Equitas Bank Goes Beyond Banking In Transforming Lives Of People Through Social Initiatives

* An inspiring journey from being a pavement dweller to a proud independent parent 

Equitas Small Finance Bank has launched a new web series on their social media platforms, called ’Circle of Life’ that features real life transformation stories of bravery, sacrifice and compassion, the bank aims to reach a wider audience with the series to inspire and give hope to Indians in times of uncertainty. 

‘Circle of Life’ series signifies a way of taking and giving back to the society and showcases the lives of people who have gone through a transformative journey.  

Equitas invests the money that people save with the bank back in communities thus making money a force for good in contributing for a sustainable social change. While you choose to bank with Equitas, you just don’t earn rewarding interest, you also contribute to build a better society.Each story reflects positive impact beyond banking and how Equitas Small Finance Bank helps in changing lives of people through micro lending and social initiatives. 

The First story, titled “Identity”, is a transformative journey of Mrs. Shanthi from being a pavement dweller to a proud independent parent. ¬Shanthi, now a contract worker for Indian Railways, shares her inspiring journey towards earning her identity in the society and showcases gratitude towards Equitas Small Finance Bank for being her pillar of strength. She even calls the bank her “mother’s home” which presented her with an opportunity to live a respectable life. 

Equitas through its Bird’s Nest – Pavement Dweller Rehabilitation program, provided housing, food security, healthcare, livelihood skill development, and supplemental education to ultra-poor families over an 18-month period – ultimately placing them on the path to self-sufficiency. The bank has transformed lives of over 2000+ pavement dwellers in Chennai. 

The small finance bank is known for its ideology and belief in giving back to the community they serve and uplift them in a sustainable manner. Through the video, the bank shows a glimpse of the successful transformation of a one such community member, Shanthi. 

India Power's PAT Rises 60% To Rs 26.66 Crore In FY21; Customer Base Increases By 52%

India Power Corporation Limited ("India Power"), one of the most efficient power distribution companies in the country, has reported a profit after tax ("PAT") of Rs 26.66 crore in the financial year 2020-21 ("FY21") as compared to Rs 16.69 crore a year earlier, registering a growth of 60%.

Accelerated sales growth, procuring power at competitive prices and upgradation of conventional infrastructure to smart utility infrastructure (SCADA, IOT, smart meters, etc.) aided the company's earnings in an otherwise challenging year marked by the global coronavirus pandemic.

India Power's customer base expanded by 52%. The company's sales increased by 2 million units in FY21 despite the impact of pandemic and lockdown during the first two quarters of the financial year. Total income for the year was at Rs 518.37 crore.

Load increased by 10% in FY21 from a year ago, while India Power maintained the AT&C losses at 3%, one of the lowest in the industry, despite adding new domestic connections.

India Power purchased 12.1% of renewable energy in FY21 and plans to increase it to 35% by financial year 2022-23.

Commenting on the results, Mr. Somesh Dasgupta, Whole-time Director, India Power, said: "FY21 has been both challenging and exciting for India Power. We were able to overcome the setback of coronavirus pandemic by adding large number of consumers across voltage levels, which resulted in accelerated sales growth from second quarter onwards. Our ability to procure power at competitive prices led to cost savings and further improved our earnings.

Going forward, India Power plans to add industrial consumers across voltage levels from large industries to SMEs and exponentially increase its domestic consumer base by expanding and strengthening network across license area. The company expects over 40% increase in its sales volume during the current financial year."

About India Power Corporation Limited ("India Power"):

India Power Corporation Limited ("India Power"), formerly known as DPSC Limited, incorporated in 1919, is a holistic, integrated power utility headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal. The company holds a distribution license spread across 618 square kilometres in Asansol-Ranigunj region of West Bengal and contributes immensely to the growth and prosperity of its industrial, commercial and domestic consumers. With strong expertise in distribution management and engineering, the company has developed a diversified, pan-India portfolio, which includes power distribution, smart metering, digital transformation, renewable and conventional modes of power generation.

Honeywell Establishes Critical Care Centre In Bowring Hospital For COVID-19 Patients In Bengaluru

* Well-equipped ICU for COVID-19 patients in Bowring Hospital handed over to State Government

* 200 oxygen concentrators, N95 respirators, and PPE kits donated for distribution across Karnataka

Honeywell has announced that it has established a critical care center at Bowring Hospital to treat COVID-19 patients in the city. The company has also donated essential medical supplies including oxygen concentrators, N95 respirators and personal protective equipment (PPE) for hospitals in the state of Karnataka. 

