Honda Cars India And Bajaj Finance Collaborate To Offer “Attractive Financing Solutions This Festive Season”

Honda Cars India Ltd. (HCIL), leading manufacturer of premium cars in India, has partnered with Bajaj Finance Ltd., the lending arm of Bajaj FinServ Ltd., a leading financial services group in India, to offer attractive and affordable finance solutions for its customers. The partnership will help Honda customers avail exciting car finance schemes with low Rate of Interest and hassle-free quick sanction of loans on purchase of Honda Amaze, Honda City and soon to be launched new SUV; Honda Elevate.  

Under this partnership, Bajaj Finance Limited will provide Honda customers with customised retail finance schemes with the introduction of Flexi Pay Scheme & digital-first experience, including up to 100% on-road funding, providing Low rate of Interest (RoI) starting from 8.75%, hassle free sanction with lower turnaround time as low as 30 min, among others To ensure a greater convenience, the entire financing process will be enabled through a digital customer journey for loan disbursement process.  

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Kunal Behl, Vice President, Marketing & Sales, Honda Cars India said, “At Honda Cars India, we are dedicated to delivering top-notch services to our customers and we are excited about this partnership with Bajaj Finance. This alliance allows us to offer more financing options to our customers and enhance their ownership experience. The various schemes and options which will be offered by Bajaj Finance will lead to an affordable and accessible personal mobility solutions to a diverse set of valued customers.” 

Siddhartha Bhatt, Chief Business Officer, Bajaj Auto Finance, added “Through our digital-first approach & affordable solutions (Flexi Loans), we strive to make car buying incredibly easy & affordable for our customers. Our straight-through process is aimed at improving convenience and speed of loan disbursement. We are delighted to join hands with Honda Cars India to provide hassle-free and flexible financing solutions to customers for owning a Honda vehicle in a very accessible and rewarding manner.” 

Honda Cars India and Bajaj Finance are confident that this collaboration will strengthen their position in the market and reaffirm their shared mission of providing outstanding auto financing solutions to customers. 

Bajaj Finance is a technology driven NBFC, offering a comprehensive suite of financial solutions and focused on enhancing customer experience digitally.  

HCIL has been taking initiatives to make car buying more attractive and rewarding for its customers. HCIL has partnered with multiple financiers such as PSU Banks, Retail Financiers, and NBFCs to enhance car buying experience for its customers, offering consumers a wide range of financial solutions to match their diverse needs. 

About Honda Cars India Ltd. 

Honda Cars India Ltd. (HCIL), a leading manufacturer of premium cars in India, was established in December 1995 with a commitment to provide Honda’s passenger car models and technologies, to Indian customers. HCIL’s corporate office is based in Greater Noida, UP and its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility is located at Tapukara, District. Alwar, Rajasthan. Honda’s models are strongly associated with advanced design and technology, apart from their established qualities of durability, reliability, safety, and fuel efficiency catering to the diverse needs of its discerning buyers across different segments. The company has a strong sales and distribution network spread across the country.  Besides the new car business, Honda offers a one-stop solution for buying and selling pre-owned cars through its business function Honda Auto Terrace. The Honda Certified Pre-owned cars come with an assurance of quality and peace of mind that caters to the diverse and burgeoning needs of pre-owned car buyers across the country. 

Coca-Cola India Appoints Irene Tan As Vice President, Human Resources, India & Southwest Asia

Coca-Cola India announced the appointment of Irene Tan as the Vice President, Human Resources for India & Southwest Asia (INSWA). In her new role, Irene will be accelerating INSWA’s growth by recruiting future-ready talent, performance enablement and employee development for the company in India and Southwest Asia.

Irene joined the company in 2012 in Singapore as a talent sourcing consultant for the Asia Pacific Group. She became the lead talent acquisition partner for Greater China & Korea and moved to Shanghai. In this capacity, she initiated campus recruitments for management trainees, a signature program for China, advancing both gender and generational diversity for the business.

