HCL To Vaccinate 100% Of Its 350,000 India-Based “Employees And Their Families” Before June 30, 2021

HCL, a leading global conglomerate announced that it has planned capacities for vaccinating 100% of its India-based, eligible employees and their families with the first dose before June 30, 2021. HCL (including group companies HCL Technologies, HCL Infosystems and HCL Healthcare, and Shiv Nadar Foundation and its institutions) has already vaccinated more than 25% of its eligible workforce with at least one dose. HCL is investing over Rs 100 crores to ensure free vaccination services for employees and their families, as well as the third party vendor personnel working with the organization. HCL plans to have administered approximately 700,000 doses (including two doses per person) by the end of the drive.  

To provide employees safe and convenient process for receiving the vaccination, HCL has enabled on-premises vaccination centers. It has been conducting vaccination drives since March 24, offering employees the opportunity to get inoculated at clinics managed by HCL Healthcare and at HCL’s campuses in Noida, Lucknow and Chennai. It is also in the process of making more centers operational in a phased manner.  

Apprao VV, Chief Human Resources Officer, HCL Technologies said, “At HCL we are taking all necessary initiatives to ensure the safe vaccination of employees and their family members as well as third party vendor personnel who have supported us in keeping our business running in these difficult times. With the ongoing pandemic, we believe that vaccination is possibly the strongest way to fight COVID-19. We are working round the clock to provide the best support to our employees and their families at every stage. Our top-most priority is to vaccinate all our employees and their families as quickly as possible and we have planned to achieve this goal by end of June.”  

HCL is in discussions with vaccine manufacturers and top-tier hospitals, to provide COVID-19 vaccination support for its India-based employees. To encourage vaccination adoption and raise awareness about the program, it is running comprehensive communication campaigns targeted at employees. Additionally, it is also working with partner NGOs to support communities where it operates with vaccine registration process, along with providing relevant information regarding COVID-19, as approved by government authorities.    

Ensuring health and wellbeing of all stakeholders continues to be the top priority for HCL. It is; therefore, constantly evaluating and proactively monitoring the situation as well as providing all necessary support to employees and their families, vendors and clients.   

#TakeCareHCL continues to be active in spreading awareness among employees about the pandemic and a variety of specific initiatives available to help employees and their families. HCL’s dedicated COVID-19 portal, which has provided one-point access for any emergency, is regularly enhanced with additional information on safety, support facilities and resources. 

JK Group Announces A Comprehensive JK CARES Program In India

* To support family in case of casualty of employee due to Covid-19

Delhi based, industrial conglomerate JK Group, comprising of companies such as JK Tyre, JK Paper, JK Lakshmi Cement, JK Fenner, JK Agri Genetics, Umang Dairy, PSRI Hospital etc. has announced its initiative ‘JK CARES’, (Covid Assistance, Relief & Support) - a comprehensive Covid 19 relief package for the dependent family of deceased employee across the organization.

Chairman, Shri Bharat Hari Singhania, said “Safety and wellbeing of our employees is of utmost importance for us. As part of our value of “caring for people”,  we have been extremely mindful of the need to provide extended support to the families of our beloved employees, who have unfortunately lost their lives. In case of any casualty of any of our employee, we will support the bereaved families on three fronts – financial support for the family by way of continuance of salary, education support for children and medical insurance for the family. All these support systems will be provided to the families for a number of years.

Under this relief initiative, the aim is to provide support to the affected families, in case of any casualty(ies) of the employee(s), due to Covid between April 2020 and until March 2022, thus covering both the waves of Covid 19.

Mr. Singhania further added that, “Although, any kind of financial support cannot compensate for the magnitude of the loss of our beloved colleague(s); but it is our hope that this support will help the families to regain their confidence and dignity; and charter their journey of success, again”

Driven by its core value of “Caring for People”; the group, which employs over 30000 people globally, firmly believes that its people and their families are the core of its strength and all the efforts are directed to protect each member of the JK Group against this deadly pandemic. To provide additional safety cover, the group has gone all out to ensure that all its employees and their families are vaccinated; and the vaccination program is being driven as Mission Critical in all locations of the group.

