SIDBI Launches 5th Phase Of Setting Up 300 Swavalamban Silai Schools To Promote Women Entrepreneurship In villages

~Gives 10X power to entrepreneurial pursuit on the occasion of 76th Independence Day~

Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), the Principal Financial Institution engaged in the promotion, financing and development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)  under its flagship initiative Mission Swavalamban, Atma Nirbhar Bharat and Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav in partnership with Usha International Limited (UIL) has launched, on independence day,  the fifth phase of setting up of 300 Swavalamban Silai Schools across 10 districts of 6 States / Union Territory viz. Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Goa, Puducherry, Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh with an objective to empower women making them independent while pursuing entrepreneurship culture (Udyam Se Azadi) and evolve as Homepreneurs. The virtual launch of the program was flagged off virtually from Puducherry by CMD, SIDBI, in the attendance of around 25 aspirational homepreneurs. 

On this occasion Shri Sivasubramanian Ramann, CMD, SIDBI said, “As we celebrate 76th year of independence with the theme of  ‘Udyam Se Aazadi” by promoting women entrepreneurship, artisans and large-scale livelihood promotion, SIDBI is glad to announce that through this joint initiative, till now,  2700 Swavalamban Silai Schools have been set-up covering 2618 villages, 198 blocks, 48 districts across 17 states (viz. UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh & North-East (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Tripura & Mizoram) of country. It’s a matter of proud that they contributed to the national mission “Har Ghar Tiranga” by making 75000 flags which were distributed among 750 villages. “ 

Earlier these homepreneurs supported covid fight by making around 1.5 lakh masks in 7 states. 160 silai women entrepreneurs have since onboarded the GEMS portal and few of them also stepped up to a level of participating in exhibitions with their products. Taking the momentum ahead, SIDBI aims towards reaching 5,000 such schools across India and further stepping up them to take up bigger roles in readymade garment sector. 

Under this program, aspiring women entrepreneurs are multi skilled in stitching, maintenance & repairing of sewing machine along with life skills & tenets of entrepreneurship. These are done by expert trainers of UIL. The selection, capacity building & setting up by homepreneurs is well laid down process. The participants start their journey by unpacking the sewing machine box, assembling it, again dismantling & assembling. The women successfully completing the training program are provided sewing machine, training kit, machine manual, design book, certificate and a Swavalamban Silai School signage board. This initiative is not only making them independent and role models for their family but infuse entrepreneurship culture as also in turn they become master trainer and then teach on an average ten more women which would create a multiplier/ripple effect.

In the first four phases of the initiative, 2700 homepreneurs are functional and have enrolled over 27000+ learners under them leading to deepening of theme of entrepreneurship.  Each homepreneur acts as trainers for aspirants, designs & sells stitched garments as also provide repair services. The initiative has touched the bottom of the pyramid women and deprived section of the society. Out of these 2700 Homepreneurs, around 40% women fall under Other Backward Class category while around 39% women belong to Scheduled Cast/Scheduled Tribe category. Overall, 60% of these women who have set up Silai Schools hail from Below the Poverty Line category. Cumulative income of these 2700 women has been recorded at Rs.12.47 Cr during the period of 3 years through stitching job-work, learners’ fee & sewing machine repair. Around 40-45% of these homepreneurs are earning around Rs. 3000-3500/month on an average.  The next level of their aspiration to assimilate embroidery & fashion designing is being worked upon jointly by SIDBI & Usha. 

About SIDBI

SIDBI is the principal financial institution set up under an Act of Parliament for promotion, financing and development of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector and for coordination of functions of institutions engaged in similar activities. Over the years, SIDBI has been instrumental in taking up various initiatives for the development of the MSME sector through credit and more importantly, credit plus activities.

Zolve Bolsters Leadership Team With Talent Acquisition Across India And US; Appoints Douglas T Hamilton As Chief Compliance Officer

* The startup is looking for multiple professionals to join its Customer Support, Product, Credit, and Marketing teams

* New appointments will be made in India and the US

As part of its strategic expansion plan, Zolve, India’s first neobank providing cross-border financial services, is on a hiring spree, seeking talent for multiple positions across teams in India and the United States.