As Executive Recruiting Director in Singapore in 2015, she worked on multiple executive search mandates across the Asia Pacific including Bottling Investment Group (BIG).

In 2020, she was appointed as the Talent & Development (T&D) Director for Asia Pacific and was part of the global T&D Leadership team, responsible for advancing the talent agenda and developing a diversity succession pipeline. She brought to life, the Learning and Enterprise Capability initiatives in the region. 

Commenting on the appointment, Sanket Ray – President, India and Southwest Asia, said " With Irene’s deep understanding of the company as well as talent management expertise across markets, we are confident that she will steer the Human Resources function for continued success and further strengthen our position as an employer of choice.”

Prior to joining Coca-Cola, Irene was associated with Spencer Stuart, an international executive search firm. She holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences degree from the National University of Singapore.

About Coca-Cola India:

Coca-Cola in India is one of the country’s leading beverage companies, offering a range of high-quality and refreshing beverage options to consumers. The company in line with its vision of ‘Beverages For Life’ offers a wide portfolio of products which includes hydration, sports, sparkling, coffee, tea, nutrition, juice and dairy based products. In India it’s beverage range includes Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Diet Coke, Thums Up, Charged by Thums Up, Fanta, Limca, Sprite, Maaza, Minute Maid range of juices. The Company also offers hydration beverages including Limca Sports, Smartwater, Kinley, Dasani and Bonaqua packaged drinking water and Kinley Club Soda. Premium products constitute Schweppes and Smartwater. In addition, it offers Costa Coffee range of tea and coffee. The Company is constantly transforming its portfolio, from reducing sugar in its drinks to bringing innovative new products to market.

The Company along with its owned bottling operations and franchise bottling partners has a strong network of close to 4 million retail outlets through which it refreshes millions of consumers across the country. It seeks to positively impact people’s lives, communities and the planet through water replenishment, packaging recycling, sustainable agriculture initiatives and carbon emission reductions across its value chain.

Globally together with its bottling partners, The Coca-Cola Company employs more than 700,000 people, helping to bring economic opportunity to local communities worldwide. Learn more at www.cocacolacompany.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Applications Open For Legrand Empowering “Scholarship Program 2023-24”

* Focus on diversity, Gender equality, and Inclusion 

Group Legrand India, the leading provider of electrical and digital building infrastructure and a leading name in empowering lives and lighting up millions of Indian homes is delighted to announce the application process for Legrand Empowering “Scholarship Program” for the new batch of 2023-24. The scholarship encourages applications from deserving girl students, differently abled students, and transgender students from across India. 

Being a socially responsible organization certified by GEEIS (International Certificate for D&I Commitment), gender equality has remained a prominent area of action. The "Legrand Empowering Scholarship" was established in 2018 to actively support educational initiatives that empower girls. 

Since its inception, the program has supported more than 400+ girls students pursuing Engineering, Architecture, Science, Technology, Finance, and other related fields from recognized colleges and universities across India, including differently abled and transgender students. 

Mr. Tony Berland, CEO & MD of Group Legrand India said, “We believe in the power of education and its ability to transform lives. The Legrand Empowering Scholarship Program is a testament to our commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive academic environment. By empowering deserving girls, differently abled and transgender students we aim to build a brighter and more equitable future.” 

In addition to providing financial support for education, Legrand initiated the Student Mentorship Program in 2022. This program is designed to nurture future women leaders by offering holistic development through mentoring, building confidence, providing life skills, soft skills, and career guidance. Over 50 beneficiaries of the Legrand Scholarship have completed their mentorship programs, and fresh batches are welcomed annually. 

Legrand partners with Buddy4Study, a reputed organization, to facilitate the application and selection process for the scholarship program. Interested students can enroll through the Buddy4Study portal. (https://www.buddy4study.com/page/legrand-empowering-scholarship-program?ref=HomePageBanner)

For 2023-24, the Legrand Empowering Scholarship Program aims to support 100 scholars. The scholarship benefit will continue until the successful completion of the students' academic program, based on their performance. 

