Newest Fintech Entrant HappynessFactory.in Achieves Rs 100 Crore AUM Within 3 Quarters

One of the newest entrants into the ever-booming Fintech space, HappynessFactory.in, achieved an impressive AUM of Rs.100 Crore within just eight months of being operational.

In line with its core philosophy of “Happiness is a great investment strategy”, HappynessFactory.in was launched on the International Day of Happiness on March 20,2017. 

Founded by Amar Pandit,CFA , HappynessFactory.in is a Goal Based Financial Planning solution that provides users with a personalized solution to bridge the financial gap between their aspirations and current reality. HF.in helps them achieve their financial goals through a world class client experience. Since their launch in March 2017, HappynessFactory.in has more than 1,500 registered users.

The past year has seen a plethora of Robo-Advisory platforms hitting the market, but Amar believes that it is their insights about delivering happiness, unparalleled client experience and personal care of clients that sets them apart. 

He says, “For us ‘Personal Finance’, is always more about personal than it is about Finance. Our solution tries to connect with a client at an emotional level by making them think about what is really important to them. This is done by giving our customer’s clarity on what they are really looking for and what their goals are. Through our goal based process, we make the customer think deeply, which translates into an emotional and trusting relationship.”

HappynessFactory.in is also building a partner network to expand its reach. For Amar, it’s not just about the technology. He says. “I believe that relying solely on technology isn’t enough to help people make prudent money decisions or help manage investor behavior in tough times. There is a need for some human touch as well.” He believes in a ‘Hi-tech, Hi-Touch Hybrid Model’ as it not only adds trust to the platform, but also guides people to invest in the right way and most importantly stick to a disciplined path of investing over one’s lifetime.

HF.in has got phenomenal appreciation not just from Indians but also NRIs, global product executives and opinion makers from the US Wealth Management industry.

Looking ahead, the founder and his team remain positive about hitting their next milestone of Rs.200 Crore of assets under management soon. 

22 Students from Narayana PU Colleges Bangalore Selected in Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY) 2017

Twenty-Two students from Narayana PU Colleges Bangalore have been selected for fellowships in the prestigious The Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY).

This program initiated and funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, aims to attract exceptionally highly motivated students for pursuing basic science courses and research career in science.

The objective of the program is to identify students with talent and aptitude for research; help them realize their academic potential; encourage them to take up research careers in Science, and ensure the growth of the best scientific minds for research and development in the country.

Speaking on the success of the students Dr.Sindhura, Director - Narayana Educational Institutions said, “We are overjoyed with the success of our students who have worked very hard to achieve this goal. KVPY is a prestigious platform that has been support truly deserving and hardworking students. We consider this to be a big win not just for the students but for all of us at Narayana. The success of these students who have been selected from the classroom program, was only possible due to the dedication and commitment of these students coupled with the guidance and motivation provided by the faculty of Narayana Institutes. We aim to multiply the number of selections in the coming years”

The Department of Science and Technology, the nodal agency of the Government has entrusted the overall responsibility for organizing and running the KVPY Program to the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and set up a Management Committee and a National Advisory Committee (NAC) for overseeing its implementation. A core committee looks after both the day-to-day and academic aspects of the KVPY Program.

Narayana PU Colleges Bangalore have a great reputation and a very high success rate in KVPY examinations. 11 students were selected in the 2016 from Karnataka and this number has doubled this year.

IESA Announces Start Up Pitch Competition and Innovation Pavilion for Energy Storage India (ESI) 2018

India’s first start up competition focused on energy storage, electric vehicles & charging infrastructure and micro-grids

Supported by StartUp India (DIPP, Govt. of India Initiative), Mumbai Angel Network, TiE-Delhi NCR, Sangam Venture and Global Energy Storage Alliance (GESA) Prize worth Rs 5 lakh will be provided Pune, India: India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA), India’s leading alliance on energy storage, today announced start up pitch competition and innovation pavilion for Energy Storage India (ESI) 2018 during Jan 10 to 12 in New Delhi.

This is India’s first start-up competition focused on energy storage, electric vehicles & charging infrastructure and micro-grids. The competition is supported by Startup India (DIPP, Govt. of India Initiative), Mumbai Angel Network, TiE-Delhi-NCR, Sangam Venture and Global Energy Storage Alliance (GESA). ESI is the leading international conference and expo addressing the need for energy storage, micro-grids & EV solutions in India. It provides first-class networking event to drive energy storage market expansion in profitable applications – highlighting the synergies, inter-relationships and new business opportunities for transmission, distribution, customer-sited, micro-grids/campuses and e-mobility applications. ESI 2018 will also feature Innovation pavilion to showcase next- gen products and solutions from startup companies.