The 10-bed ICU center at Bowring Hospital in Shivaji Nagar features necessary equipment to support critical COVID-19 patients. These include Class I ventilators, Fowler beds, BiPAP machines, multipara monitors with and without capnometers, a portable X-ray machine, an ECG machine, an infusion pump, and a laryngoscope set.  Additionally, Honeywell is providing N95 respirators and kits to the center.

The company has also handed over 200 oxygen concentrators, N95 respirators, and PPE kits to the State Government for distribution across Karnataka.

“It is heartening to see companies like Honeywell stepping forward to augment health infrastructure in the city,” said Dr. C.N. Ashwathnarayan, Deputy Chief Minister, Karnataka. “This ICU facility will not only serve citizens during the pandemic, but also encourage more such social investments by the private sector,” he added.

“We are thankful to Honeywell for establishing a critical care center for COVID patients in Bengaluru. This is an excellent example of a public-private partnership to enhance healthcare capacities to deal with the pandemic,” said Uma Mahadevan, Principal Secretary PR & Member, Committee to Coordinate with CSOs, NGOs, Private Sectors and International Organisations on COVID Response, Government of Karnataka.

“Honeywell is committed to helping the country deal with this humanitarian crisis and has pledged $3M since the start of the pandemic for COVID relief,” said Dr. Akshay Bellare, President, Honeywell India.

“We are partnering with state and local governments to enhance healthcare capacities across multiple states, including setting up COVID care centers and critical care centers. We are also donating essential medical supplies such as oxygen concentrators, ventilators, N95 respirators, and PPE kits,” he added.

In the first phase, Honeywell established 20-bed COVID care centers in Delhi, Pune, Gurugram, Nainital. These centers will be run by the respective local and state governments and are equipped with beds, oxygen supply, PPE kits, medical consumables, and basic medical infrastructure to treat non-critical patients. Another 10-bed ICU facility, similar to the one in Bengaluru, is planned in Mumbai.

As a committed corporate citizen, Honeywell has extended support to communities across the globe, including India, to address the pandemic and provide relief. 

About Honeywell India

Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 technology company that delivers industry-specific solutions that include aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings and industry; and performance materials globally. Our technologies help everything from aircraft, buildings, manufacturing plants, supply chains, and workers become more connected to make our world smarter, safer, and more sustainable. All of Honeywell’s global businesses have a strong legacy in India, built over the last eight decades. Honeywell’s India commitment is evident in three state-of-the-art manufacturing and engineering operations, and four global centers of excellence for technology development and innovation. Honeywell employs ~13,000 people across different locations including Bengaluru, Chennai, Dehradun, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Madurai, and Pune.

Infogain Announces Ownership Transition From ChrysCapital To The Apax Funds

* The Apax Fund’s investment will accelerate Infogain’s expansion

Infogain, a Silicon Valley-based leader in human-centered digital platform and software engineering services, today announced its PE ownership will change hands, from ChrysCapital to funds advised by Apax (the “Apax Funds”). Apax is a leading global private equity advisory firm with significant experience investing in technology companies. ChrysCapital is a leading Indian private equity advisory firm with a successful track record of investing in information technology and business services. The new ownership will enable Infogain to broaden its solution offerings, pursue strategic acquisitions, expand into new geographies, and accelerate the expansion of its employee base.

Infogain’s Chief Operating Officer, Ayan Mukerji, will become Chief Executive Officer. Ayan joined Infogain in 2018 and will assume CEO position.

Sunil Bhatia, outgoing CEO of Infogain, said, “It was a great pleasure to have built an organization that is recognized among the Global Top 50 engineering services providers.1 It has been a privilege to work alongside a world-class team to serve our customers, without whom none of this would have been possible. I wish Ayan and Infogain all the very best for the future.”

“I’d like to thank Sunil for his leadership during his tenure as CEO, and it was also great being part of the platform ChrysCapital built out over the past few years,” said Ayan. “We welcome our new relationship with Apax to support Infogain’s growth strategy.”

He continued, “Apax’s support will help supercharge our growth, organically and through new strategic acquisitions. We will leverage opportunities to deepen and diversify our service offerings to support our clients’ – and our own – transformation journeys.”

“We are grateful for the opportunity we had to build a fast-growing cutting edge digital platform services organization. Infogain was ChrysCapital’s pioneering initiative in the US that got bolstered with multiple strategic acquisitions. I wish Apax all the best in their future with Infogain,” said Akshat Babbar, Vice President at ChrysCapital.