FADA Releases July’23 Vehicle Retail Data For The State Of Karnataka

The Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) released Vehicle Retail Data for July’23 for the State of Karnataka.  

July’23 Retails 

Commenting on how July’23 performed, FADA Karnataka State Chairperson, Mr Dharma Teja G said,  “Karnataka continues on the growth trajectory of the 1st quarter of FY 23-24 in July as well. We see good to robust growth across all segments barring tractors due to start of Monsoon in Rural Karnataka, with a growth of 23%, 133%, 7%, 21% for 2W, 3W, CV and PV segments respectively. We hope this will continue for the rest of the calendar year due to the upcoming festive season.”  

About FADA India 

Founded in 1964, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA), is the apex national body of Automobile Retail Industry in India engaged in the sale, service and spares of 2 & 3 Wheelers, Passenger Cars, UVs, Commercial Vehicles (including buses and trucks) and Tractors. FADA India represents over 15,000 automobile dealers having 26,500 dealerships including multiple Associations of Automobile Dealers at the Regional, State and City levels representing the entire Auto Retail Industry. Together we employ ~4 million people at dealerships and service centres. 

FADA India, at the same time also actively networks with the Industries and the authorities, both at the Central & State levels to provide its inputs and suggestions on the Auto Policy, Taxation, Vehicle Registration Procedure, Road Safety and Clean Environment, etc. to sustain the growth of the Automobile Retail Trade in India. 

Reliance General Insurance Wins The Contract For The Implementation Of “Megha Health Insurance Scheme And AB-PMJAY Phase 6”

Reliance General Insurance Co. Ltd. (RGICL) India’s leading general insurance company has been awarded the contract for the implementation of the Megha Health Insurance Scheme (MHIS) and the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY)-Phase 6 in the state of Meghalaya by the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Meghalaya (the GoM).  

The contract is awarded after a competitive bidding process, in which RGICL emerged as the successful bidder with the most competitive quote. The GoM has decided to review the Health Benefits Package and other terms in the Insurance Contract of MHIS 6 and has now decided to implement a revised MHIS 6 scheme in convergence with PMJAY, providing an insurance cover of ? 5,30,000 for all eligible beneficiaries on a family floater basis. This contract will cover over 7 lakhfamilies in Meghalaya, providing them with comprehensive health insurance coverage that will meet their secondary and tertiary care hospitalization, outpatient care, diagnostic tests, and follow-up care. 

RGICL is committed to providing quality healthcare services to the people of Meghalaya through its network of empaneled hospitals and healthcare providers across the state. RGICL will also leverage its digital capabilities and innovative solutions to ensure smooth and hassle-free enrolment, claim settlement, and grievance redressal for the beneficiaries. 

Mr. Rakesh Jain, CEO of Reliance General Insurance, said, "We are honored to partner with the Government of Meghalaya in this noble initiative of providing universal health coverage to the citizens of Meghalaya under the Megha Health Insurance Scheme and Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY)-Phase 6. We firmly believe that with the help of this contract, we will be supporting the state in bridging the much-needed gap of quality healthcare within the region, while increasing health insurance awareness and strengthening our foothold in the Northeast region. 

About Reliance General Insurance 

Reliance General Insurance, a subsidiary of Reliance Capital, is one of India’s leading general insurance companies. The Company offers a well-rounded and comprehensive bouquet of products including Motor Insurance, Health Insurance, Travel Insurance, and Home Insurance. It provides customized solutions to meet the protection needs of each customer. Reliance General Insurance has a growing network of 9100+ hospitals. It also has a robust network of more than 90,000+ intermediaries and 131 branch offices across India for offering its products and services to retail, corporate, and SME clients.  

