Now, Make Your Investments Easy With DCB Eazybee Globally

~ New online platform allows mutual fund investment anytime, anywhere ~

While technology has made it convenient to invest in various asset classes, it is not always easy to keep track of finances in today’s fast-paced world.

This is where DCB Bank’s Eazybee – an online mutual fund platform – helps investors monitor and control their mutual fund investment anytime and anywhere. It makes investing in diverse mutual funds quick and seamless, facilitates automatic payments, and provides the option to invest, redeem or switch instantly, all without visiting the bank branch.

DCB EazyBee is a paperless and user-friendly platform that is accessible via desktop and mobile devices. This means one can invest from anywhere in the world.

The online platform comes with several attractive features. These include no registration fees and transaction charges; easy mutual funds selection option to invest in well-known AMCs; access to risk ratings and factsheets of all the funds; online uploading of KYC documents; and facility to download NSDL consolidated account statement, among others.

Besides, investors can add up to five savings accounts including DCB Bank to DCB Eazybee, and invest through these. They will also have access to information on Morningstar© rated funds and indicative capital gains on their mutual fund investments.

About DCB Bank

DCB Bank is a new generation private sector bank with 405 branches (as on 30th June 2022) across India. It is 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 are Retail, micro-SME, SME, mid-Corporate, Agriculture, Commodities, Government, Public Sector, Indian Banks, Co-operative Banks and Non Banking Finance Companies (NBFC). DCB Bank has approximately one million  customers.

For more details,  visit www.dcbbank.com

ISTE To Launch “National Employability Assessment Test & Industry Readiness Program” For Diploma Engineers Through NEATmet

* Signed MoU with CALNESTOR Knowledge Solutions aiming at making Diploma Engineers and entry level Professionals industry-ready  

Indian Society for Technical Education (ISTE), the leading national professional society for technical education, announced the launch of a comprehensive skill development and assessment program for Diploma level Engineers and entry level professionals – “National Employability Assessment Test & Industry Readiness Program” through NEATmet (https://www.neatmet.com/short/dengp).  

In addition to various other modules, the program includes a computer-based Exam conducted from 200+ certified exam venues, located in 100+ cities across 30+ States and Union Territories of India.  

The Preparatory modules include Interactive Courses/Study Materials, Mock Tests, Strategic Guidance and Industry Masterclasses. It also includes complementary modules for upskilling of the aspiring candidates, aimed at preparing them for the transition to a corporate environment aided by Personality Development, Soft Skills and Life Skills Enhancement Modules curated by various upskilling partners under National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). These modules will also include basic IT Skills Enhancement, Career counseling and Resume-building services. 

Speaking on the launch of this comprehensive program, Prof. P. K. Desai, President of Indian Society for Technical Education (ISTE), stated, “We are happy to be partnering with CALNESTOR for conducting the National Employability Assessment Test, which will create a pool of certified industry-ready engineers in the country. Together with CALNESTOR, our aim is to provide the best framework for diploma engineers and professionals in India, resulting in significant benefits for the candidates and setting them apart in the highly competitive job market.” 

Speaking on the launch of the program, Mr. S. Boral, Director & CEO of CALNESTOR Knowledge Solutions said, “At CALNESTOR, we identify the potential of job seekers' industry readiness, search talent from Tier I, II, and III cities across India using a multi-tier, multi-layer employability assessment. Simultaneously, we equip the aspiring candidates to make them job-ready through our interactive courseware available within NEATmet as well as through NSDC enlisted upskilling partners, and bridge the gap between employable candidates and potential recruiters using life-long placement assistance through placement partners. NEATmet, driven by CALNESTOR, is the only holistic platform that provides industry-accepted score cards while also preparing students for the test and equipping them with real-world skills for their transition from campus to corporate.” 

Incidentally, India produces more than a million diploma-level engineers every year across various disciplines, out of which a substantial percentage usually go for higher studies, while the rest seek jobs in Tier I, II and III cities across the country. Tier I cities with top-grade institutes have seen a steady output in terms of good candidates, however, a major percentage of them have failed to impress the industrial sector with the lack of tenacity, attitude and the desired skill-sets. While on one-hand, there is no guideline or roadmap available for the passing-out students to be prepared in line with required industrial skill sets to become industry-ready. Indian Industry needs a pool of quality candidates, who have adequate knowledge and competency to be recruited. Moreover, Industries are not always equipped with a proper evaluation team to reach out and ensure standardized & effective hiring across geographies. On the other hand, there is hardly a benchmark available in India to assess the employability of passing out candidates, freshers and experienced professionals. 

