Sangeetha Mobiles Teams Up With Feeding India By Zomato To Provide 1 Million Meals To Covid Warriors & Frontline Healthcare Workers

Beyond being passionate about what it does as India’s oldest mobile retail brand, Sangeetha thrives to stand as a symbol of service to the society it is selflessly a part of. 

Sangeetha has partnered with Feeding India, a not-for-profit organisation by Zomato, under the #IamFeedingIndia program to help serve meals for over 1 million people across South India. It is also distributing food packets in front of many of its stores across various towns of South India till 12 in the noon.

Also, Sangeetha is facilitating with delivery and refill pick-up of Oxygen Concentrators for home-quarantined COVID & Post-COVID patients, under the management of Shri Tejasvi Surya – MP, Bengaluru South, who with his ‘MP Oxy Bank’ initiative is helping stabilise patients with SPO2 level of 85-92 recover faster and better.

Holding hands with Adamya Chetana, a renowned voluntary organisationchaired by Dr Tejaswini AnanthKumar, Sangeetha and its convoy of delivery trucks are tirelessly assisting in delivering food packets to several healthcare workers at numerous public and private hospitals.

As a goodwill gesture, Sangeetha hasalso been providing dinner packets to a few Police Stations across Karnataka, AndraPradesh and Tamil Nadu States for their thankless service in the need of the hour. And, in partnership with Green Army, an NGO, the brand is helping pack and distribute general medicines to 300 home-isolated COVID patients.

Sangeetha has also contributed to Kannada Superstar Upendra’s initiative to help the needy within cinema industry and outside of it.

“Regardless of the situation, we must look out for each other. And in times like these, we need to become ambassadors to our neighbourhood. We sincerely hope and pray that, this too shall come to an end. Until then, stay home, stay safe and do your bit to help your friends and family steer through ahead – One step at a time”, as quoted by Mr. Subhash Chandra, Managing Director, Sangeetha Mobiles.

About Sangeetha Mobiles

Sangeetha Mobiles Pvt Ltd. is one of the leading multi-brand retailers of mobile phones in India. Over the years, Sangeetha Mobiles has carved a niche for itself, with a distinguished reputation for providing quality products and innovative retail solutions. From a modest beginning in 1974,  the brand has evolved constantly over past 47 years. Thanks to the trust the esteemed customers have placed, Sangeetha Mobiles serves over 60 million delighted customers with 700 stores across 9 states.

L&T Construction Awarded (Significant*) Contracts For Its Various Businesses

The construction arm of L&T has secured orders from prestigious clients for its various businesses.

Water & Effluent Treatment Business:

The Water & Effluent Treatment business of L&T Construction has bagged an order from Bangalore Water Supply & Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to Design, Build & Operate Sewage Treatment Plants & Intermediate Sewage Pumping Stations along with construction of main sewers for 110 villages in the Mahadevpura & Bommanahalli region (K&C Valley Catchment) of Bengaluru city. The project is funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The brief scope of the project includes survey, investigation, design & construction of 2 Pumping stations, 3 fully automated Sewage Treatment Plants of 34 MLD total capacity and main sewer lines of 132 km length with DWC, RCC and DI pipes.       

The project will benefit 18.04 lakh people in Bengaluru city.

Heavy Civil Infrastructure Business:

The Heavy Civil Infrastructure business has secured an order to construct various facilities within 42 Months for the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) at Tarapur Maharashtra.

Building & Factories Business:

The Buildings & Factories business has secured an order from a prestigious client for the construction of Sports Infrastructure facilities in the Kalinga Stadium at Bhubaneswar, Odisha and a New International Hockey Stadium with 20,000 seating capacity at Rourkela, Odisha in time for the Hockey World Cup, 2023 with total built-up area of 8.45 Lakhs Sq.ft.

This project consists of many iconic buildings such as an Athletic High-Performance Centre (HPC), Aquatic Complex, Tennis Centre, Accommodation building for Hockey HPC & Staff and Staff Hostel at the Kalinga Sports Complex, Bhubaneswar and the Hockey Stadium with ancillary buildings and external development at Rourkela, Odisha. The scope of work involves Civil, Structural, MEP and Field of Play (FOP). 