Indian Enterprises Increase AI Adoption; Industrial Products & Manufacturing Sector Sees Maximum Adoption Rates: PwC Report

* Over the past two years (mid-2020 to 2022-23), the Industrial Products & Manufacturing sector has seen the maximum increase of 20% in the adoption of AI/ML solutions.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic Indian enterprises have begun to  adopt advanced analytics and data-driven decision making. As per the PwC report titled, “Towards a smarter tomorrow: Impact of AI in the post-COVID era” the industrial products and manufacturing sector has seen the maximum adoption of AI/ML over the last two years. Almost 64% of the organisations surveyed in the Industrial Products and Manufacturing sector say they are currently at an early stage of their AI-based transformation journey reflecting the opportunities for further investments and growth led by AI/ML solutions in this sector.

While there has been a significant increase in AI adoption with scalable impact in terms of returns, trends indicate that the travel and hospitality industry has reached a degree of saturation. While the Technology, Media, Telecom as well as Healthcare and Pharmaceutical sectors have seen steady progress, they are facing certain challenges around measuring the return-on-investments, especially in the pre- and post-COVID-19 times. Compared to the other sectors, the retail and consumer market has seen a decline in AI adoption due to a gap in the identification of potential use cases amidst changing market forces and consumer behaviour.

Sudipta Ghosh, Partner & Leader – Data & Analytics, PwC India, said, “As organisations mature in their journey towards using AI for driving business outcomes, a three-pronged approach around identification of appropriate use cases, rigour of measuring and communicating the RoI along with driving adoption and scale at the enterprise level using the framework of responsible and explainable AI will be critical.”

Dr. Indranil Mitra, Managing Director  & Leader – Advanced Analytics, PwC India, said, “As the volume of enterprise data grows, it is becoming increasingly important to leverage this data in a meaningful way. Companies that are using AI to model this data are reaping the benefits of business transformation enabled by effective decision making. However, to truly differentiate themselves from the competition, leaders must also have a deep understanding of the risks around security, privacy, and accountability.”

Sectoral AI adoption trends:

Industrial products & Manufacturing: Over the past two years, from mid-2020 to 2022-23, this sector has seen the maximum increase of 20% in the adoption/implementation of AI/ML solutions. Following implementations in the 12–18-month period following the pandemic, organisations from this segment have reaped maximum benefits from AI in three business functions – namely, manufacturing and operations, supply chain and logistics, and IT and cybersecurity.

Retail: In comparison with the other sectors, the retail and consumer industry witnessed a marginal decrease of 6% in 2022–23 as compared to 2020. This was triggered by the gap in identification of the right use cases and measuring the RoI. Use cases in this sector are primarily in sales and marketing, customer service, and supply chain and logistics with 68%, 52% and 56% of participants, respectively, reporting only marginal to no improvements.

Technology, Media & Telecom: As per the survey, there is a nearly 15% increase in the number of respondents that have deployed enterprise wide AI/ML solutions at scale. To keep up with market forces and build a long-term competitive advantage, organisations are piloting AI/ML solutions to investigate and measure their impact. There was an almost 7% increase in such implementation at the pilot level in 2022-23 as compared to 2020.

Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals: Following the COVID-19 pandemic, this sector has seen steady progress in AI adoption with a 7% increase since 2020–21. As per the survey, 85% of the respondents are interested in AI-enabled, patient-centric solutions (such as sharing customised treatment plans for autonomous disease detection and aiding prevention/cure), while approximately 65% are interested and willing to pay for a service for a disease or a medical concern that can be predicted using AI. However, 15% of the total respondents trust the outcome of the AI-generated diagnosis results, while 78% of the population wants to further investigate and discuss it with doctors.

Travel & Hospitality: Compared with 2020, this market is now moving towards saturation. The sector has seen approximately 7% growth in AI adoption, and almost 99% of organisations surveyed today have either implemented AI/ML at scale in at least in some areas. Organisations have also seen a proportionate boost in business performance due to specific investments in a business function with 67% respondents reporting a significant improvement in results.