The startup is currently looking for innovative and dynamic professionals to fill up the roles of Customer Support Head; Customer Support Agents; Senior Product Analyst; Product Manager, Fraud & Risk; Head, Credit & Risk; and Collections Lead. Zolve is also seeking candidates to take up Marketing and Credit Risk Data Science roles.

The startup has recently appointed Douglas T Hamilton as its Chief Compliance Officer. With more than two decades of professional experience, Hamilton will play a key role in strengthening compliance and contributing to Zolve’s business growth and expansion. He was previously employed with Gemini Constellation (sister concern of Gemini Trust, New York) as Director, Consumer Lending Compliance, and has also worked and led teams at BlockRize, Petal Card, and American Express. A management graduate from SC Johnson School of Management, Cornell University, New York, Hamilton specializes in consumer lending laws and compliance, risk management, and credit analysis.

“I am excited to be joining a highly dynamic and vibrant team at Zolve, which is at the cusp of a new chapter in its journey of growth and innovation. Compliance is an integral part of the financial ecosystem and I look forward to applying my expertise and learning in this area to contribute to the company’s vision of providing hassle-free financial services to global citizens,” said Douglas T Hamilton, commenting on his appointment.

Throwing light on the company’s hiring plans and recent appointments, Mr. Raghunandan G, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Zolve, said, “Being a dynamic solutions and services provider in the FinTech space, Zolve is always on the lookout for talented and dynamic professionals. We are currently looking for candidates to join our teams in the US and India. Douglas T Hamilton’s recent appointment as Chief Compliance Officer has further strengthened our core team. We welcome him onboard and are looking forward to having more new colleagues in the coming days and months.” 

In another strategic appointment, Zolve had last month onboarded Anandapadmanabhan Ramabhadran from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to drive business and growth.

A Friend Indeed: India's First Senior Companionship Start-Up For Intergenerational Friendships Launches Today

* The start-up, which is designed to pair senior citizens with young graduates to form meaningful friendships, has received a seed investment from Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, Mr. Ratan Tata

Goodfellows, a young start-up that provides authentic meaningful companionship to seniors through young, educated graduates that are vetted intensely for empathy and emotional intelligence, was launched today in the presence of Mr. Ratan Tata as well as some noteworthy youth icons including Shriya Pilgaonkar, Artist, Viraj Ghelani, Content Creator who celebrated the launch of Goodfellows with their grandparents and with existing “Grandpals” who have subscribed to the service.

Commenting on the investment, Mr. Ratan N. Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons said “The bonds between the two generations created by Goodfellows are very meaningful and are helping to address an important social issue In India. I hope the investment helps the young team at Goodfellows grow.”

Over the past 6 months, “Goodfellows” has taken the time to complete a successful beta and will now be available in Mumbai with Pune, Chennai and Bangalore as the next target cities. During the beta testing phase, Goodfellows received a positive response with over 800 applications from young graduates looking to be employed at Goodfellows of which a shortlisted cohort of 20 provided companionship to the elderly in Mumbai. Senior citizens can avail the services by signing-up on thegoodfellows.in or can give a missed call at +91 8779524307 or check out their Instagram handle.

According to the team, it has been a challenging but rewarding task to ensure that the “Goodfellows” bond with their Grandpals in an authentic and meaningful way and not just cosmetically. This requires several rounds of vetting and some in-house psychometric tests to choose the best graduates.

In terms of services offered, a Goodfellow does whatever a grandkid would do. There are 15 million elderlies in India living alone, either due to loss of a partner, or families moving away for unavoidable work reasons. While many of them have caregivers or start-ups for utilitarian needs such as ecommerce, the issue of loneliness or lack of company has been the primary reason for deteriorating mental and physical health.

The founder, Mr. Shantanu Naidu, General Manager in the office of Mr. Tata said “The start-up emphasises that companionship means different things to different people. To some it may mean watching a movie, narrating stories from the past, going on a walk or quiet company sitting around doing nothing together, and we are here to accommodate it all. In its beta phase, we discovered how organically the Grandpals bonded with the Goodfellows. Mr. Tata’s investment in our venture further is a huge source of encouragement to our dedication to this concept.”