Shashank Singh, Partner at Apax, said, “Digital engineering and technological excellence continue to be key competitive advantages across industries, and Infogain, with its platform strategy and highly talented team, is exceptionally well placed to help drive innovation and support its customers in developing differentiated human-centered solutions. We are excited to partner with Ayan and the team to support them and their customers in this next phase of growth.”

Rohan Haldea, Partner at Apax, added, “Digital transformation and software engineering services have been key areas of focus for the Apax Funds over the last decade, underpinned by multiple successful investments. We’re excited to bring our experience in the space to the team at Infogain and to accelerate their expansion and investment in capabilities that enhance their global platform, delivering ever greater value for customers.”

By helping customers achieve human-centered digital platform success through its Value Delivery Framework, Infogain has more than doubled its revenue in the last three years. Its global team now numbers close to 5,000. The company has upgraded its engineering expertise and added significant digital capabilities in cloud, experience design, and analytics.

Infogain’s Chief Delivery Officer, Eddie Chandhok added, “Our success continues to be driven by our team members, who work on mission critical projects that enable customer success and help deliver significant value to our clients on a global scale. The company is especially focused on delivery excellence, a testament to which is its 73% net promoter score achieved in the previous fiscal year.”

Infogain was advised by Credit Suisse (financial advisor). Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati served as the legal counsel to Infogain in the United States, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. as the legal counsel in India, and E&Y as the financial and tax advisor.

CyberArk Expands Availability Of Identity Security Offerings On AWS Marketplace

* CyberArk and Amazon Web Services Help Customers Rapidly Reduce Cybersecurity Risk from the Endpoint to the Cloud and Across Remote Workforces

CyberArk (NASDAQ: CYBR), the global leader in Identity Security, today announced the availability of CyberArk Cloud Entitlements Manager, CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager and CyberArk Workforce Identity on Amazon Web Services Marketplace (AWS Marketplace). CyberArk now offers least privilege controls that span from the endpoint to the cloud on AWS Marketplace. and CyberArk Workforce Identity on Amazon Web Services Marketplace (AWS Marketplace). CyberArk now offers least privilege controls that span from the endpoint to the cloud on AWS Marketplace.

Migrating workloads to the cloud is a top priority for many organizations. This trend, coupled with the need to securely support increasingly remote workforces, has created new challenges – particularly for protecting against increasingly identity-centric attacks. AWS customers can now easily access even more of CyberArk’s Identity Security SaaS-based offerings, which deliver greater deployment flexibility and simplicity, along with rapid time to value and risk reduction.

CyberArk’s Identity Security offerings allow AWS customers to remove excessive privileges and permissions on endpoint devices, servers and throughout their cloud environments. Removing unnecessary privileges helps organizations disrupt the attack path by limiting lateral movement and stopping privilege escalation. Specifically:

CyberArk Cloud Entitlements Manager is the industry’s first privilege-based, artificial intelligence-powered service designed to strengthen the security of cloud environments by identifying and removing excessive cloud permissions, and mitigating the risks related to permission sprawl or privilege abuse. Additionally, Cloud Entitlements Manager recently introduced capabilities allowing customers to onboard and analyze IAM permissions across their entire AWS Organizations service. Cloud Entitlements Manager customers can now easily connect accounts and organizational units within their AWS Organizations to identify and remediate excessive IAM permissions in specific AWS accounts.

CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager is a critical component for securing endpoints, especially in modern remote work models. It removes barriers to enforcing least privilege and allows organizations to block and contain attacks at the endpoint to reduce the risk of information being stolen or encrypted and held for ransom.

CyberArk Workforce Identity helps secure remote workforces by proactively protecting users' access to cloud and on-premises applications, endpoints, VPNs and other critical resources. Workforce Identity features Single Sign-On, adaptive Multi-Factor Authentication and Lifecycle Management capabilities.

“Embracing cloud, remote work and other digital transformation initiatives cannot be a tradeoff with security,” said Clarence Hinton, chief strategy officer, CyberArk. “There are clear use cases here that organizations need to address, and they need the tools that allow them to securely meet their business objectives. With expanded access to CyberArk Identity Security solutions, AWS customers can move forward with confidence, reducing excessive permissions and containing threats before they negatively impact the business.”

CyberArk offerings already on AWS Marketplace include CyberArk Privileged Access Manager, CyberArk Privilege Cloud, CyberArk Conjur Open Source and CyberArk Privileged Access Manager for GovCloud (US). 

