McDonald’s Is Celebrating Drive-Thru Week By Rewarding Customers Who Fuel-Up Their Rides

You can always trust McDonald’s India to spring a surprise! The brand is delighting the customers yet again by celebrating Drive Thru week in the most unique way. All customers who fuel up their rides in the week, will be able to get their favorite products free at their preferred McDonald’s Drive Thru.  With this, your next visit to a McDonald’s Drive Thru is set to be even more delightful.

Westlife Development Ltd - the company that owns and operates McDonald’s restaurants in West and South of India has the largest number of drive-thrus in the country. This service has been an unmatched strength for the brand and its demand has only grown through the year. With over 60 Drive -Thrus in the regions, the company is offering customers a safe and convenient way of getting their favorite food.

To make the most of the McDonald’s Drive Thru week, all you have to do is DM (Directly Message)  a picture of your fuel receipt dated any day between the 24th to 30th July on the brand’s official Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter handles. The first 1000 participants to fuel up for amounts between INR 500 to INR 1500 will get a free McSpicy Paneer/ McSpicy Chicken burger or a McVeggie/ McChicken burger. Similarly, the first 1000 participants who fuel up for more than INR 1500 and DM the bill, will stand a chance to get a free McSpicy Paneer/Chicken meal or a McVeggie/McChicken meal.

Speaking on the occasion of Drive Thru Week, Arvind RP, Director - Marketing and Communications, McDonald’s India (West and South) said, “McDonald’s has been the pioneer of Drive-thrus in India and it has been a very important channel for us, especially in the recent times. The Drive-thru week is an opportunity to delight our customers in a unique way and at the same time highlight the great convenience that this channel offers.”

McDonald’s social media pages

·         Instagram: @mcdonalds_india

·         Twitter: @mcdonaldsindia

·         Facebook: @McDonaldsIndia

So, what are you waiting for? Go grab your freebies right away and celebrate the Drive-Thru Week with a McDonald’s twist!

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.

Punjab National Bank Holds Its 20th AGM Through Video Conference

 

Punjab National Bank, the nation's leading public sector bank, held the 20th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Bank's shareholders. Amidst the prevailing Covid-19 situation, the Bank conducted its AGM through video conference, without the physical presence of shareholders at a common venue, in accordance with guidelines issued by SEBI and MCA.

Shri.  CH. S. S. Mallikarjuna Rao, MD & CEO of PNB, while addressing the Shareholders at the 20th AGM of the Bank , highlighted bank’s performance and various initiatives undertaken during FY 2020-21. He said, "Inspite of the challenges due to COVID 19 pandemic, Bank was able to successfully amalgamate Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank of India into Punjab  National Bank".

"Despite  the unprecedented situation, Bank continued on the growth trajectory with a strengthened organization structure, strong balance sheet, sustained profitability and stable capital position. Bank achieved Business, Human Resource and Information Technology (IT) integration of the three Banks in record time. The synergies from amalgamation are being realized with an augmented capacity, capability and reach, with a wider geographical presence and a vast customer base. In addition, the revamped organizational structure has created a foundation for business growth with focused attention towards various business segments. The verticalized customer centric and digital credit delivery model has improved credit underwriting, efficiency and turnaround time (TAT). Overall, our endeavour has been to create value for all our stakeholders .” added Shri. CH. S. S. Mallikarjuna Rao.

Shri. Sanjay Kumar, Shri. Vijay Dube & Shri. Swarup Kumar Saha, Executive Directors; Dr. Asha Bhandarker & Shri. Gautam Guha, Shareholder Directors on Bank's Board; Representative of the Government of India and Statutory Auditors of Bank were also present in the meeting. 

Emcure Pharma Strengthens Its Board; Adding Independent Directors With Illustrious Background

 

Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd., one of India’s leading pharma players continues to strengthen its leadership with appointment of distinguished professionals to its board of directors. The company has recently added four independent directors with a wealth of knowledge and experience in various fields.