The National Employability Assessment and Industry Readiness Program aims to bridge this gap by giving fresh, passing out and final year Diploma Engineering students and entry level professionals an excellent opportunity to get future ready, while at the same time providing them an ideal platform to gain the much-needed extra-edge to stand out from their peers.  

Hero MotoCorp Opens Its First-Ever ‘Xpulse Xperience Centre’ In Bengaluru

Building on its diverse and consistent initiatives to propagate the off-road riding culture in the country, Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters, today inaugurated the first-ever ‘Xpulse Xperience Centre’ in India.

Set up at the Big Rock Dirt Park on the outskirts of Bengaluru, the state-of-the-art Xpulse Xperience Centre with curated biking tracks and infrastructure is designed to provide an unmatched off-road bike training experience to Xpulse 200 4V owners and enthusiasts. Hero MotoCorp will set up more Xpulse Xperience Centres in other cities across the country in a phased manner.

The Xpulse Xperience Centre will have renowned trainers and a well-rounded curriculum focused on building the skills, knowledge and personality required to be an expert off-road biker. At the first center in Bengaluru, participants will have the prized opportunity to be trained by the Indian ace, CS Santosh.

The facility complies with all safety norms as prescribed by the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI), and has designated marshals and the necessary medical infrastructure as per the guidelines.

On the occasion of the inauguration, the company also delivered the first 100 Xpulse 200 4V Rally Edition motorcycles to customers. The first batch of the highly anticipated motorcycle was sold-out within four days of opening the initial booking.

The company will soon re-open the bookings for the motorcycle. Priced at Rs. 1,52,100/- the Xpulse 200 4V Rally Edition will be available for booking through Hero MotoCorp’s online sales platform – eSHOP.

Commenting on the launch, Ranjivjit Singh, Chief Growth Officer, Hero MotoCorp said, “As a pioneer in the adventure biking segment, Hero MotoCorp has consistently put forth products and initiatives that appeal to the adventure-seeking motorcyclists. Built to fulfill the riding passion of avid bikers, the Xpulse Xperience Center embodies the essence of the iconic Hero Xpulse 200 - a thrilling off-road experience. Through these facilities we aim to provide riders an unmatched opportunity to improve their off-roading skills, on the limitless, power-packed performance of the Xpulse 200 4V. Going forward, we plan to set up similar experiential centres in other parts of the country as well.”

The Xpulse Xperience Centre offers three training programs – Basic: Start the Xpulse, Intermediate: Feel the Xpulse, Advanced: Conquer the Xpulse. Spread over varying time durations, the programs will provide riding skills of increasing difficulty levels, depending on the program chosen by the participant.

Participants will be coached on key riding skills like - Off-Road setup, Body Posture, Slalom and Braking, Incline & Decline, Fallen Bike Recovery, Balance Points,  Garage Turns, Brake Slide, Walk the Bike and more.

Interested individuals can find more details, explore the available programs and book slots on the company website www.heromotocorp.com.

Accenture Invests In Hyperspectral Satellite Company Pixxel To Monitor Earth’s Health

Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has made a strategic investment, through Accenture Ventures, in Pixxel, a leader in cutting-edge earth imaging technology. Based in Bangalore with a presence in Los Angeles, Pixxel is building the world’s highest resolution hyperspectral imaging satellite constellation in order to offer industry AI-powered insights that discover, solve, and predict climate issues at a fraction of the cost of traditional satellites.

Pixxel’s satellites can capture images at hundreds of wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum and reveal key data about the health of our planet that is invisible to other satellites. The company’s planned constellation of hyperspectral satellites will reshape how businesses across agriculture, defense, mining, environmental, and other critical industries make decisions on a global level to reduce their environmental impact. The data from Pixxel’s satellites provides 8x more information and 50x better resolution than existing in-market options.

“We continue to take great interest in startups within the burgeoning space industry, which some have forecasted will reach $1 trillion in revenue by the year 2040[1], and Pixxel is a particularly exciting company sitting at the intersection of space technology and sustainability,” said Tom Lounibos, managing director, Accenture Ventures. “Imagine being able to predict a famine before a crop infestation takes over or stop an oil spill before it endangers delicate oceanic biospheres. Pixxel’s hyperspectral imaging technology has the potential to do just that, and in doing so, could help scientists address some of the world’s most pressing challenges to our Earth.”