The fast-track projects are scheduled to be completed in 15 months at Kalinga Sports Complex, Bhubaneswar and 12 months at Rourkela respectively.

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.

TKM Celebrates Environment Month, Engaging Its Stakeholders, Rolls Out Month-Long Eco Activities Themed “Ecosystem Restoration”

As champions of sustainable practices, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) today announced the celebration of Environment Month through a series of environmental activities during June 2021, aimed at reviving and protecting the ecosystems, aligning with this year’s theme of ‘Ecosystem Restoration’ as announced by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).

Further highlighting this year’s theme, special eco initiatives have been curated by TKM focusing on:

Reduce Resource

Reduce Pollution

Reduce Waste

Enhance Biodiversity

Promotion of Environment-friendly Technologies

Environment Conservation is inherent to Toyota culture. With our vision, philosophy, and guiding principles, we at Toyota, are focused on achieving harmony between our manufacturing operations and nature. To bring about a real change, we strongly believe that community/stakeholder involvement plays a vital role.

As a part of Environment Month, TKM is rolling out a novel initiative called ‘Eco-lifestyle’ wherein the focus will be to bring about behavioural change by motivating various stakeholders including employees, suppliers, dealers and logistics partners to incorporate eco-friendly habits in their day-to-day lives. Such daily eco-practices will include simple solutions such as using reusable water bottles, grocery bags and coffee cups, avoiding single-use plastics and food packaging material and making use of green mobility solutions. The idea of this initiative is to help individuals understand how adopting a simple change in one’s life can make a huge positive impact on the environment.

Towards creating awareness about the critical environmental issues, TKM conducts Webinar, Eco-Lifestyle Campaign, Afforestation and Clean-up Drives, Virtual Tour of Ecozone, Sharing of TKM’s Eco Best Practices, engaging all its stakeholders. Through these initiatives, TKM intends to enhance environmental performances of our business associates/stakeholders and bring about behavioral change among the individuals.

Another special activity during this Environment Month is the promotion of eco-tips aimed at CO2 Emission Reduction and Zero Single-use Plastic, by utilizing our social media platforms (*social contest links provided below), inviting employees, dealers, and suppliers to share their individual eco-ideas. Through such series of informative tips and interactive exercises, we hope to inspire the community to join the fight to save our environment and participate actively and enthusiastically.

Guided by the Environmental Challenge 2050, the 'Ecozone' (set-up inside TKM’s plant premises) is an outdoor environment learning center, specially designed to provide experiential learning to stakeholders. Spread over 25 acres, Ecozone comprises of 17 theme parks (to name a few - value theme park covering 3Rs, medicinal garden, conservation of natural resources/energy, evolution timeline, climate change and so forth) representing the five modules of Water, Waste, Climate Change, Biodiversity, Energy together with a 500KW solar park and 51,000m3 rainwater harvesting pond. This is an eco-effort to introduce the crucial elements of nature connection by creating native ecosystems, working models, audio-visual and other sensory experiences including hands-on activities and experiments.

In addition to these above measures, a significant initiative is the newly developed Underground Ecology Theme Park at Toyota Ecozone within the TKM’s premises in Bidadi, Karnataka. This ecology theme park displays different types of homes of species that live below the ground and their architectural features enhancing the natural ecosystem, for e.g., soil fertility.” The theme park showcases different types of species living structure below the ground contributing to the soil nutrient cycle and further highlighting the abiotic and biotic elements in the whole scheme of our planet’s ecosystem.

Under this project, TKM aims to connect children with nature, promote environmental awareness beyond classroom learning and inculcate a behavior towards the conservation of the environment. Thus far, more than 9,517 students and 1,000 schoolteachers have been a part of this training at the Ecozone. With this, we intend to expand our reach by training 10,000 students per annum and utilize this learning center to connect with various stakeholders such as Supplier, Dealers, Employee and their families, Government Officials, NGOs and other corporates and work towards building a eco sustainable future.