To enter the competition, start-up companies having annual revenue < Rs 3.25 crore ($ 0.5ml) and operations of < 5 years can submit the start-up details in 500 words by December 30, 2017. 

Shortlisted companies have to submit 5 slide presentation January 8, 2018 and the top 3 winners will get complimentary IESA membership for a year.

Process of the competition

· Application form submission by 30th December 2017

· Shortlisted companies will be informed by 2nd January 2018

· Up to 10 shortlisted companies will present their concept at the Investors Forum on 11th January 2018 at ESI2018.

 · Top 3 companies will receive IESA awards with cash prize and expression of interest from investors Dr. Rahul Walawalkar, Executive Director, Indian Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) says, “We are excited to announce first of its kind startup competition for the Indian startups in energy storage space. Today, India has more startups than before and is on the cusp of transformation. 

Certain challenges are faced by them due to limited direction and access. With this competition, we want to bridge the gap using IESA network and I invite the Indian entrepreneurs to take advantage of this opportunity. We are thankful to Startup India and other partners for their support to us. India is anticipated to become one of the best markets for the adoption of energy storage technologies due to several drivers like the fastest growing economy, increasing the share of renewables, transmission constraints, need for providing 24*7 quality power and electric mobility mission. IESA has set a mission to also make India a global hub for innovation and manufacturing of advanced energy storage, microgrids sand EV technologies by 2022.”

The Government of India has clearly decided to prioritize electric vehicles with a goal of having 100% Electric Vehicles (EVs) by 2030. Energy Storage is a key component of this and there are number of ways in which EV adoption could be transformative for the grid. With better tariff structures and use of right storage technologies in EVs, one could also use EVs as distributed storage and provide grid balancing services. This transformation will not only help in greening the transportation fleet by reducing diesel/petrol consumption and associated emissions but will also help in greening the grid if EVs are used for better integration of renewable resources in the grid.

Many Indian automobiles companies have plans to adopt EVs. The 5th International Conference & Expo on Energy Storage and Microgrids (www.esiexpo.in) is scheduled from January 11 – 12, 2018 along with Pre – Conference Workshops on January 10, 2018 2018 at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, India. 

Suresh Prabhu, Minister for Industry and Commerce will be inaugurating the conference & exhibition. RV Deshpande, Minister of Large and Medium Scale Industries and Infrastructure Development, Govt. of Karnataka (First state to release electric vehicle and energy storage policy in India) will be the keynote speaker for electric vehicle session. This year, it is poised to get 2000+ industry experts, 100+ speakers from over 25 countries and 50+ exhibitors. 

Western Digital Revamps Service Approach for Enhanced Customer Experience

Western Digital Corp., a global leader in storage solutions, announced a revamp in their service policy for enhancing customer experience, reducing turnaround time (TAT), providing a more comprehensive and widespread coverage, and adding value to channel partners.

Western Digital is revamping its service policy by offering customer support through different 25 + 50 service locations across the country. 25 of these are Over the Counter points (OTCs), equipped with necessary infrastructure and trained work force to ensure product(s)/ drive(s) authentication and provide an On-spot replacement for end consumers. Rest 50 are drop points that offer customers with faulty product(s)/ drive(s) flexibility to drop their units and get the replacement product(s)/ drive(s) dispatched to their communication address as per the applicable timeframe. Replacements are subjected to the faulty product(s)/ drive(s) passing necessary authentication and other applicable criteria.

The process commences when a customer with a faulty product calls the helpline or generates an online request. An RMA is generated and the customer is informed/ or find online of an OTC/ drop point near their convenient location. Once the customer approaches the convenient OTC/ drop point and submits the faulty product(s)/ drive(s), necessary authentication and visual inspections are conducted. Once the product(s)/ drive(s) passes the applicable conditions and are substantiated as a failed/ faulty product(s)/ drive(s), a replacement is offered immediately basis the available inventory at OTC facility. In case of drop points, customer is provided information on the Turn-around time (TAT) and the replacement product(s)/ drive(s) is then dispatched to the customer’s provided communication address. 