Pixxel’s first commercial phase satellites are scheduled to be launched in early 2023 along with the commercial sale of its data. With six satellites flown in a sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) around a 550 km altitude, Pixxel’s hyperspectral constellation will be able to cover any point on the globe every 48 hours. With even more satellites scheduled to launch in late 2023, Pixxel will achieve daily global coverage by early 2024. The learnings from the data beamed down by this constellation will provide a global scale perspective of planetary-scale ecosystems and biospheres that will be used to create an AI-informed analysis platform and a digital twin of the earth.

“Our investment in Pixxel reflects our ongoing and active engagement with the promising startup ecosystem in India and more such engagements are key for creating solutions that drive real world impact,” said Mahesh Zurale, senior managing director, lead – Advanced Technology Centers in India, Accenture. “With so many aspects of our daily lives being increasingly impacted by climate and sustainability issues, we believe Pixxel’s Earth Health Monitoring can play a crucial role by enabling global organizations to detect potentially damaging events early on and help prevent them.”

Pixxel is the latest company to join Accenture Ventures’ Project Spotlight, an engagement and investment program focused on investing in companies that create or apply disruptive enterprise technologies. In addition to funding, Project Spotlight connects emerging technology software startups with the Global 2000 to fill strategic innovation gaps, and offers extensive access to Accenture’s domain expertise and enterprise clients, helping startups harness human creativity and deliver on the promise of their technology.

“We’re excited to join Accenture’s Project Spotlight and collaborate with Accenture’s innovation labs, business and industry experts, and powerful clients and ecosystem partners across aerospace, science, technology and sustainability,” said Pixxel CEO and co-founder Awais Ahmed. “Accenture’s global reach and support will help accelerate our ambitious mission to create a health monitor for the Earth and leverage our technology to address some of the most pressing issues facing our planet.”

Accenture’s investment in Pixxel follows a $25 million Series A funding round the company announced in March 2022 and the launch of their first satellite as part of SpaceX’s April Transporter-4 payload. To date, more than 50 customers have signed pre-launch agreements with Pixxel from industries spanning agriculture, oil and gas, mining, and climate sectors.

Terms of the investment were not disclosed.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Technology and Operations services and Accenture Song — all powered by the world’s largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 710,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at accenture.com.

About Pixxel

Pixxel is building a health monitor for the planet by building and launching the world’s highest resolution hyperspectral imaging satellites. Co-founded by then 20 year olds Awais Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal in 2019, Pixxel has worked with notable organizations such as the Indian Space Research Organization, NASA JPL, and SpaceX among space stalwarts. Pixxel is backed by Lightspeed, Radical Ventures, Relativity's Jordan Noone, Seraphim Capital, Ryan Johnson, Blume Ventures, Sparta LLC, growX ventures, Inventus Capital, and Omnivore VC among others. For more information visit www.pixxel.space or follow Pixxel on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Amazon India Strengthens Its Infrastructure Footprint In Pune Ahead Of The Festive Season

* Launches a new Sort Center and a new Delivery Station to support more than 1.3 lakh sellers in Maharashtra

Amazon India today announced the expansion of its sortation and delivery network in Pune, Maharashtra in preparation for the upcoming festive season. With this expansion, Amazon India will now have 6 Sort Centers with more than 5 lakh square feet of sortation area, and close to 215 Amazon and partner delivery stations in Maharashtra. This infrastructural expansion will support more than 1.3 lakh sellers in the state to reach a larger customer base, while offering a wider selection of products and faster deliveries this festive season.  The newly launched Sort Center is spread across 1.25 lakh square feet facilitating connection of packages to delivery stations of the city, and other parts of Maharashtra enabling fast deliveries across the state.

“Maharashtra has always been an important State for us, and this expansion reiterates our commitment to strengthen the local economy. This infrastructure advancement will support more than 1.3 lakh sellers in the state, and also create hundreds of work opportunities, including flexible earning opportunities, as we continue our long-term investment in infrastructure and technology,” said Abhinav Singh, Director, Customer Fulfilment, Supply Chain and Global Speciality Fulfilment, Amazon India.