Other special activities planned for Environment Month include Quiz Contents for TKM employees, their families, suppliers, and dealer partners to engage and build awareness on environment protection and conservation. Additionally, TKM is organizing a webinar for employees which focuses on exploring different ways of sustainable living by environmental expert, is on the anvil during June 2021. Through these initiatives, we are targeting to engage with our stakeholders and encourage “sustainable" lifestyles, raise environmental awareness, and motivate the TKM value chain to enable a society where people live in harmony with the natural world.

In response to the environmental threats posing the industry and mankind, the “Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050” was announced in 2015, forming the base of our commitment towards Environmental Protection. The six challenges widely cover every aspect of our business, our exploration of new products and technologies, and our role as an enabler for individuals and communities to learn about and improve the natural world around them.

One of the six challenges focus towards achieving “New Vehicle Zero CO2 Emission Challenge”. We at Toyota strongly believe that eco-friendly vehicles contribute to the environment only when they come into widespread use. Towards this challenge, we are accelerating advances in technology and wider adoption for the electrified vehicles that Toyota has been developing including hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). We are committed to continuing working hand in hand with stakeholders to support the development of mass production infrastructure to achieve reduction of vehicle emissions and make the transition to electrified vehicles seamless.

As per study by iCAT, a Government testing agency, HEVs can run 40% of the distance and 60% of the time as an electric vehicle with petrol engine shut off. This gives HEVs tremendous fuel efficiency improvements (35-50%) and much lower carbon emissions. Further as per independent studies on a well to wheel basis, i.e. fully considering impact of energy generation and its end use, in case of India carbon emissions for HEVs are even lower than BEVs. Hence HEV will also play a critical role in reducing fossil fuel consumption, carbon emissions and pollution as well as in creating local EV parts manufacturing eco-system while simultaneously protecting the huge existing investments and jobs related to ICE parts manufacturing thus ensuring a faster and disruption free technology transition.

Explaining the rationale for the Environment Month activities, Mr. Raju B. Ketkale, Deputy Managing Director, TKM, said, “Our eco initiatives have been strategically planned to exceed our management commitment, aimed towards achieving ZERO CO2, Water positive & Circular Economy Concepts with the final objective of eco sustainability. We have increased our green energy consumption to 94%, thus contributing towards a reduction of 2,41,000 tons CO2 emissions since 2014. We have been able to reduce 90% freshwater consumption at our manufacturing facility and have also achieved 96% recyclability of the waste generated.

We have planted more than 3,20,000 saplings with 650 native species which has helped in sequestering 4,700 tons of carbon di-oxide and enhanced biodiversity in our plant premises. Further, we are not only mitigating our impact on the environment, but also proactively contributing to the betterment of it by educating future generation on the topic of sustainable development in our one-of-a-kind experiential learning center – Ecozone.”

Needless to mention, we reaffirm our commitment to contribute to the society by ensuring conservation of our environmental ecosystem throughout the life cycle of our Products, Operations and Services, towards realizing our dream of “Living in Harmony with Nature”.

The Chennai Angels Makes Investment Of Rs 2.61 Cr In Blaer Motors

The Chennai Angels (TCA), one of India’s leading angel investment group, today announced an investment of Rs 2.61 Crores in Blaer Motors, an NIT-Trichy incubated startup based in Chennai.

Founded by 4 engineering students, Blaer Motors builds and develop technological solutions in the transportation and mobility space. The company focuses on developing clean, smart and efficient solutions that are cost efficient to meet the needs of the consumer.  Blaer has been working on Hybrid and Electric drivetrain solutions for 2-Wheelers and 3-Wheelers and collaborating with multiple OEMs for commercializing the drivetrain solutions.  