In addition to this, Goodfellows also hosts monthly events curated to the enjoyment and engagement of the Grandpals who participate with their Goodfellows, making the bond deeper and enjoyable in a different environment. This allows the Grandpals to meet each other as well as more young graduates, building a sense of community.

The business model of Goodfellows is a freemium subscription model. The first month is free with only the goal of having the Grandpal experience this service, since it’s hard to understand the concept without actually going through it. The second month onward is a small subscription fee that has been decided based on the limited affordability of pensioners. The fee is in place for two important reasons:

The Goodfellows have been vetted for empathy and have an affinity towards the elderlies, but like any other graduate, they would like to be secure about their finances and do their best for the seniors. To give them dignified, respectable salaries for choosing this profession, this is a paid service. This also ensures that chosen goodfellows are retained, groomed and have a career ladder while giving back to society.

A subscription model guarantees that when the seniors bond with the goodfellows, we do not keep rotating the graduate visiting them since that does not allow enough time or emotional attention to form an authentic and real bond. When we make a friend we want to see the same friend often. A new person every time will prevent this from happening.

Several non-profit models in this space have failed since volunteering happens as per the availability of volunteers and no one invests enough time with one senior to form an authentic bond. Once the desire is over, volunteers move away which impacts seniors gravely.

Goodfellows offers short term internships as well as employment to graduates looking to find a job that allows them to apply their educational background in this space while having a sense of purpose or fulfilment from the work that they do. These graduates are given the autonomy to ideate and create and make the company their own. For example Ketki from Sophia College has been instrumental in refining the psychometric testing in order to “mine” more numbers of empathetic graduates into the organisation based on psychological evidence.

The major percentage of funds from investors are currently geared towards scaling up the goodfellow human capital, which is a slow process since empathy cannot be vetted quickly or by the traditional recruiting process.

In the near future, Goodfellows will offer travel companions for seniors holding back from making trips due to lack of security or company, and also plans to extend its services to the handicap community facing similar or more challenges.

Syrma SGS Technology IPO Subscribed 92% On Day 2; The Retail Segment Booked 1.56 Times

The Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Syrma SGS Technology, one of the fastest growing Indian headquartered providers of electronic design and manufacturing services for global & domestic Original Design and equipment manufacturers (ODMs and OEMs), received bids of 2,62,69,148 shares against the offered 2,85,63,816 equity shares, at a price band of Rs 209-220, according to the data available on the stock exchanges. Overall the issue was subscribed up to 92% on the Second day of bidding.

The Retail Investors portion was subscribed 1,56 times. The reserved portion of non-institutional investors witnessed a subscription of 0.74 times. The issue kicked off for subscription on Friday, August 12, and will be open till Thursday, August 18.

The IPO consists of a fresh issue of equity shares aggregating to Rs 766 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 3,369,360 equity shares.

Syrma SGS Technology Limited raised Rs 252 crore from anchor investors yesterday ahead of its initial share sale. The company aims to raise Rs 840 crore through its IPO.

KR Choksey, Canara Bank Securities, and Hem Securities have given recommendations for a Subscribe rating to the issue.

According to brokerages, expanding the scope of the EMS sector, combined with the company's diverse product portfolio, is ideal for capitalizing on the company's growth opportunity. It has grown at a CAGR of 20.8% between FY20 and FY22, owing to strong demand traction across the industries it serves and a focus on innovation.

The company is diverse, with a constantly evolving and expanding product portfolio and service offerings catering to customers in a variety of industries, and is supported by strong R&D capabilities. Furthermore, the company has established relationships with marquee customers from various countries, as well as cutting-edge manufacturing capabilities backed by a global supplier network, with a focus on vertical integration.

Dam Capital Advisors Limited, ICICI Securities Limited, and IIFL Securities Limited are the book running lead managers to the issue, and Link Intime India Private Limited is the registrar of the Issue.

