in the Defence Procurement Policy, which will allow domestic composites manufacturers to supply to Indian Defence Industry."

The Rs 5,000 crore Indian Composites Industry, had made a strong pitch for support from the Government and mainly from the Defence Ministry comes amid rising supplies of Russian and Chinese composites raw material in Indian defence sector. Further, the Indian industry, which has been growing at a CAGR of just six per cent as against the global average of 12 per cent, also urged for the Government's support. 

On the inauguration of ICERP, 2017, Pradip Thakkar, Chairman of FRP urged the Defence Minister to extend the Government's support to the Indian composites industry to unleash its full potential. He stated, "The Indian Composites Industry is fully capable of supplying 100% of requirements of the defence sector, if given due support. Composite materials are emerging as an innovative alternative for steel and aluminium and hence, can be used in defence equipment manufacturing."

Shekhar Sardesai, a member of FRP and CMD of Keneco Limited emphasised that the industry should rise above the levels and produce world-class products for which innovation and standards were necessary. He urged the Defence Minister to scale-up procurement of composites not only for Tier I categories such as OEMs, but also for Tier II and III categories where raw materials and components also could be sourced from domestic manufacturers.

Said Prof S C Lakkad, Chairman, FRP Institute, “Composites market in India is not fully tapped and offers tremendous growth opportunities for Composites manufacturing in the coming years. This makes an apt case for ‘Make in India’."

Dr. Selvan, Former Chairman, FRP Institute offered the vote of thanks and requested the members of the industry to meet with the standards expected and embrace opportunity. The Industry is continually evolving with development of newer materials, technology, applications and processing. While the conventional composites continue to find newer applications, the high tech Composites like the carbon fibre based composites are finding greater interest in terms of their applications in Defence, aerospace, and other applications to keep pace with the global trends.

LTTS’s First Ever Engineering Technology Challenge TECHgium Attracts Over 170 Colleges

By Manu Sharma

The third and final year engineering students have a unique opportunity to display their innovative skills by participating in a first ever real-time technology challenge addressing engineering problems. Termed TechGium, the tech challenge is an initiative by LnT Technology Services Ltd (LTTS) and offers 5000 engineering graduates from over 170 engineering institutes across India to work on futuristic technology ideas. LTTS has invited students from top tier Indian engineering institutes to work on projects and Proof of Concepts (PoCs) that will address current needs and future challenges of LTTS’ global clients.

One of the key highlights of TECHgium is that it will lead to the creation of a new breed of associates with niche engineering skills and capabilities in a way that has simply not been done before. LTTS will help young engineers channel their spirit of curiosity and enquiry and empower them to discover untapped technical skills and innovative approaches to challenges that need engineering-based solutions. This challenge will give the participants an invaluable opportunity to work on futuristic technologies and augment the solution development team of LTTS, while getting recognized as a TECHgium innovator. 

Keshab Panda, CEO and MD, LnT Technology Services said, “We have our DNA outside India and operate in multi vertical segment. Usually innovation stops at 40 years and so are always looking at youngsters with fresh ideas to drive innovation and are inspired by the Make in India movement. We want to encourage the thrust on research that will deliver a sustainable competitive advantage.“

He adds that our TECHgium initiative is a pivotal step towards creating a new ecosystem that brings together customers, academia and students to be part of the nation’s capacity building objectives and also trigger new-age innovations conceptualized by fresh minds.

On 0ctober 15, 2015, LTTS sent out invitations and over 900 colleges registered but out of them, 5000 students from 170 colleges have confirmed their participation by signing the Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). In Stage 1 of the challenge, student registrations were open from November 28, 2016 to December 9, 2016.

As part of the Stage 2, from December 12, 2016 the participants need to submit the concept papers and have time till January 12, 2017. A total number of 30 challenges were posted online and these spread across transportation, industrial products, process industry, telecom and semiconductors and the participants along with over 150 mentors will work on the above challenges and come out with the concept papers.   

Stage 3 will witness Technical Presentation where in participants will submit full technical papers from January 21-28, 2017 followed by in-person presentations from January 30 to February 1, 2017 across LTTS offices in Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai and Baroda.

The final leg i.e. Stage 4 will see selected participants making a Proof of Concept (POC) demonstration from April 19-21, 2017 at the Bangalore office followed by the grand finale on April 21, 2017 also at the Bangalore office.

Successful candidates will be eligible for absorption into the company based on the merit of their solutions. There is also three cash rewards of Rs 3 lakh, Rs 2 lakh and Rs 1 lakh for the top innovations developed by students.