Sort Centers are central to Amazon India’s logistics network. They use state of the art technology and automation to help sort and deliver packages to Amazon delivery stations across the country. The sortation happens based on the location and mode of transportation of the package to customers. The new sort center in Pune is equipped with technology such as Sort Slides that allow fast manual sortation of packages. This expanded network helps increase the speed of transporting packages for customers and sellers across Maharashtra.

The company further announced the expansion of its delivery network in Pune, with a new delivery station which spans across 15,000 square feet. This station will enable Amazon India to strengthen its last-mile delivery network and ensure faster deliveries across the city of Pune and in and in areas such as Jambhulwadi, Katraj, Askarwadi, Yewalewadi, Bibwewadi among others. Delivery stations are the starting point for Amazon India’s ‘last-mile delivery’ in which ordered products are consolidated from fulfillment centers and sortation centers and delivered to the doorstep of customers in the surrounding area.

With these additional investments in Maharashtra, Amazon will create diverse work opportunities in the state. These opportunities will be in roles ranging from workplace health and safety, station managers, sorters, process associates, and Amazon Flex delivery partners who work collaboratively to help deliver products.

Mr. Uday Samant, Minister for Industries, Government of Maharashtra said: “The state has always encouraged infrastructure development and job creation for locals. The continued investment of Amazon India and other ecommerce companies will further help MSMEs from the state to expand their footprint, increase local job opportunities and contribute to the growth of the local economy.”

Over the years, Amazon India has invested in deepening its presence in Maharashtra with 6 Sort Centers in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur that connect other parts of eastern Maharashtra and western Madhya Pradesh. Amazon’s delivery network ensures direct delivery presence in more than 1000 pin codes across the region. Amazon India delivers to all 100% of the serviceable pin codes across the country, with over 97% pin codes now able to receive their deliveries within 2 days of placing an order. 

Amazon’s Operational Presence in Maharashtra

8 fulfilment centers in Maharashtra with close to 8 million cubic feet of storage space

6 Sort Centers with more than 5 lakh sq. ft. of processing area

Close to 215 Amazon owned and Service Partner delivery stations

Close to 3000 ‘I Have Space’ stores

Over 1.3 lakh sellers

About Amazon.in

The Amazon.in marketplace is operated by Amazon Seller Services Private Ltd, an affiliate of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN). Amazon.in seeks to build the most customer-centric online destination for customers to find and discover virtually anything they want to buy online by giving them more of what they want – vast selection, low prices, fast and reliable delivery, and a trusted and convenient experience; and provide sellers with a world-class e-commerce marketplace.

Godrej Security Solutions Plays A Role In Preparing A Safe & Sound Ganesh Utsav In Mumbai

* The business unit of Godrej & Boyce, the flagship company of the Godrej Group known this year, set up over 300  CCTV cameras  covering prominent  pandals in Mumbai including the iconic Lalbagcha Raja, Mumbaicha Raja - Ganeshgalli , Chintamani 

Godrej Security Solutions (GSS), a business of Godrej & Boyce, the flagship Company of the Godrej Group, had recently announced the launch of a survey called ‘Decoding Safe and Sound: in the Indian Context’ that recognised how Indians viewed security solutions. According to the survey, 44 % of Mumbai respondents associate ‘Safe and Sound’ to the wellbeing of their own health and to that of their loved ones. Keeping up with the theme and core value of security and safety, the brand this year played a role in keeping the Ganesh Chathurthi celebrations in Mumbai ‘Safe & Sound’.

The brand installed over 300 security/CCTV cameras, 2 door frame metal detectors, 4 hand held metal detectors covering many prominent Ganesh Pandals in Mumbai including the  iconic Lalbaghcha Raja, Mumbaicha Raja - Ganeshgalli , Chintamani, thus assisting the organisers of the pandals with security.

Commenting on the occasion Mr Pushkar Gokhale, Business Head, Godrej Security Solutions, said: “Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated with much grandeur in many parts of the country. However, nothing comes close to the enthusiasm and the grand scale of events that take place in Mumbai. Millions of devotees from all over the country visit Mumbai during this time, to be a part and get a glimpse of their favourite deity. This film showcases the preparations of BMC, Mumbai Police, Maharashtra Police, Mumbai Fire Brigade, RTO, BEST, Military and so many more people who are making an impact by serving the devotees and by enabling them to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi. Together, through our continued efforts, we are confident of ensuring a safe and sound festival this year. As we set to embrace the celebrations of Mumbai’s favourite festival and the city prepares for festivities after 2 years of tough battle with the pandemic, we are installing these CCTV cameras and entrance control solutions at these pandals to enable the devotees to celebrate to their fullest.”