The Much Anticipated McDonald’s x BTS Collaboration Kicks Off With Exclusive Merch Drop

* Starting 4th June 2021, Friday, customers across India can also enjoy the pop icons’ favorite meal at McDonald’s

We’re counting down the days until the BTS Meal arrives at McDonald’s! The band’s favourite order – featuring a 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, medium World Famous Fries, medium Coke, and Sweet Chili and Cajun dipping sauces inspired by recipes from McDonald’s South Korea – will be available across all restaurants in West and South India on June 04th. But in the meantime, we’re kicking off the fun early.

To make this international collaboration even more special and fun, exclusive BTS X McDonald’s merchandise is now available on the WeVerse Shop App for all fans across India. This head-to-toe collection is inspired by some of the craveable, hand-picked menu items from the BTS Meal, with dynamite threads like hoodies, purple bathrobes, socks and sandals. Whether it’s the McDonald’s fry box logo with seven fries for each BTS member, or the marriage of BTS purple with McDonald’s red and gold, these designs are the perfect representation of an iconic partnership between two fan-favorite brands. Fans can visit the app, start browsing, and purchase their favorite merchandise directly from the online store. You just need download the Weverse Shop app and create an account and start shopping.

“We know our customers and crew have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of our first celebrity signature order in West and South India, and we’re thrilled that the collaboration is just a week away.”, said Arvind RP, Director – Marketing & Communications, McDonald’s India (West and South). “We couldn’t be more excited to start seeing our guests enjoying the BTS Meal and sporting their favorite pieces from the exclusive merch line.”

McDonald’s is also introducing a new commercial featuring the band’s new single, “Butter,” on the heels of its chart-topping release last week. You can tune in here now to watch the ad.

Customers across West and South India can order the BTS Meal across our multiple channels including Delivery, Dine In, Takeout and On The Go in due accordance with Government’s guidelines starting on 04th June until 04th July 2021. And with the BTS Meal coming to nearly 50 markets globally, customers worldwide will soon be enjoying the artists’ go-to McDonald’s favorites. The full list of participating markets and dates for meal availability can be found here.

About Westlife Development:

Westlife Development Limited (BSE: 505533) (WDL) focuses on setting up and operating Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) in India through its subsidiary Hardcastle Restaurants Pvt. Ltd. (HRPL). The Company operates a chain of McDonald’s restaurants in West and South India, having a master franchisee relationship with McDonald’s Corporation USA, through the latter’s Indian subsidiary.

About Hardcastle Restaurants:

HRPL is a McDonald’s franchisee with rights to own and operate McDonald’s restaurants in India’s West and South markets. HRPL has been a franchisee in the region since its inception in 1996.

HRPL serves over 200 million customers, annually, at its 305 (as of March 31, 2021) McDonald’s restaurants across 42 cities in the states of Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and parts of Madhya Pradesh and Union Territory of Puducherry, and provides direct employment to close to 10,000 employees. McDonald’s operates through various formats and brand extensions including standalone restaurants, drive- thrus, 24/7, McDelivery, McBreakfast and dessert kiosks. The menu features Burgers, Finger Foods, Wraps, Rice, Salads and Hot and Cold Beverages besides a wide range of desserts. Several of the McDonald’s restaurants feature an in-house McCafé.

The pillars of the McDonald's system – Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value – are evident at each of the restaurants that HRPL operates.

StoreKing Study Shows 140% Spike In Consumption Of Tea & Coffee

* Mosquito Repellent Category saw a 200% increase in sales while Chawanprash registered 165% growth in consumption 

StoreKing, India’s only rural retail ecosystem that connects suppliers/brands and financial institutions to rural consumers with Kirana as an anchor, conducted a study to understand consumer consumption behaviour during the lockdown period. The study conducted across 22,000 rural Kirana stores monitored purchase habits in categories like Baby Care, Food and Beverages, Home Care and Personal Care Staples.