Company Information

Promoted and led by Sandeep Tandon and Jasbir Singh Gujral, Syrma SGS, is a technology-focused engineering and design company engaged in turnkey electronics manufacturing services (“EMS”) that specializes in precision manufacturing.

Aura Air Is Now Available Pan-India On The Amazon Online Website

* Aura Air air-Purifiers, clinically certified for their effectiveness against the SARS-CoV-2  and Influenza A virus is now available pan India via Amazon

Aura Air, a publicly listed company with the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE), is now made their products available on Amazon India for individuals to buy the home variant of Aura Air and Aura Air Mini. Aura Air air-purifiers detect, capture, and kill 99.9% of viruses, bacteria, mold and can remove airborne particles as small as 0.3 microns, including allergens and viruses. These IoT-enabled devices connect to a mobile phone and deliver real-time updates on the overall indoor and outdoor Air Quality Index (AQI) based on VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds), CO2 (Carbon Dioxide), CO (Carbon Monoxide), and fine particulate matter levels.

Aura Air purifiers have successfully cleared clinical trials confirming their effectiveness against the Corona virus in multiple studies conducted at Sheba Medical Center & Innovate Bioanalysis Lab, California and the results have been published in the world Journal of Surgery and Surgical Research. Aura Air is also in the process of getting an FDA (Food and Drug Administration), USA approval. More recently a study done using Aura Air Devices on Influenza A was also published citing an efficacy of 99.998%.

The flagship product of Aura Air that can be placed in spaces upto 600 SQFT rooms, offices, theatres and pretty much any indoor space is priced at ?37,500+GST. Aura for Business (Enterprise solution) is available from a starting price of ?48,500+GST. Aura Mini is available for ?13,000.

Aura Air is currently sold in 87 countries and used by marquee brands including the Sheraton, Hilton, CBRE, Subway, Coca-cola, and Audi among others. The Indian Air Purifier Market stood at over $85 million in FY21 and is projected to cross over $500 million by FY27.

“We can control what we eat and drink, but breathing is constant and indoor air is 5 times more polluted than outdoor air, we all have the right to breathe clean air while we are indoors where we spend over 90% of our time. Aura Air devices have been extremely successful in filtering the COVID-19 virus along with PM 2.5, PM 10 and this is validated in India by NABL accredited laboratories. With the sudden increase in number of air-borne infections, we decided to enlist our devices on Amazon so that it is easily accessible to all. Now with offices, theatres and other public spaces at full capacity, individuals will be able to purchase their Aura Air devices at the click of a button!” said Bharadwaj PV, Managing Director of Aura Air India

Founded in 2018 by Eldar Shnaiderman and Aviad Shnaiderman, Aura Air products use Patent Pending technology and are IOT based smart devices that can be integrated with Alexa and Google Assistant.

The Aura Air device helps to monitor indoor and outdoor air quality in real-time through its inbuilt sensors. The smart device filters and disinfects air through four stages:

Pre-filter: Filtering the big particles like dust, pollen, animal hair

HEPA Ray filter®: The patent pending ray filter consists of 3 unique antibacterial layers

Sterionizer: Creating pure air with patented technology

UVC: Kills bacteria, viruses, and parasites 

ACC Launches #BuildingIndia Campaign Commemorating India’s 75 Years Of Independence

* Campaign helps citizens relive company’s contribution to some of India’s most iconic structures built since 1936.

* Launched a series of byte-sized short films on the occasion of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.

Over 8 decades separate, the dates of commissioning of the Marine Drive in Mumbai  and the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge in Hyderabad, ranked among the country’s iconic and picture-perfect landmarks today, but one factor unites the two – ACC, India’s 1st cement maker with nation building in its veins and sustainability and innovation as its central ethos.

These two landmark structures are just among the many that ACC has been involved in building. Started in 1936, ACC  has served India’s infrastructure with its products being the backbone of a large number of India’s most visible and prominent landmarks. And on the occasion of India’s 75 years of Independence Day celebrations, the company launched a campaign, #BuildingIndia for the citizens to relive those iconic architectural wonders that have been built with ACC’s products - wonders built as early as 1936 to many wonders of today. The company released a series of byte-sized short films on the occasion celebrating ACC’s contribution to nation building .