Tata Motors Bags Order Of 115 Ambulances From Government Of Gujarat; Supplies First Lot Of 25 Vehicles

* Ceremonial event held in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat, Health Minister of Gujarat and other dignitaries

* The entire order consists of 25 basic life support ambulances and 90 ambulance shells

Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, has supplied 25 Tata Winger Ambulances to the Health Department of Gujarat, as a part of the larger order of 115 ambulances. The official vehicle inducting ceremony, which was held in Gandhinagar, was graced by various notable dignitaries from the Gujarat State Cabinet including Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat – Shri Nitin Patel, Health Minister of Gujarat – Shri Kishor Kanani, Principle Secretary – Health and Family welfare department – Dr. Jayanti S. Ravi, IAS Commissioner- Health & Family welfare department – Shri Jai Prakash Shivhare, IAS COO GVK EMRI Gujarat – Shri Jashvant Prajapati and other dignitaries from Govt. of Gujarat. The 25 Tata Winger Ambulances are equipped with basic life support and will be deployed for the aid of patients in the city. Tata Motors won the bid for the order under the Government e-Marketplace, and the vehicles are designed for patient transport as per AIS 125 Part 1. Tata Motors will phase-wise supply the remaining 90 ambulance shells, as per the contract.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Vinay Pathak, Vice President, Product Line, SCV, Tata Motors, said, “The Tata Winger ambulance is designed keeping in focus the need of the patient and the healthcare system. The Winger ambulance has proven to be a trusted partner to healthcare organisations and has saved countless lives as a result of its ergonomic, efficient design and performance. Tata Motors’ thorough understanding of customer requirements for different applications and ability to design the vehicle basis these requirements is what sets the brand apart from its competitors. Tata Motors is firmly committed to bringing top-notch healthcare mobility solutions to hospitals and healthcare facilities in the country and support the governments in their fight against this pandemic.”

The Tata Motors Winger Ambulance is designed and can be adapted to cater to all type of patient transportation, including Basic Life Support and Advanced Life Support range. The ambulance is engineered specially for COVID-19 patient transportation, with a driver partition. Its modular underpinnings and monocoque chassis, in addition to the independent suspension, offer a smooth driving experience, which is extremely critical for the swift transportation of patients. Tata Motors offers the most comprehensive range of ambulances from Magic Express Ambulance, Winger Ambulance and LP410 Ambulance, with double stretcher.

About Tata Motors

Tata Motors Limited (NYSE: TTM; BSE: 500570 and 570001; NSE: TATAMOTORS and TATAMTRDVR), a USD 44 billion organization, is a leading global automobile manufacturer of cars, utility vehicles, pick-ups, trucks and buses. Part of the USD 110 billion Tata group, Tata Motors is India’s largest and the only OEM offering extensive range of integrated, smart and e-mobility solutions. It has operations in India, the UK, South Korea, Thailand, South Africa, and Indonesia through a strong global network of 134 subsidiaries, associate companies and joint ventures, including Jaguar Land Rover in the UK and Tata Daewoo in South Korea.

With a focus on engineering and tech enabled automotive solutions catering to the future of mobility, Tata Motors is India’s market leader in commercial vehicles and amongst the top four in the passenger vehicles market. With ‘Connecting Aspirations’ at the core of its brand promise, the company’s innovation efforts are focused to develop pioneering technologies that are sustainable as well as suited to evolving aspirations of the market and the customers. Tata Motors strives to bring new products that fire the imagination of GenNext customers, fuelled by state of the art design and R&D centres located in India, UK, US, Italy and South Korea. Internationally, Tata commercial and passenger vehicles are marketed in countries, spread across Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, South East Asia, South America, Australia, CIS, and Russia.

Syska Expands Partnership With Flipkart; Launches Its Smartwatch Syska Bolt SW200

The highly customizable smartwatch to be available on Flipkart from 11th June 2021

o Comes with a sleek circular dial and a full 1.28” Touch Display

o 100+ cloud & customizable watch faces available in the app for sporting a new look everyday

o Available in three color variants – Spectra Blue, Space Black, and Ocean Green

o Compatible with all versions of Android and iOS

o SpO2 monitoring feature to measure blood oxygen level

o Launched on Flipkart on 11th June 2021, 12pm

Syska Group, the leading FMEG brand in India today announced the expansion of its partnership with India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace Flipkart with the launch of Syska Bolt SW200 smartwatch. This comes on the back of Syska’s foray into the fast-growing smartwatch segment last year with Flipkart to cater to the growing demand for fitness essentials across the country.