“India has always been a core market segment for us and our aim has always been to boost our customers’ satisfaction levels. This service revamp is our attempt to make the customers’ experience more seamless and comfortable”, says Khalid Wani, Managing Director Sales, India, Western Digital Corporation.

With seamless system integration among various customer touchpoints, Western Digital aims to reduce processing time and improve information accuracy, amounting to shorter lead-time and higher customer satisfaction. Installed over three phases, all of these OTC and drop point facilities are operational as of date and first hand feedback of the customer has been highly encouraging.

Lendingkart Finance Raises Rs 25 Crore in Cash Credit Facility from State Bank of India

Lendingkart Finance Limited has announced that it has raised Rs 25 crore in cash credit facility from State Bank of India, India’s largest public sector banking and financial services company. This new influx of funds will be used towards growing the loan book. As the company expands its reach to over 950 cities across the country, these funds will come in handy to widen Lendingkart Finance’s offerings to SMEs country-wide. As of today, Lendingkart Finance has disbursed over 20,000 loans to more than 12,000 SMEs across 23 diverse sectors.  

Speaking on the latest development, Harshvardhan Lunia, CEO and Co-founder, Lendingkart Technologies said, “At Lendingkart Finance, we recognize the importance of promoting financial inclusivity among SMEs in our country who are one of the most critical sectors contributing towards the country’s revenue. Given the role they play in growing our economy, if India is to witness unremitting progress, supporting these enterprises is a must. We feel extremely privileged to have partnered with India’s largest bank which also shares the same vision of supporting the unbanked SME sector. SBI, being one of the oldest and largest banks, has played a critical role in shaping India’s financial landscape for the last century. Their rich experience and sound knowledge of the banking industry, will enable us to bridge the gap between demand and supply of small business loans in the country. With the funds raised, we will further grow our loan books, expanding our reach to many more underserved SMEs.”

Aligned with the Government of India’s agenda of building financial inclusion, Lendingkart Finance is working towards ensuring availability of working capital for SMEs across the country that currently do not have access to credit or are capital deficient.

Lendingkart Finance uses robust in-house technology tools based on big data analytics and machine learning algorithms to evaluate its client’s creditworthiness. About 5,000 data variables are assessed to determine factors like financial health, comparative market performance, social reliability & compliance. Once the evaluation process is completed, loan amount is disbursed to the deserving borrower within 72 hours from the time of application.

Lendingkart Finance has expanded its operations pan India and is present in over 950 cities across 29 states and 7 UTs, offering quick and easy collateral-free loans with minimal paperwork. Till date, over 3,70,000 SMEs have reached out to Lendingkart Finance for their credit requirement.

Ashok Leyland Launches Captain Haulage and 3718 Plus Trucks in Bengaluru

Ashok Leyland, flagship of the Hinduja Group, and one of the largest commercial vehicle manufacturers in India, launched Captain Haulage and 3718 Plus, the BS-IV trucks with iEGR (Intelligent Exhaust Gas Recirculation) engines in Bengaluru today. Ashok Leyland also introduced Haulage Trucks with maintenance free Hubs i.e., with Unitized Wheel Bearings.

Present at the launch, Anuj Kathuria, President, Global Trucks, Ashok Leyland Ltd., said, “Ashok Leyland has been gaining customers’ trust across the country, across segments. This has been possible owing to our winning combination of products, our innovation-led technologies and our customer-first approach. Karnataka, especially Bengaluru, has been one of our key focus market and our customers here are seeing the value in investing in our products. As part of our strategy to further grow and strengthen our leadership, Captain Haulage and 3718 Plus will play an important role. Both will be leading from the front in delivering our brand promise of ‘Aapki Jeet. Hamari Jeet’ to our customers. The winning combination includes competitive price point, higher fuel efficiency, more payload and heavy duty aggregates resulting in lower operating cost, maintenance cost, better maneuverability and durability. All of this combined with our innovative iEGR technology, will help reduce operating costs for customers, resulting in higher profitability.”

The Captain Haulage trucks are especially designed to deliver higher uptime and faster turnaround time to meet the high productivity demands of the logistics industry. Captain is powered by the H series CRS engine with iEGR technology, and offers high initial pickup, superior driveability and unmatched fuel economy. With international styling and comfort and designed for the Indian operating conditions, the Captain offers the best-in-class cabin which is available in both AC and non AC versions. These vehicles also come with an essential safety feature, Frontal Crash Protection. This feature helps the vehicle to absorb the impact in case of an unfortunate incident of head-on collision and keeps the occupants of the vehicle safe. Captain Haulage Trucks are available in 25T, 31T & 37T GVW segments. The range is built for a wide number of applications like Market Load, Parcel, Tankers, Cement Bulkers and Containers.