The new additions include Dr. Shailesh Ayyangar, Mr. Vijay Gokhale, Mr. Hitesh Jain and Dr. Vidya Yeravdekar.  Earlier this year, Mr. Berjis Desai had taken over the chairman of Emcure Board. The company has had a long standing tradition of appointing a Chairman from amongst its independent directors since 1997.

Emcure aims to further augment its strengths as one of the fastest growing pharmaceutical companies in India with a global reach of over 70 countries across the world. These additions to the leadership team for Emcure Pharmaceuticals, reflect its commitment towards enriching its expertise and strengthening its operations for future growth. The new members’ collective strength across legal, pharma spectrum, policy developments and academics will provide additional thrust to Emcure’s growth trajectory.

Commenting on the appointments, Mr. Satish Mehta, Managing Director & CEO, Emcure Pharmaceuticals said, “We are delighted to have highly accomplished industry stalwarts as part of our board. New members’ combined experience and wider perspective from their respective fields, will play an instrumental role in strengthening our strategic operations to grow in domestic and international markets. It is an exciting time for the organization, and we look forward to achieving newer heights with our new members on board.”

About the new Chairman and additional board members:

Mr. Berjis Desai Emcure’s Chairman and Independent Director has been associated with Emcure Pharmaceuticals for over three decades. Having practised transactional and dispute resolution laws for the last 37 years, Mr. Desai, retired as the Managing Partner of JSA, a national law firm. A Master of Law (starred first) from the University of Cambridge, he is now an Independent Legal Counsel engaged in Private Client Practice. A former journalist, Mr. Desai is a part time writer and columnist.

Dr. Shailesh Ayyangar appointed as Additional Director comes with an extensive experience of 34 years in healthcare and pharmaceutical. Dr Ayyangar served as Managing Director in his latest stint at Sanofi and was the member of International Leadership Team and Country Chair for India & South Asia. For nearly 18 years, he ran all business interest of the Sanofi Group including Pharmaceuticals, Specialty Care, Vaccines, Animal Health and Consumer Healthcare. Prior to joining Sanofi in 2002, Dr Ayyangar held senior positions for 14 years in SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals and GSK in India and in Great Britain. On the healthcare side, Dr Ayyangar was instrumental in bringing together global and national M&A activities along with building innovative partnerships such as Apollo Sugar Clinics – One of the longest serving Country Chairs in the country and region.

Mr. Vijay Gokhale appointed as Independent Director was in Indian Foreign Service since 1981. Mr. Gokhale’s previous diplomatic assignments includes postings in Hong Kong, Hanoi, Beijing and New York. He has also served as the Deputy Secretary (Finance), Director (China & East Asia) and Joint Secretary (East Asia) during his stints at the Headquarters of the Ministry of External Affairs. His geo-political perspective brings in an additional dimension to the future prospects for Emcure.

Mr. Hitesh Jain, appointed as Independent Director is an alumnus of London School of Economics in 1996. He is the Managing Partner at Parinam Law Associates.  His practice spans 24 years of experience across all branches of litigation and clients from multiple sectors. He has represented clients in the Supreme Court of India, various High Courts in India, district courts (civil, criminal and rent act matters), consumer forums, competition commission and  TDSAT, etc. He has advised clients on a range of issues like international corporate commercial transactions, banking and labour matters along with mergers and acquisitions. He also advises companies for issue and dealing of securities in the primary and secondary market.

Dr Vidya Yeravdekar appointed as Independent Director is the Principal Director of Symbiosis Society, and the Pro Chancellor of Symbiosis International University. Among her various accolades and accomplishments, some include; Chairperson of the FICCI Committee on Higher Education,  Member of India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) Trust set up by Ministry of Commerce & Industries, Govt. of India, Member of the Central Governing Council of Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC) set up by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Govt. of India, among many others.

Dr. Yeravdekar holds a Post Graduate Degree in Medicine, a Degree in Law and Ph.D. in 'Internationalisation of Higher Education in India’.

About Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd:

Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (EPL) is one of India’s leading pharmaceutical players headquartered in Pune with global footprint. Driven by technology and innovation, the company’s mission has been to develop and deliver Effective Medicines to Cure patients, enabling them to lead healthier lives. Established in 1981, the firm was founded by Mr. Satish Mehta who spotted an opportunity in contract manufacturing pharmaceuticals for MNCs. Emcure is ranked as the 12th largest pharma company in India (AIOCD-AWACS MAT Mar 21). It is a leader in gynaecology, blood-related and HIV antiviral therapy areas. It is also developing India’s first mRNA vaccine for the novel coronavirus using its in-house developed mRNA platform. 

IITs Join Hands With Testbook For 360° Job Preparation Program

 

Testbook.com, India’s leading government job preparation Ed-tech platform presents a 360-degree “Skilled Campus Program” for students. It is one of a kind program with wide-ranging offerings that include a FREE Plan for 1 year and is designed to equip Colleges & Universities to efficiently prepare their students for the most in-demand jobs. To name a few of the 50+ colleges including IIT Madras, IIT Roorkee, IIT Ropar, NIT Jamshedpur, etc. are using “Skilled Campus Program” to prepare their students for placements and jobs.

This Ed-tech giant is turning India's examination preparation landscape for public sector jobs into a tech-driven and automated system where students can learn at their own pace.  The company has recently signed MoUs with India’s top educational institutions across India to impart professional skills training for securing high-paying jobs.

Ashutosh Kumar, Founder, and CEO, Testbook.com, said "We are excited to introduce Testbook’s unique 360-degree Skilled Campus Program that is specially designed for students for their professional skill development and training. Intending to make India more tech-driven, we are focusing on reaching out to as many educational institutes in the country. Through this, over 80k students have benefited till now.”

For job preparation, the company is partnering with big giants and inviting industry experts from top companies like Google, Amazon, Adobe, Oracle, Microsoft, and many more to engage with students and share the latest industry insights to guide them with a clear roadmap for a job. Students will be getting exposure in Software development, Product Management, Data Science, Data Engineering, Data Analytics, Core Engineering, Consulting, Finance, Digital Marketing and HR.

Speaking on the partnership Pranjal Jain - UG Placement Head, IIT Madras, said "Our collaboration with Testbook has been immensely helpful and beneficial to the students. They ensure that the aptitude tests provided are up to the standards of the students at the institute and provide a plethora of study material for students to prepare from. Most importantly, they provide a detailed analysis of the performance on an individual basis as well as an institute level which allows students to target achieving new heights with each attempt. "

Based on 8 pillars that are required for 360° job preparation for college students, the Skilled Campus Program would provide internships & job opportunities, skills training, mentorship from Industry Experts, aptitude preparation, technical subject preparation, hands-on projects, GD/PI Preparation, periodic tests and assessments. It covers sectors like tech, product, and marketing, business operations, content, design, video editing, HR and many more. It also provides live tests focusing on placement preparation with performance analytics, benchmarking and in-depth reports to universities about their students. Moreover, Testbook also provides “Testbook Pass” to students to prepare for public and as well as private-sector jobs for campus placements and recruitments exams across Engineering, Civil Services, Banking & Insurance, Railways, Defence, Teaching etc.

About testbook.com

Testbook.com, incorporated in 2014 by four alumni from IIT Bombay, Ashutosh Kumar, Manoj Munna, Praveen Agrawal, and Narendra Agrawal, is an Ed-tech on a mission to reshape the process of how students prepare online for competitive examinations in India. A market leader in the $5 billion examination-preparation industry in India, the company provides an innovation-driven, online learning and assessment platform that has been instrumental in providing a full-stack portal to prepare for public-sector employment from anywhere in the country.

Testbook.com serves more than 90 million applicants who vie for a fraction of available jobs with a success rate of 7% as compared to the national average of less than 1%. It has produced more than 38, 000 selections during the past 3 years. It has 15 million registered users and 700k+ active paid subscribers through the country who are utilizing the services to crack more than 250 central and state government examinations that are being conducted online.

Fynd Academy's August’21 Batch Is Set To Transform Freshers Into Experienced Coders

* Reliance-backed omnichannel platform Fynd is back with its training program designed for freshers, to grasp practical coding knowledge.