Just as a great nation builds enduring legacies, ACC celebrates some of the iconic landmarks that the nation has built and are standing the test of time— landmarks that have proudly been built with ACC’s innovative products, expertise and guidance. These landmarks are setting the bar higher for ACC to perform better by the day. They include flyovers, bridges, dams, expressways and more.

Mr. Sridhar Balakrishnan, MD & CEO, ACC Ltd., said: “ACC’s decades-old culture is being directly involved in nation building and set up structures that define and enable India’s progress. As a responsible corporate, we will continue #BuildingIndia for a long-lasting future, with passion in our hearts and innovation in our veins.”

The company, one of India’s leading makers of ready-mix concrete and green cement, is at the heart of iconic landmarks—be it the Bhakra Nangal Dam that was built in 1960, to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. Thus for over 80 years, ACC has not only been synonymous with cement, it has also established its reputation as a pioneer organisation that consistently sets new benchmarks in research and innovative product development.

About ACC:

ACC Limited is one of India’s leading producers of cement and ready-mix concrete and is a part of the Holcim Group. It has over 6,400 employees, 17 cement manufacturing sites, 80 concrete plants and a nationwide network of over 50,000 channel partners to serve its customers. With a world-class R&D centre in Mumbai, the quality of ACC’s products and services, as well as its commitment to technological development, make it a preferred brand in building materials. ACC was ranked among the Top 2 companies in Business Today's "Best Companies To Work For" Survey in the Construction and Infrastructure sector. Established in 1936, ACC is counted among the country’s 'Most Sustainable Companies' and is recognised for its best practices in environment management and corporate citizenship. With sustainability at the core of its strategy, ACC is the first Indian Cement Company to sign the Net Zero Pledge with Science Based Targets.

DCB Remit: Dhamakedar Festive Offer Send Money Abroad At A Competitive Rate

·         Resident Indians can transfer funds in six currencies to over 20 countries

using DCB Remit & receive up to 15 paise off per rupee

·         Transfer limit: US$100,000 for DCB Bank customers; US$25,000 for non-DCB Bank customers

DCB Bank will help customers gift their siblings abroad a little extra with a special offer to transfer funds before 31st August 2022 and receive up to 15 paise off per Rupee.

Resident Indians can use DCB Remit online service to send money via net banking to the designated countries from any bank account in India. Any citizen can seamlessly transfer funds to any person who may have travelled abroad for business or leisure. DCB Remit makes money transfers quicker, secure, transparent and cost-efficient too.

For remittances of 3,000 to 10,000 in foreign currency, a DCB Remit user can use Code: DCBFEST10. For more than 10,000 in foreign currency, use Code: DCBFEST15. Funds can be transferred in six currencies – US$, AUS$, GBP, SGD, CAD and the Euro.

The DCB Remit service can be availed of by registering and transferring up to US$100,000 for DCB Bank customers and US$25,000 for non-DCB Bank customers in each financial year.

Resident Indians can avail the services of DCB Remit without maintaining an account with DCB Bank. They only need to complete the one-time registration and send money abroad through DCB Remit. Simply log on to www.dcbremit.com to send money to an overseas bank account. After adding the beneficiary details and instructions to transfer funds in Indian rupees, DCB Bank will convert the amount into the required foreign currency and credit it to the beneficiary’s overseas account.

The money transfer can be tracked in real-time and even stopped while in process in the event of an unforeseen situation.

About DCB Bank

DCB Bank is a new generation private sector bank with 405 branches (as on 30th June 2022) across India. A scheduled commercial bank regulated by the Reserve Bank of India, it is professionally managed and governed. DCB Bank has contemporary technology and infrastructure, including state-of-the-art internet banking for personal as well as business banking customers. DCB Bank’s business segments comprise Retail, micro-SME, SME, mid-Corporate, Agriculture, Commodities, Government, Public Sector, Indian Banks, Co-operative Banks and Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFCs). DCB Bank has approximately one million customers.