About Godrej Security Solutions:

Godrej Security Solutions is a division of Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd and part of the USD 4.1 billion Godrej Group. A pioneer and leader in the business, Godrej Security Solutions Division is the largest manufacturer and marketer of Security Solutions in India. It is the largest supplier of security solutions to several prestigious banking, corporate and public institutions. For the first time in the category and the industry, Godrej Security Solutions Division has been awarded the Superbrand status. It has also won the “Most Preferred brand” award in the Home Segment. The Division currently exports its products to over 45 countries including Middle East Asia, South East Asia, Far East Asia, East Africa, the US, Europe and the SAARC Countries.

BOLTPlus On Web (BOW)- Future oOFf Broking Technology Globally

By Sameer Patil – Chief Business Officer, BSE

From its modest beginning as an open outcry floor trading exchange in the late 1800s to becoming only the second country after China to start the process of transitioning to a T+1 equity settlement mechanism in 2022, the Indian stock market has come a long way to emerge as one of the largest market ecosystems in the world. Undoubtedly, technology has been the key driver of the dramatic transformation in the brokerage industry.

Thanks to technological advancements, the stock market is no longer limited to wealthy individuals. Anyone with a smartphone and access to the internet can buy and sell stocks online from the comfort of their homes. This has democratised the process of investing in stocks and contributed to the economy's growth.

The introduction of electronic trading in the mid-1990s and SEBI's decision to legalise Direct Market Access (DMA) in 2009 were the two most significant milestones in the Indian stock markets' revolutionary journey. This had further opened doors for technology innovation to enable brokers and clients to use Electronic and automated trading and to reduce manual errors.

Today, stockbrokers use cutting-edge technology to offer a suite of services that can save investors time and money. For example, they can provide real-time quotes, allow you to place trades online without having to depend on your brokers to physically lock-in your orders, and offer research and analysis tools. Automation of processes, improved market information, better client communication and enhanced security to protect client data, have helped the stockbrokers meet current business challenges. Adhaar-based e-KYC has facilitated a fast, paperless account opening process, and UPI has made the process of fund transfer to brokerage accounts much faster.

During Covid-19, these systems were put to test, and the stock exchanges and their trading systems demonstrated tremendous robustness and reliability. BSE, for instance, provided several broking technology solutions to all its members as order routing platforms. BOLTPlus On Web™ (BOW) is one such powerful hosted real-time trading solution provided by BSE Tech Infra Services Pvt Ltd. A lot of trading members, who worked from home, were fully functional due to its meticulous system design, scalability, simple user interface, ease of access with limited infrastructure and support from BSE.

As part of its ecosystem, BSE enables 1,300+ brokers with over 100,000 branches, to enable trading for over 11 crore investors on its platform. The sheer volume of transactions requires seamless, error-free performance. The BOW platform allows the user to watch real-time market prices and execute orders on multiple exchanges (BSE, NSE, MCX and NCDEX) instantaneously with real-time price streaming, risk management from a single window.

The BOW services ensures that all members, especially small-sized members, remain connected and trade seamlessly with latest technology at no cost. This enables members to continue to focus on their business expansion plans being assured of technical support from BOW. Going forward, BSE will continue to handhold trading members for business continuity via BOW.

The BOW platform will also enable BSE to offer trading in Electronic Gold Receipt (EGR), which the Indian regulators have permitted for trading. EGRs have been made "fungible" and "interoperability between vault managers" have been allowed. The BOW platform will thus enable ordinary Indians to easily transact and invest in Gold.

The way ahead

There is also continuous innovation in motion, as BSE understands that an important factor for a trading solution is to provide business innovation combined with greater efficiency, speed of execution and reduction in costs. At BSE, we believe in setting an example of how a centuries-old organisation can meet today's business challenges through an acute focus on technology innovation. BSE has plans to enhance BOW based on market needs, and innovation around speed, capacity, and flexibility – the Capacity to take care of the increased volumes, speed to reduce latency and flexibility to be able to integrate trading across asset classes and across markets.