Highlights of the study:

·         The study reveals that Chips, Biscuits, and Popcorns consumption grew by 83%

·         However, additives and packed food like ready to cook and eat, mayonnaise, chutney, flavoured juices saw a sharp drop across states

·         With people spending more time at home due to the lockdown, pest and mosquito repellent category registered more than 200% growth in consumption

·         Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka saw 134% growth in herbal solutions in the hair care category

·         Fancy articles such as Talcum powder, Lotion, Cosmetics, Scrubbers lost their sheen and dropped by more than 70% 

·         Whereas consumption of hair color, shampoos, shaving needs face wash grew by more than 47%, as the parlours and salons are shut

·         Sales of Deo, Hair gel, Hair Removal Cream, Bleach have fallen by more than 70% as offices and colleges are closed and professionals and students are homebound

·         The study also highlights the consumption patterns of sanitizers and soaps. Rural Madhya Pradesh & Telangana is moving towards Hand wash while others cities are preferring traditional soaps

·         Soap is still one of the largest categories and it grew by more than 50%

·         Sanitizer demand was high in 2020 however it's going flat at present

Sridhar Gundaiah, Founder and CEO of StoreKing adds, “It is rather interesting to note that hygiene and cleanliness have become a priority in rural India. We have registered a huge spike in the sales of Handwashes and soaps across cities.”

He further adds, “While we could clearly demarcate the most preferred personal care products like Sanitizer, Hand Wash and Soaps, from consumption analysis, we were also interestingly able to identify some of the regional favourites like hand washes in rural Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, Soaps in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra etc.”

About StoreKing

StoreKing is India’s only rural retail ecosystem that connects suppliers and financial institutions to rural consumers with kirana as an anchor. It was launched in 2012 with a seed investment from Mangrove Capital and is headquartered in Bangalore. At present, it has a run rate of Rs 800 crores in products sales with a combination of direct brand tie-up and also marketplace sellers for Rural India and also powers Rs. 500 crores in Financial services transactions every year with over 1000 super franchises and 20000+ franchisees. StoreKing platform enables retailers to manage their consumers with loyalty points and has registered close to 3 crore consumers of Rural India for the program. The team comprises 200+ members spanning eight states, i.e. Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra; Gujarat. 

Legrand Group India, Rotary club of Madras Midtown Collaborate To Donate Oxygen cylinders To Omandarur Medical College, Chennai

Legrand Group India, a specialist in electrical and digital building infrastructure along with Mid Town Rotary club Chennai jointly donated twenty five oxygen cylinders to Omandarur Medical College, Chennai. 

India has witnessed an unprecedented second wave of the covid-19 pandemic in the last few weeks.  This unparalleled crisis has indeed brought us all together to cooperate and collaborate in order to prevent loved ones from leaving too soon. With this initiative Legrand India aims to systematically address the on-ground issues with the intent to make oxygen supplies across different severities of use available in the shortest time possible. 

In the past as well Legrand India had initiated various activities like providing PPE Kits, Masks, Sanitizers, Medical Infrastructure, Formation of Isolation Wards and Quarantine Centres in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand and Haryana in fight against COVID-19. 

Commenting on this initiative, Mr. Tony Berland Legrand India said, “As we witness the turmoil of the second wave and its impacts, several hospitals are facing acute shortage of medical oxygen. This initiative was a conscious decision as we aim to help increase access to life-saving oxygen treatments and bring faster, more accurate testing resources to the citizens of our country. In continuation to our solidarity effort, we are extending support this year as well by providing various levels of  medical infrastructure support to different states including oxygen concentrators, ventilators, and ICU beds.” 

Commenting on this positive move Prof. Dr R. Jayanthi, MD, FRCP, Dean, Government Medical College  said “ We are extremely humbled by Legrand’s and Mid Town Rotary club’s joint efforts for providing us with 25 No’s of 47 litre D type Oxygen. We profusely thank them for their benevolent gesture in helping us fight against the second wave.”  

About Legrand Group in India: 

A global specialist in the electrical & digital building infrastructure, Legrand is a Euro 5.5* billion (470.2864 cr) group based in   Limoges, France. The group has manufacturing facilities   in   90 countries   and   its products   are   sold   in   over  180   countries.   Globally, Legrand is a leader   in wiring    devices    and    cable management with a global market share of over  20%  and  14% respectively. Legrand also enjoys leadership positions in at least one of its major business areas in a  number  of  countries  including  France,  Italy, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, China, and of course India. 

Legrand India offers a wide range of products in the categories of  Energy distribution, Wiring devices, Home    Automation,   Structured    Cabling,    Lighting    Management    Solutions,    Cable Management    and Industrial application products. It is an undisputed leader in MCBs, RCDs and DBs and a strong No. 2 in wiring devices Apart from this, the company also holds a leading position in Home Automation, MCCBs and Cable management systems. 

