Manipal Varsity Makes Head Way with Significant Shift to Green Energy

The Managing Director, MESCOM, Mangaluru, Chikkananjappa on Tuesday inaugurated solar roof top PV plant at the indoor sports complex. With that, Manipal University now has eight buildings with roof top solar plants. This has helped the University to achieve 55% of energy-demand from a green source. It may be mentioned here that Manipal University is ranked the second green campus in the country.

“This substantially reduces dependence on conventional energy sources, thus mitigating carbon emissions and making a significant shift towards sustainable energy use,” said Dr H.S Ballal, Pro Chancellor Manipal University in an interaction with Chikkananjappa after the inauguration. MESCOM MD was appreciative of the initiatives being taken by the University to reduce pollution by using more and more of the solar energy.

 “Manipal University has partially shifted from the conventional energy use to renewable energy use and sourcing. This is being achieved by installing solar photovoltaic rooftop systems on the buildings with a total installed capacity of 817 kilowatts peak (kWp) connected to grid for self-use generating 12 lakh units on average per annum,” said Derrick Joshua, Environment Executive of Manipal University.

Shridhar Rao, Executive Engineer (Electrical), Energy Lead Auditor and MR said, “This translates to carbon emission equivalent (Co₂e) reduction of 984 metric tonnes. It substantially reduces dependence on conventional energy sources, thus mitigating carbon emissions and is a shift towards sustainable energy use. Adoption of the combined strategy achieves Co₂e emission reduction of 25,320 MT per annum”.

Paul John Single Malts Wins Big at ‘Icons of Whisky India 2017’ Awards in New Delhi

Paul John Single Malts, the great Indian Single Malt Whisky bagged three top honours at the Icons of Whisky India Awards 2017 – Best Master Distiller India for Michael D’Souza, The Best Indian Single Malt Whisky as well as the venerated World Whisky Brand Ambassador of the Year 2017 for Mr. Paul P. John. The brand whisked away the highest number of wins at the global awards ceremony thus making it one of the world’s top whisky brands to watch out for.

Speaking on the accomplishment, Paul John, Chairman of John Distilleries said, “We are truly overjoyed. Whisky Magazine’s Icons of Whisky awards is a celebrated awards ceremony across the globe. Being honoured by them across significant spheres of whisky making is a testament to our efforts towards producing world-quality whisky.”

The prestigious ‘Icons of Whisky’ Awards recognises the contribution of whisky brands in the industry from around the world and celebrates the winning brand’s dedication in delivering exceptional work across categories. Winning the eminent awards, from among an assemblage of some of the most expert whisky producers and distillers from around the world, made it a landmark victory for the Indian brand.

The special ceremony, to felicitate the brand on its achievements, took place yesterday at ITC Maurya in Delhi and was hosted by, none other than, Sandeep Arora, Editor, South Asia, Whisky Magazine.

Brought to the world from the sultry coasts of Goa, the Paul John Single Malts are made from carefully chosen indigenous ingredients including 6 row barley from the foothills of the Himalayas. Moreover the tropical climate of the region provides the ideal temperature and ambiance for the whisky to mature to perfection.

John Distilleries first launched the Paul John Single Malt whisky in the United Kingdom in 2012. Ever since, its success in this sphere has been invincible. It didn’t take much time for experts from across the globe to take notice of the exceptional single malt whisky, further opening doors to some of the biggest, internationally recognized awards for the brand.

Paul John Single Malt Whisky reached its milestone moment when it was rated ‘Liquid Gold’ by Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible –  the world’s leading whisky guide that professionally analyses the finest whiskies from around the world. Whisky Guru Jim Murray grades these whiskies on a score of 100. These scores are reflective of four key criteria that they are judged on – nose, taste, finish and balance and are each scored for out of 25. The Paul John Single Malt Whisky was graded a spectacular 94.5 and was described as "the smoke, through serious maturation, has now moved into a stunning structured herbal nature with lavender and mint... such a brilliant mouth feel... a sublime peated malt from India."

The exclusive range of Indian Single Malts by Paul John are now available in 30 countries including Europe, UK, USA, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Asia, Duty Free Shops (Dubai, Qatar, Singapore and Bangalore) and was recently introduced in the Indian markets including Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh, Pondicherry, Daman and Hyderabad.