Fynd, Reliance-backed omnichannel platform is on the lookout for newly graduated engineers for the second batch of Fynd Academy. After successfully training 40+ engineers during the first batch of Fynd Academy & finally employing 12 of them as full-time employees of their core team, Fynd is back with the second batch starting from August 2021.

"The coding that people learn in engineering colleges doesn't directly translate to practical use. With Fynd Academy, we expose freshers to market expectations, help them up-skill and then employ them at the end of the program" said Farooq Adam, co-founder of Fynd.

The curriculum set by senior software engineers is a healthy mix of the latest technology, stack at Fynd, and the core principles of problem-solving with creative code. After getting a positive response during the first batch, Fynd Academy's second session is now looking to train & employ 100+ junior engineers in the August'21 session. A promising prospect for people looking to interact and learn from industry experts who have seen technology & market demand evolve in the past decade.

Fynd Academy sessions are carefully spread out into 10 weeks of training. The students who successfully enroll in the program get a stipend, practical coding experience, and a great opportunity to join Fynd's engineering team as full-term employees, at the end of the course. 

The academy is also open to experienced professionals that are looking to take a leap into the world of coding or wish to learn a fresh new stack.

About Fynd:

Fynd is a leading omnichannel platform, creating a thriving ecosystem for retail businesses to grow and expand market influence. Keeping technology at the core of operations, Fynd is adept at understanding the needs & expectations of the end consumer, to create one-of-a-kind solutions that simplify the lives of both consumers and businesses.

HyFun Foods Donates 22,500 Kgs Of Ready To Cook Potato Cubes To Akshaya Patra Foundation's Covid-19 Relief – Donate Meal project

Key Highlights:

HyFun Foods donates 22,500 kgs of ready-to-cook Potato Cubes to Akshaya Patra Foundation's 'Donate Meal' project.

The potato cubes will be directly delivered across the foundation's kitchens in Delhi, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, and Hyderabad by HyFun Foods using its supply chain network.

HyFun Foods, one of India's largest producers, exporters, and retailers of premium-quality frozen potato products, has recently joined hands with the Akshaya Patra Foundation, one of India's renowned non-profit organizations; to donate 22,500 kgs of ready to cook Potato Cubes to their 'Donate Meal' project in Delhi, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad. With this initiative, HyFun Foods aims to provide meals to the marginalized and low-income segment of society. 

The Covid-19 pandemic-induced lockdown has weighed heavily on the poor and daily wage laborers. They faced a shortage of food and essential supplies that created a lot of distress for them. To lend a helping hand, this is an endeavour by HyFun Foods to provide food to the daily wage workers, migrant laborers, construction site workers, and people at old age homes and night shelters.

Speaking on the initiative, Mr. Haresh Karamchandani, Managing Director & CEO, HyFun Foods, said, "During these challenging times, it is our responsibility to extend a helping hand to those in need. We are humbled to associate with Akshaya Patra Foundation's noble cause and lend our support to a larger section of society. We are making sure that only good and safe food reaches them. The potato cubes we are providing are absolutely fresh and completely free from preservatives. I am sure that this collaboration will help provide meals for those who cannot afford them in the prevailing situation. We look forward to a long association and are hopeful to provide our continued support to such causes." 

Mr. Sundeep Talwar, CMO, Akshaya Patra says, "The strength of this collaboration will lead to the well-being of the underprivileged society at the core of the collective effort. With the sustained and valued support from organizations like HyFun Foods, we aim to provide nutritional meals to feed the needy. Such partnerships in our social sector are the need of the hour."

Mr. Punit Shukla, General Manager Human Resources, HyFun Foods, "As part of the MoU, the partnership with Akshaya Patra Foundation will be an additional step to provide quality meals to those in need. At HyFun Foods, we believe that an organization can survive, sustain its growth, and contribute to society only if it is consistently aligned to its core values and social responsibilities. We are happy to make our contribution to support the Akshaya Patra Foundation's vision of eradicating hunger." 