The Chennai Angels’ Investment Director, Mr. Vasantha Kumar, Head Business Development, ABAN Infrastructure Ltd who led this round of fundraise said “Blaer Motors came across as an innovation driven and technologically robust company working on developing hybrid technology for two & three-wheeler vehicles. This hybrid technology will help in both enhanced performance and fuel efficiency of the vehicles. India being the world’s largest 2 & 3 wheeler market, this innovation will have a huge impact on domestic market. I believe that Blaer Motors is uniquely positioned to tap the ever-emerging opportunities in the sector”

Mr. Abinesh Ekambaram, Co-Founder, Blaer Motors, said “this is our first round of external investment and we are very excited about this partnership with The Chennai Angels who share our vision towards sustainable mobility. We are thankful to our investors for believing in Blaer and we value their expertise in the automotive industry, which will help us to further our products and business strategies and strengthen our position in the market. ”

“Blaer Motors will be utilizing this fund mainly for infrastructure development, strengthening of our R&D team and technology development. Our focus now is to further optimize our hybrid technologies for motorcycles and expand our product portfolio into 3-Wheelers and LCVs. We want to establish Blaer as an indigenous technology provider in the automotive industry, which is dominated by European companies.” Abinesh added.

According to Mr. Chandran Krishnan, CEO of The Chennai Angels. “The Chennai Angels is betting on Blaer Motors because we share their vision of sustainable transportation and mobility. The hybrid bike runs intermittently on IC and this will significantly reduce pollution. We believe that there is a bright future for this company in the automobile space as their technology is advanced and reduces cost in acquiring hybrid vehicles in India”

About Baler Motors

As a part of their final year thesis, four engineering students driven by passion, conceptualized and developed an innovative technology. With initial funding and incubation support from NIT-Trichy, Blaer Motors Pvt. Ltd. was born in 2014. Baler Motors focuses on developing Clean, Smart and Efficient solutions for sustainable transportation and mobility. Blaer motors offers, Blaer Hybrid Solution - A patented plug-in hybrid technology for “Green Mobility”, LPG Two Wheeler Solutions and Electric Bicycle called Pedaleze.

The Chennai Angels

The Chennai Angels (TCA, www.thechennaiangels.com) is one of India’s most active angel investing groups. Founded in the year 2007, it is comprised of successful entrepreneurs and business leaders with a track record of starting and scaling large enterprises. Additionally, several seed and venture capital firms hold institutional membership in the group. Though it is located in Chennai, TCA’s investing members and portfolio investments are not limited by geography. Unusually for an angel investing group, TCA has a diversified portfolio that goes well beyond a restrictive tech focus, reflecting the diversity of its members’ interests. TCA portfolio companies benefit from the collective expertise and rolodex of its members.

Covid Protectors Replace Dettol’s Iconic Logo On 4 M Packs In India

* Dettol pays tribute to the numerous unsung protectors of the Covid pandemic in its new campaign #DettolSalutes

* Dettol Salutes Mansoor Chetlu, a sub-contractor from Bangalore, who opened a COVID triage in collaboration with Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)

Dettol, India’s most trusted germ protection brand, launched a one-of-its-kind campaign, #DettolSalutes today. For the first time in its history Dettol, as a tribute to Covid-19 warriors replaced its iconic logo with an image of a Covid protector along with the ‘protector’s’ inspiring story.

Dettol has curated 100 such stories from across India and carried them on its liquid handwash packs in honor of the protectors who have selflessly helped numerous people. In addition, Dettol has also launched a website- www.DettolSalutes.com. This platform is created especially for people from across India to share stories and acknowledge Covid protectors in their midst by creating customized virtual packs and sharing it on their social media channels.

Commenting on the #DettolSalutes campaign, Dilen Gandhi, Regional Marketing Director, South Asia – Health & Nutrition, Reckitt said, “True to Dettol’s legacy of being a protector, #DettolSalutes is our way of paying tribute to the many other protectors in the country. We believe these stories when shared, give a sense of much needed optimism among those seeing them. Therefore, as a brand, we have for the first time in Dettol’s history, given up our logo to share their actions. As the packs carry these stories, we believe they will also carry a message of hope across our country.”