Way2online Fortifies its Position as Leading Multilingual News Sources in India

Way2Online, a ‘media on mobile’ company that caters to seekers of news & information both in English and regional Indian languages, registers phenomenal success with over 2 billion (200 crore) screen views within a month. With each user flipping an average of 90 articles/news, Way2online managed to accomplish this feat in May, 2017.

With this, the company, which first began operating back in 2015, has strengthened its position as one of the most prominent multilingual news sources in India. The company had previously reached 500 million views per month within just 3 months of its launch, and has been going strong since. It is also exemplifying mobile-first technology by building media within mobile screens.

Commenting on the accomplishment, Raju Vanapala, Founder and CEO, Way2Online said, “With Way2Online, we managed to tap this largely unexplored area of business by introducing short summarized news across 8 local languages in a magazine style format. We endeavor to make news selection comprehensive by shifting from the shadows of traditional sources, and include other channels like blogs and RSS feeds. For our latest achievement, we want to thank our loyal readers for helping us in retaining our position as India’s leading short news app. We are confident, that Way2Online will become a force to be reckoned with in the near future – providing attractive, succinct, and authentic content to people from all walks of life in multiple native languages.”

By pivoting the business towards short news in local languages, Way2Online is gaining significant traction, and is witnessing steady adoption by users across India. In addition, by tweaking technology, the app is also able to reach out to customers based in tier-2 & tier-3 cities, i.e. areas that usually suffer from challenges like bandwidth availability and smartphone penetration.

Way2Online has a pan India presence, and is popular across most tier-1, 2, and 3 cities. It has registered over 10 million downloads so far, and is adding over 8 lakh new users every month. It also hopes to become the go-to place for those readers, who wish to stay abreast of latest happenings without spending too much time on detail.

Freyr Energy Brings Mobile Application “FreyrSunPro” to Spur Entrepreneurship in Rooftop Solar Segment

Freyr Energy, a full service solar provider launches Freyr SunPro in Bangalore, which is a revolutionary ‘India first’ mobile application that will help customers run their rooftop solar businesses with ease. Freyr SunPro, which runs on both iOS and Android devices, uses complex algorithms and data analytics to streamline the entire process of fulfilling a customer’s solar requirements.

With Freyr Sunpro, a solar or electrical background is not needed anymore to start their business. The training time to use the SunPro is less than 1 hour. The initial investment required to start a rooftop solar business is zero. Any individual can easily download the application from Play Store and App Store.

The system created using SunPro is custom designed for each customer’s individual needs.  Automated site survey and system design show eliminates errors during the sales process as well as procurement and installation. The app’s all encompassing platform is equivalent to a 5-person team (Design engineer, pricing specialist, customer management, supply chain and project management) supporting you 24x7, 365 days to help close orders. The app reduces the sales cycle for users to 1-2 meetings with the customer. SunPro works both offline and online and gives detailed pricing recommendations.

Saurabh Marda, Co- Founder and Managing Director, Freyr Energy said, “By launching SunPro we want to enable individuals and micro to medium sized companies start and run their solar businesses with minimal investment. We have eliminated all the complexity involved in system design, pricing, proposal generation etc. and made it easier to sell a solar system, while ensuring the customer gets the best product possible. The Government’s ambitious target of achieving 40 GW of rooftop solar installations by 2022 will require tremendous grassroots participation especially on sales.  We believe SunPro can help fill the void which we would regard as a success.”

The user can start the business without having to hire any additional staff. This ensures that the business is profitable from Year 1 itself. If several people in the organization is using the tool, the performance of employees can also be automatically monitored and assessed. 

After the order is closed, Freyr Energy will work on the material supply and installation so the user can focus on closing more orders. With the help of SunPro, several of Freyr Energy’s channel partners are generating business of 1 crore annually.

Freyr Energy Brings Mobile Application “FreyrSunPro” to Spur Entrepreneurship in Rooftop Solar Segment

Freyr Energy, a full service solar provider launches Freyr SunPro in Bangalore, which is a revolutionary ‘India first’ mobile application that will help customers run their rooftop solar businesses with ease. Freyr SunPro, which runs on both iOS and Android devices, uses complex algorithms and data analytics to streamline the entire process of fulfilling a customer’s solar requirements.