He further added, “It has been difficult for the marginalized and low-income segment of society to feed themselves and their families. By associating with this cause, HyFun Foods is hopeful of making a significant impact on society and will strive hard to reach communities in dire need of help and ensure that they are well provided with food even in economic uncertainty.”

About HyFun Foods

HyFun Foods is a unit of M/s. Asandas & Sons Private Limited, a success story traversing over six decades in potato trading, based in Mehsana (near Ahmedabad), Gujarat. Today it is one of the largest producers and exporters of premium-quality frozen potato products. Established in 2015, HyFun Foods excels in offering a wide variety of delicious and convenient snacking solutions, comprising a range of globally cherished French Fries and delicious potato specialties.

The other delicacies from HyFun include different types of patties, hash brown, wedges, nuggets, and much more. Within five years, the company has grown its presence in more than 125 cities and has an export network spread across more than 15 countries, with a firm hold in the South-East Asian region. 

HyFun works on the seed-to-shelf model and looks after everything in-house, from seed multiplication to contract farming, storing, processing of potatoes and finally delivering the best ready to cook snacks to the last mile with its owned supply chain model. The company has contracts with over 2500 farmers and procures potatoes directly from farmers through their contract farming model. This model ensures a reliable supply of quality raw material, and in return, the farmers benefit through an assured income. The Government of India's dossier 'Putting Farmers First,' released in December 2020, also recognized HyFun's contribution to increasing wages of the farming fraternity. 

About The Akshaya Patra Foundation

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation headquartered in Bengaluru, India, which strives to address issues like hunger and malnutrition in the country. By implementing the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in Government and Government-aided schools, Akshaya Patra aims to fight hunger and at the same time, bring children to school. Since 2000, Akshaya Patra has worked towards reaching out to children with wholesome food on every single school day. The Foundation is continuously leveraging technology to cater to millions of children. Its state-of-the-art kitchens have become a subject of study and attract curious visitors from around the world.

In partnership with the Government of India and various State Governments, and the inestimable support of many philanthropic donors and well-wishers, Akshaya Patra has grown from humble beginnings serving just 1,500 school children across five schools to becoming the world’s largest (not-for-profit run) mid-day meal programme, serving wholesome food to over 1.8 million children from 19,039 schools across 12 states & 2 union territories in India. The unravelling of Covid- 19 pandemic sent shockwaves through the globe due to the unpreparedness that most governments found themselves in.  But to TAPF it presented an opportunity to save lives, feed the hungry and mitigate miseries of distressed millions. The foundation began Food Relief Efforts by delivering freshly cooked meals or dry rations to communities in need. This is being done through Akshaya Patra’s network of centralised kitchens. Till date 12.8cr meals are served from March 2020.

Consumer Tech Businesses In India: Opportunities And Challenges

The emerging internet economy is fundamentally changing the way consumers and businesses interact with each other. The implications of this megatrend are enormous. It is disrupting traditional businesses in more ways than one. A new crop of digital-native, mobile-first companies is emerging and scaling up at warp speed, enabled by a world-class, frictionless payments ecosystem. In general, there can be large value creation opportunities in disruptive, technology-enabled, emerging business models, and these will become a larger part of the market over the next 5-10 years. Given the heterogeneous nature of business models, there will be large winners and losers.

Even as intangible assets such as a loyal customer base, innovative products, and powerful networks are becoming the primary forms of economic value, traditional accounting constructs do not capture these elements and understate the magnitude of these investments.

The basic valuation principle does not change; the value of any business is the present value of its future cashflows. These are early days for consumer internet companies. Many of these new businesses are ‘investing’ in habit-formation (investment in customer acquisition and superior experience), which are expensed and hence the losses. What really matters is the long-term cash flow generation potential; near-term accounting losses have less meaning. Therefore, a thoughtful, bottom-up buildout of future cash flows is of paramount consideration. We are focused on investing in consumer tech companies that dominate their industry niche while building deep competitive advantages, have positive and improving unit economics, serve a large and growing market, and are run by credible management teams.