The company’s geographical reach, across market segments, caters to new requirements of customers with smart solutions that make Legrand a multipolar group.  And this multipolar nature, and the global philosophy of Listen, Design, Make and Support has enabled it to provide innovative and smart solutions. Legrand’s products are amongst the top in the market and have undisputable brand equity. 

Legrand products and services comply with the three criteria of simplicity – simplicity of use, simplicity of installation and simplicity of distribution - which enables the company to quickly penetrate new markets. With an employee base of over 1000 in India, the company is fast emerging   as   a   leader   in   its   core business by extending products and services that suit every segment in the local market. 

Headquartered in Mumbai, Legrand operates across India through 26 offices, 600 stockiest, 11500 retail outlets with three state-of-the-art manufacturing units, seven training centers and two R&D center. Technological innovations, simple   and   rapid  product  combinations   to   form communicating systems, clever installation ideas etc. are the focus of the R&D team at Legrand. 

Community Kitchen Nirguna Mandir Serves Food To Covid patients And Their Families

Prasanna Trust, Austrian firm Fundermax and renowned architect Gayatri Shetty have collaborated to open a community kitchen in Bangalore to serve the underprivileged. 

This kitchen- Nirguna Mandir,  prepares over 6000 meals per day for lunch, to be distributed to Covid patients and their families from economically weaker sections. They are camping outside hospitals and distributing food. The organisation also provides food to about 2,500 children daily. 

"The Roof construction of our Annapurna Kitchen was made possible with the generous contribution and kind co-operation by FUNDERMAX . I would like to convey my gratitude to them. We have managed to serve more than 1 million free meals to the needful laborers, slum dwellers, and children during the tough, past months faced due to the Covid 19 pandemic through this Kitchen," Swami Sukhabodhananda chairman Prasanna Trust. 

Under the CSR initiative the Austrian wood product firm Fundermax along with Architecht Gayatri shetty from Gayatri and Namith Architects (GNA) has designed and completed the project. 

"We value the work that is being done at the Prasanna kitchen to nourish and feed the underprivileged people. The project was done as honorary work along with Indian Institute of interior designers," said Shetty of GNA. 

The firm along with the Architects followed zero waste formula and focussed on natural products from Fundermax, to complete the community Kitchen. It used FunderMaxpanels to give a floating canopy hung between the two existing trees, looking at the entire structure. The panels also acted as an elementary shading device along with other materials, thus keeping continuous air flow in and out of the wall. The structure of the kitchen was built integrating the surrounding landscape and a mesh lining was used to keep the interiors free from insects.

"Companies should invest CSR money in education, health and food rather than sanitization. We as a company are always looking to invest in this space to help the community at large," said Prashanth Reddy, Managing Director, Fundermax India. 

Fundermax India, leader in architectural products for interior and exterior applications has over 32000 SKUs offering high design freedom. The wood based architectural company has completed 15,000 projects in the 12 years since it was first set up in 2007. It operates across real estate sectors from residential to hospitality, commercial, infrastructure and more.

BMW Group India Offfers Complimentary Engine Oil Service For Doctors

BMW Group India has announced a special customer support initiative exclusively for doctors who own a BMW / MINI car or a BMW Motorrad bike and have been selflessly working round the clock to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. As a token of gratitude, BMW Group India along with its dealer partners will offer a complementary engine oil service from 1 June 2021 till 30 September 2021.

Mr. Vikram Pawah, President, BMW Group India, said, “For more than a year now, the doctor community has been working tirelessly, treating countless patients and saving precious lives through their unrelenting efforts. Continuing BMW Group India’s commitment of special service to doctors, it is our pleasure to offer a complimentary engine oil service for their BMW, MINI cars and BMW Motorrad bikes. We deeply appreciate and thank all doctors for their remarkable dedication and bringing hope to humanity in these trying times.”

Doctors registered with Indian Medical Association, hospitals and clinics owning a BMW or  vehicle can register themselves at www.bmw-contactless.in to avail the service. Doctors who own a BMW Motorrad bike should contact their nearest BMW Motorrad authorised dealership for further information to avail this service.

Vehicles with engine oil service due as per Condition Based Service (CBS) will be eligible to avail the complimentary service. Existing BMW or MINI Service Inclusive package holders can choose between two options in lieu of engine oil service - free sanitisation of the vehicle or a complimentary Car Care Package.

Further information on the terms and conditions can be availed by contacting the nearest BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad service centres.