One such story is that of Mansoor Chetlu, a 32-year-old resident of Bengaluru. As the second wave of COVID-19 hit the state, he distributed free food packets, oxygen cylinders, guided people on how to use these cylinders and helped open a COVID triage in collaboration with Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). A subcontractor by profession, Mansoor lost his job in March 2021, but this did not stop him from continuing his social work. Losing his job only encouraged him to use his resources, such as luggage trucks or tools to set up oxygen pipelines, for his new initiative. Working round the clock for about 18 hours a day, Mansoor has helped over 1,000 people who have been affected by COVID. Even without a regular flow of income, he is determined to expand his work by setting up another triage for the destitute who haven’t been able to get help as they lack valid identification cards.

There is a diverse and inclusive mix of hand-picked stories of individuals from across India - ranging from metros to smaller cities, from seniors to the youth and covering all regions. The intent is to cover a wide spectrum, thereby striking a personal chord with people from across the country. With the change in brand packaging and replacing its logo, Dettol aims to reach out to its consumers and show its solidarity by instilling a sense of hope to get through this phase.

Dettol as a part of the #DettolSalutes campaign launched an anthem last week to spread the message of hope and resolve during these tough times. Keeping in line with reaching out to a diverse audience, Dettol has also launched its anthem in sign language to make it more inclusive. This is the first time that Dettol will be showcasing an ASL advertisement on national television. With the anthem, Dettol aims to reiterate the importance of following Covid protocols including maintaining good hand hygiene.

The 4 million #DettolSalute packs will be available on e-commerce channels and across 500,000 stores in India from the 3rd week of June.

About Reckitt:

Reckitt* is the global leading consumer health and hygiene company. Driven by a purpose to build healthier lives and happier homes, RB has operations in over 60 countries. From the foundations of wellness and infant nutrition to the fundamentals of a hygienic home, its global brands help people live healthier, happier lives. RB has world leading Power brands which include household names such as Dettol, Harpic, Lizol, Veet, Durex, Strepsils, Mortein, Vanish, Air Wick, Enfamil, Nutramigen, Nurofen, Strepsils, Gaviscon, Mucinex, Scholl, Clearasil, Finish, Calgon, Woolite. RB’s unique culture is at the heart of its success. Its drive to achieve, passion to outperform and commitment to quality and scientific excellence are manifested in the work of over 40,000 RB employees worldwide.

“Black Mould” [Mucormycosis] - The Dark Side Of At-Home And Self-COVID-19 Treatment

By Dr. Jennifer Prabhu, CEO, Co-Founder Of Circee Health 

In fact, it’s not just this particular bug that we need to be concerned about. There are other cousins of mucor lurking in our environment, waiting for the perfect storm of a host to take residence in. Ever wonder what that black powdery mould that you find on old bread is? It’s Mucor, it’s Aspergillus, it’s Penicillium- all of these are ubiquitous in our environment and are harmless to humans, until a person with a compromised immune system comes in close proximity. Whether it’s from infections (like HIV or TB), chemotherapy, immuno-modulators (treatment for autoimmune diseases), or systemic steroids, of if the body’s normal security guards (white blood cells, antibodies, natural killer cells, etc) have been beaten down, and the fungal infections are able to take over. Let’s take a closer look at why this happens, and, more importantly, how it can be prevented! Because, we all know that a second pandemic via an *avoidable* foe, is the opposite of what the global population needs right now.