About the survey:

PwC conducted surveys with 220+ CXOs and decision makers across the Indian market in 2022–23. This was a follow-up to the survey conducted in 2020. Around the same time, PwC conducted the 2022 AI Business Survey, where data from 1,000 global business and technology executives involved in their organisation’s AI strategies was obtained. We then compared the data on the Indian and global markets and conducted a temporal analysis of during and post-COVID responses.

The survey covered respondents from industries such as financial services, healthcare and pharma, industrial manufacturing and automotive, retail and consumer, telecom, media and technology, and travel and hospitality. Respondents came from business functions such as customer service, finance and tax, human resources, IT and cybersecurity, manufacturing and operations, research and development, risk, legal and compliance, sales and marketing, supply chain and logistics.

About PwC

At PwC, our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. We’re a network of firms in 155 countries with over 327,000 people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, advisory and tax services. Find out more and tell us what matters to you by visiting us at www.pwc.com. PwC refers to the PwC network and/or one or more of its member firms, each of which is a separate legal entity. see www.pwc.com/structure for further details.

Arya.ag And SOPA's Strategic Partnership To Drive Efficiency In Soybean Monitoring

* Arya.ag partners with SOPA to revolutionise Soybean crop monitoring across 51 districts using advanced satellite surveillance and AI-powered technology.

Arya.ag, India's leading agritech platform, is thrilled to announce a strategic partnership with The Soybean Processors Association of India (SOPA) to enhance and streamline crop monitoring for Soybean across 51 districts. The collaboration will leverage Arya Ag's cutting-edge satellite surveillance product, Prakshep, and its Artificial Intelligence "VaMa" powered by multiple data sources.

As part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), SOPA will receive dynamic information, rich datasets, maps, and data-enriched secure APIs for their subscribed districts, spanning Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan. The integration of Arya.ag's state-of-the-art technology will enable SOPA to remotely scout its districts, detect anomalies, and track farm growth seamlessly through a user-friendly web/mobile application provided by Arya.

"We are very honoured to become SOPA’s satellite surveillance partner.  Through this partnership, Arya.ag and SOPA would leverage deep tech capabilities for real-time monitoring of the Soybean crop across the country. Our satellite surveillance product, Prakshep, combined with the power of Artificial Intelligence 'VaMa', will empower SOPA to make informed decisions for strengthening the soybean value chain," said Chattanathan Devarajan, Co-founder at Arya.ag.

“SOPA, as a leading association in the soybean processing industry, recognises the transformative potential of Arya.ag's technology to drive efficiency and sustainability in agriculture. Arya's promising technology will add value to SOPA's crop surveillance report.  The collaboration promises to enhance crop productivity, optimise resource utilisation, and foster sustainable practices across the soybean value chain,” said  D.N. Pathak, Executive Director at SOPA.

The partnership between Arya.ag and SOPA exemplifies the power of innovation and collaboration to impact India's agricultural landscape positively. By utilising Arya.ag's Prakshep and VaMa solutions, SOPA aims to enhance crop yields, facilitate data-driven decision-making, and drive sustainable agricultural practices.

ABOUT ARYA.AG

Arya.ag, India’s largest and fastest-growing integrated grain commerce that eliminates the trust deficit in the grain commerce value chain through its disruptive integrated PAN India platform that delivers value to all stakeholders by enabling access to high-quality produce, products, and services. Powered by an exponentially growing layer of visibility and control currently stretching across 425 districts in 21 states, 11,000 warehouses and USD 2.5 billion of grain, Arya.ag offers the assurance of quality supply to buyers and on-time fair payment for their produce and allied services to sellers. It seamlessly embeds finance to maximise value for both sellers and buyers, and the platform facilitates over USD 700 Mn of finance annually. More at www.arya.ag

ABOUT SOPA

The Soybean Processors Association of India, popularly known as SOPA, is the only Apex Body of the entire Soy Value Chain India, including the soybean processors, farmers, trade intermediaries, plant manufacturers, surveyors and laboratories in India, working towards the aim to strengthen soybeans as a viable crop. The main objective of SOPA is to encourage the development and promotion of soy-based products in the interest of the farmers as well as the processors.