3718 PLUS is latest addition in 37T segment which is one of the fastest growing segments in CV industry. This offers another 10% fuel savings, 225 kgs of more payload and 10% extra tyre life from new technology tyres. 3718 PLUS offer the best maneuverability through optimal overall length, 27.5 ft & 29.5 ft loading span options, and appropriate positioning of lift axle.

In Trucks with Unitized Wheel Bearings, grease is packed for life and no periodical hub greasing, end play adjustment or bearing replacement are required. It also helps in improving tyre life. Unitized Wheel Bearings are now available as an optional feature on 37T & 31T range and will expanded to other ranges progressively.

IBAB, Lakshmi Mittal South Asia Institute, Harvard University (SAI) Hosted a Two-Week Course on Genomics in Healthcare and Translational Research

From over 220 applications, 25 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students from across India were selected to participate in a residential two-week hands on workshop in ‘Genomics in Healthcare and Translational Research’ from December 10-23, 2017. This workshop was under the aegis of the B4 (Boston Bangalore Biosciences Beginnings) Program, funded by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, and supported by the IT/BT Department, Government of Karnataka.

B4 aims to build a scientific research corridor by engaging scientists from India and Harvard through exchange programs. Its two projects are the Science & Technology Fellowship (B4) Program in Boston and the Young Scientist Development Courses held in Bangalore. The B4 program was led by Professor Venkatesh Murthy, Harvard University, and is coordinated by Savitha Ananth, SAI.

The aim of the Genomics workshop was to “introduce talented Indian students to the emerging area of genomics and enable them to explore the power and excitement of Next Generation Sequencing technologies to address clinically relevant research questions,” said Professor M.Vijayalakshmi, IBAB, who was instrumental in developing the curriculum for the workshop.

Genomics and Next-generation Sequencing technologies have influenced scientific research and medicine significantly, which has made a striking impact on healthcare and translational medicine over the last decade. The capability to sequence DNA at higher speeds with precision and resolution unravels several dimensions of the complex genome and enhances the applicability of genomic information in personalized medicine. 

There is an acute shortage of cutting-edge training courses that focus on both aspects of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS); generation of genomic data through sequencing, and the analysis of sequencing data. The disease patterns specific to the Indian subcontinent and the mutant profiles of Indian patients have not been explored systematically in the case of several diseases. This underlines the need for focussed training to a large number of student researchers and clinicians to bridge the existing gap between academic and clinical research. Such trainings will not only equip clinicians with newer ways of addressing health care but also create employment opportunities for trained personnel in scientific research laboratories and hospitals across India.

Distinguished faculty and postdoctoral fellows from institutions such as Boston University, Harvard, Broad Institute, Boston, ACTREC (Mumbai), IGIB (Delhi), CCMB (Hyderabad), IISC and NCBS (Bangalore) trained the participants on both the experimental aspects of genomic sequencing & computational analysis of sequencing data through didactic research lectures and hands-on sessions. The workshop concluded on December 23 with a panel discussion on ‘Genomics - Trends and Opportunities’.  

Following the workshop was the valedictory event of the first phase of B4. The keynote address was delivered by Dr. VijayaRaghavan (Secretary, DBT) who highlighted the current and future study and practice of Bio Sciences in India. He emphasized the need to build a science-based ecosystem that is sensitive to the nation’s needs.

Dr. Vijay Raghavan’s talk was followed by a panel moderated by Prof. Venkatesh Murthy, Chair of Molecular & Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Boston and lead faculty of the B4 Program. The discussion focused on the impact of the program in India. Panelists included Aditya Murthy, Faculty from IISC, and three B4 fellows, Parvathi Sreekumar, Ramya Purkanti, and Gayatri Ramakrishnan, who have recently returned from a year at Harvard.

The closing vote of thanks was delivered by Prof. N. Yathindra, Director, IBAB. Who spoke of the value of the B4 Program for the young Indian scientists and the bridge created between academic institutions in the US and India. He also emphasized the value of translation of knowledge from academia to practice.