Syska Bolt Smartwatch has been designed keeping in mind the current situation caused due to the pandemic and ensures in-depth focus on health and wellness for users through its innovative features. The smartwatch is slim, casual and comfortable to wear round-the-clock as it is designed with a super light geometric case and is an upgrade to last year’s SW100.

Commenting on the launch of the Syska SW200 Bolt Smartwatch, Mr. Gurumukh Uttamchandani, Executive Director, Syska Group said, “The Syska Group is a diversified organization operating into various segments to ease the daily lives of our customers. Our venture into the smartwatch segment last year met with great success which encouraged us to launch the Syska Bolt SW200 with improved functionalities to cater to the health and wellness needs of our customers. In this journey, Flipkart has been a great partner in taking Syska’s offerings to every household and helping us better understand the customer needs with years of its experience serving millions of its users across the country”.

Smartwatches have been a fast-growing segment in the wearable space as an increasing number of customers prioritize their health and wellness. According to market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC), the Indian wearable market (including smartwatches) grew 144.3 percent year-over-year (YoY) in 2020 making India the only country in the top 20 to have triple digit growth.

Rakesh Krishnan, Senior Director at Electronics, Flipkart said, “As one of the fastest growing markets for wearables, particularly smartwatches, in the world, Flipkart understands  the evolving requirements of our customers and closely works with our brand partners to bring the best-in-class technology solutions to our customers’ doorstep. The pandemic has significantly altered the customer purchase patterns and we are proud to be at the forefront of fulfilling these nuanced requirements in a safe and hygienic manner. Syska has been a natural ally in this endeavour and we are happy to witness our long-standing partnership expand into newer segments and create a shared value for all the stakeholders, including customers”.

Innovative features of the Syska SW200 Smartwatch –

* Female Health Tracking – With an aim to support wellbeing of women, Syska Bolt has added an innovative feature for female health tracking which let females track and monitor their menstrual cycle, ovulation period, pregnancy period and much more.

* 100+ versatile cloud watch faces – Personalize your watch according to your mood. With over 100+ fancy cloud watch faces offered by the Syska Bolt Smartwatch, you can choose to adorn a new style each day depending upon the occasion and mood. A quick switch from classic to modern and back is easily possible. You can also choose any image from your phone gallery to create a custom watch face.

* Hand Sanitization Reminder – Considering the ongoing pandemic, Syska has added an innovative feature through a hand sanitization reminder in the smartwatch, which reminds you to sanitize your hands on regular intervals and keep you alert if you touch an unknown surface.

* Weather Report – Syska Bolt SW200 Smartwatch has added yet another interesting feature that showcases weather status such as temperature and also updates you on weather condition such as rainy, cloudy or sunny.

* Water Reminder – Drinking adequate amount of water throughout the day is very crucial. With Syska Bolt water reminder feature, you can keep a track of your daily water intake and stay hydrated.

* Spo2 Monitoring – Syska believes in supporting consumers in taking utmost care of their health and has added the Spo2 monitoring feature to measure blood oxygen level.

* Music and Camera Control – The smartwatch allows you to take control of your playlist from your wrist with just a tap to play, pause or stop. Not just that, you can also use your watch to click a picture with your watch as it enables camera control feature.

* Sedentary Alert – Syska Bolt provides timely alerts that put you back on track with your active lifestyle through our sedentary movement alert feature.

* Health Tracking - The new SW200 watch comes with an improved heart rate monitor which can help you keep a track of it anytime on the go.

* Multi-Sports Mode – Get your gear on as the new Syska Bolt comes with pre-loaded sports modes such as cricket, badminton, swimming, running, cycling, hiking and much more for you to accurately track your favorite sport and stay active and fit.

* Smart Notifications – With the smart notification feature, you can get an easy access to calls, messages, emails and other notifications on the go on your all new Syska Bolt. All you need to do is switch on the ‘Notification Reminder’ on your Syska Fit Bolt App to never miss an update.

Syska SW200 smartwatch has been developed to enable consumers in prioritizing their health and wellbeing, using the watch features such as tracking sleep to monitoring steps, blood oxygen levels, heart rate and much more. Syska Bolt SW200 comes in three colors – Black, blue and green. The MRP of the product is INR 5,499 but it will be available at an attractive offer of INR 2,499 on Flipkart.