I remember vividly, in my second year of residency, the first month working on the oncology ward. Invasive fungal infections like Mucor, and other ‘opportunistic’ infections, are no stranger to docs that take care of these patients daily. It is a well known complication of chemotherapy (“chemo”) - that is - medications that purposely suppress the rapid-growing cancer cells. It’s important to know that in addition to killing the cancer cells, chemo also kills off other rapidly growing cells - including the body’s natural defence - the ‘good’ bacteria, the antibodies and anti-viral compound producing white blood cells. In fact, we would watch a patient’s white blood cell count very carefully, and as soon as it dipped below a critical threshold- they were placed on antifungal prophylaxis (antifungal medications to prevent infection). Unfortunately, some of the more powerful moulds were able to break through, and we'd have to step up the therapy to stronger medications. You may have heard of Amphotericin B- the most effective treatment for mucormycosis and most of these other dangerous infections. In medicine, we call this drug by an ominous pet name of “Ampho-terrible”. Why? Yes, it kills off the fungus, but it also wreaks havoc on multiple organ systems- particularly the kidneys, gastrointestinal tract and cardiovascular system. Quite often, we’d lose patients not to the infection itself, but to the side effects from treatment. 

Why do I bring up these particular side effects- just to scare you? Actually, yes! To scare you and inform you. It is very important to understand that although many anti-infection medications are effective, they can have negative aspects as well. Someone may think, “I’m not afraid of black mould- there is an effective treatment!”. The problem is, that treatment can ultimately be more harmful than good, especially long term. Your infection will clear up, but you may end up stuck to a hemodialysis machine (what we use for patients in end-stage kidney failure). Another concern is that of antifungal resistance- similar to antibiotic resistance, which you may have heard of. Too much use of a particular anti-infective, will allow some bugs to escape the medication and eventually become immune, or resistant to it. These super-bugs (bacteria, fungi, moulds and of course viruses) are what us doctors and medical researchers are afraid of the most! 

So, how can mucormycosis and similar opportunistic infections be prevented from taking up residence in the body and causing serious illness? The most obvious step is prevention- keeping a healthy active immune system will ensure that you steer clear of these bugs. In some cases, as I mentioned earlier, suppressing the immune system is unavoidable (cancer, HIV, etc). But there are other cases where choices in treatment are available, and the decision needs to be made keeping these risks in mind! I am referring, in this case, to COVID-19 treatment. One of the mainstays over the past few months (as the treatment is, of course, evolving), has been steroid treatment. The thought behind is that steroids will suppress the body’s overzealous immune response to the virus, and thus improve the patient’s condition. However, when considering steroids, it is extremely important to know when (and if!) to use them. As with antibiotic overuse, it is dangerous to just prescribe steroids to every single COVID positive patient.  The course of the disease is now fairly well known, and this should guide the treatment parameters. The first few days (usually day 1-6) are when the virus is replicating (increasing in number) in the body and causing fever, body aches, fatigue, etc. The following week, in some cases, is when the body will try to kill the virus, but often overdoes it, and something called a “cytokine storm” could occur. This phenomenon is what is particularly dangerous about COVID-19 and often what causes hypoxia (low oxygen in the blood), low blood pressure, worsening fever, and multi-organ damage. The second phase of infection is when systemic [oral] steroids should be given. Low oxygen or a sudden change in ‘vital signs’ (BP, pulse, higher fever, decreased urination) should key the doctor to prescribe steroids. Any other use is premature or unnecessary, and can lead to secondary complications- not only mucor, but development or worsening of diabetes, significant weight gain, hallucinations, weak bones, the list goes on. 

Just to summarize- steroids are an excellent medication, if used judiciously and in the appropriate situation. In fact, they can be absolutely instrumental in changing the course of illness, especially in COVID-19! However, one needs to keep the experts’ research and latest clinical studies in mind when prescribing and/or buying for themselves at the local chemist. It is absolutely understandable to want to reach for any treatment possible when the fear of the pandemic looms overhead. But, if you remember one point from this article- please keep in mind that over-medication can be just as dangerous as the infection itself. Certainly, this can be kept in mind for all medications going forward. Let this be a lesson to us all- evidence based medicine and proven treatment protocols save lives!

EbixCash Announces Appointment Of Renowned Economist “SP Kothari To Its Board Of Directors, As It Progresses Towards Prospective IPO

EbixCash Private Limited, a subsidiary of Ebix, Inc., a leading international supplier of On-Demand software and E-commerce services to the insurance, financial, healthcare and e-learning industries announced the appointment of Mr. SP Kothari, as a new independent director to the EbixCash Board. Professor Kothari has senior executive experience in government, academia, and industry with expertise in strategic and policy issues, securities regulation, auditing, and corporate governance. 

S.P. Kothari is Gordon Y Billard Professor of Accounting and Finance at MIT’s Sloan School of Management. Most recently, from 2019 to 2021 he served as Chief Economist and Director of the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis at the US Securities and Exchange Commission.  

In academia, Kothari was deputy dean of MIT Sloan School of Management (2010-15), and previously he headed the Department of Economics, Finance and Accounting at MIT. In addition, he Co-Chaired the Board of Governors of Asia School of Business, Kuala Lumpur, served as faculty director of the MIT-India Program, and edited the world-renowned academic publication Journal of Accounting & Economics.  

In 2008-09, Kothari was global head of equity research for Barclays Global Investors (acquired by BlackRock); he was a director of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) (2015-19); and he has consulted extensively on valuation and reporting, risk management, auditing, and management compensation.   

Kothari is a recipient of numerous awards for his scholarship, including one of India’s highest civilian honors – the Padma Shri award in 2020, Honorary Doctorates from London Business School, University of Cyprus, and University of Technology, Sydney, and American Accounting Association’s Distinguished Contributions to the Accounting Literature award.    

SP Kothari said, “I am grateful for the honor of serving as a director of EbixCash that promises to transform the financial & insurance service sectors, and the leisure and healthcare industry by offering seamless connectivity and ease of access to millions of consumers. The resulting productivity gains are crucial for the growth of national and individual incomes.”  

“SP brings a rich blend of leadership level regulatory, accounting, strategic, and corporate governance experience across the industry, government and academic sectors to the Board. We are excited to have him on the EbixCash Board.” Robin Raina, Chairman, President & CEO Ebix Inc, said. “His experience and skills will provide us with the strategic guidance and direction that EbixCash needs as we embark on the next cycle of growth and a prospective IPO for EbixCash.” 

Kothari received his B.S. in Engineering from the Birla Institute of Technology & Science and his MBA (PGDM) from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. Dr. Kothari earned his PhD from the University of Iowa. 

About EbixCash 

EbixCash is a leader in domestic and international money remittance, foreign exchange (Forex), travel, pre-paid and gift cards, utility payments and software solutions for lending, wealth management, bus exchanges and insurance in India and other markets. EbixCash’s "Phygital” strategy combines over 320,000 physical distribution outlets in India and ASEAN countries with an Omni-channel online digital platform. EbixCash ’s Forex operations have a leadership position in India with operations in 20 international airports, including Delhi, Mumbai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata, conducting over $4.8 billion in gross transaction value per year (pre-COVID-19). EbixCash’s inward remittance business is the clear market leader in India, processing approximately $5 billion in gross annual remittance volume (pre-COVID-19). Through its travel portfolio of Via and Mercury, EbixCash is also one of Southeast Asia’s leading travel exchanges with over 200,000 agents, 25 branches and over 9,800 corporate clients, processing an estimated $2.5 billion in gross merchandise value per year (pre-COVID-19).

About Ebix, Inc. 

With 150+ offices across 6 continents, Ebix, Inc., (NASDAQ: EBIX) endeavors to provide On-Demand software and E-commerce services to the insurance, financial, healthcare and e-learning industries. In the Insurance sector, Ebix develops and deploys a wide variety of insurance and reinsurance exchanges on an on-demand basis, while also, providing Software-as-a-Service ("SaaS") enterprise solutions in the area of CRM, front-end & back-end systems, outsourced administration and risk compliance services, around the world. 

The Company’s EbixCash Financial exchange subsidiary is a leader in domestic and international money remittance, foreign exchange (Forex), travel, pre-paid/gift cards, utility payments, software solutions for lending, wealth management, bus exchanges and insurance in India and other markets. Ebix and its subsidiaries employ thousands of domain-specific technology professionals to provide products, support and consultancy to thousands of customers on six continents.