With Freyr Sunpro, a solar or electrical background is not needed anymore to start their business. The training time to use the SunPro is less than 1 hour. The initial investment required to start a rooftop solar business is zero. Any individual can easily download the application from Play Store and App Store.

The system created using SunPro is custom designed for each customer’s individual needs.  Automated site survey and system design show eliminates errors during the sales process as well as procurement and installation. The app’s all encompassing platform is equivalent to a 5-person team (Design engineer, pricing specialist, customer management, supply chain and project management) supporting you 24x7, 365 days to help close orders. The app reduces the sales cycle for users to 1-2 meetings with the customer. SunPro works both offline and online and gives detailed pricing recommendations.

Saurabh Marda, Co- Founder and Managing Director, Freyr Energy said, “By launching SunPro we want to enable individuals and micro to medium sized companies start and run their solar businesses with minimal investment. We have eliminated all the complexity involved in system design, pricing, proposal generation etc. and made it easier to sell a solar system, while ensuring the customer gets the best product possible. The Government’s ambitious target of achieving 40 GW of rooftop solar installations by 2022 will require tremendous grassroots participation especially on sales.  We believe SunPro can help fill the void which we would regard as a success.”

The user can start the business without having to hire any additional staff. This ensures that the business is profitable from Year 1 itself. If several people in the organization is using the tool, the performance of employees can also be automatically monitored and assessed. 

After the order is closed, Freyr Energy will work on the material supply and installation so the user can focus on closing more orders. With the help of SunPro, several of Freyr Energy’s channel partners are generating business of 1 crore annually.

IRCTC’s Maharaja Express Set for a Luxury Coast to Coast Train Ride on July 1, 2017

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has chalked out an aggressive package on the luxury Maharajas' Express - Southern Jewels and priced at a whopping Rs 5 lakh to over Rs 17 lakh.

IRCTC's initiative comes amid a lukewarm response to the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation's 'Golden Chariot' where ticket fares range between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 7 lakh.

Ironically, IRCTC officials claimed that Southern Jewels is targeted at domestic travellers looking at cheaper options. The luxury train for five consecutive years, Southern Jewels will take travellers to destinations like Chettinad, Mahabalipuram, Mysuru, Hampi, Goa on the Konkan coast and Mumbai during its 8-day itinerary, said S.S. Jagannathan, general manager, IRCTC, South Zone.

"Though the fares are high, our focus this time is domestic travellers who want to take a royal journey. For the first time, we've introduced special break journey offers during this special monsoon itinerary. Willing domestic travellers can avail of the offer for two nights and three days on the train," said Jagannathan.

Asked about the costly fares, given that Golden Chariot, the other luxury train in the state, is struggling to survive, Jagannathan said, "Everything on this train will give you a royal feel. From the interiors to cutlery, each and every thing is designed to give a feel of how royals live in Indian palaces. There is a special focus to bring in the best brands for travellers. Infact, state government has been aggressively pushing for such packages and Palace on Wheels is one such example from the government of Rajasthan. "

Kishore Satya, manager, IRCTC Bengaluru said, "I can't comment on trains run by the state government tourism department. But we have been successfully running Maharajas' Express since 2010 and have a pan-India demand for southern tourist destinations. Our focus is both Indian as well as foreign travellers."

IDBI Bank to Focus on Raising Capital, Retail Lending and Recovery of Loans During FY 2017-18

IDBI Bank has crafted a comprehensive turnaround strategy, with a focus on augmenting the capital base and recovery from NPAs.  Its prime focus includes restricting corporate loan book growth, raising additional capital and non-core asset sales to reduce operational costs.

Aggressive recovery and prevention of further slippages is a priority area for IDBI Bank. Given the stress in the corporate sector, the bank will restrict growth in the corporate loan book and focus on increasing retail and priority sector asset base. This will help the bank to reduce risk weighted assets and improve CAR in the short term.

The bank is also planning to raise additional capital in the medium term. It has received a capital infusion of Rs 1900 crore through the Government of India’s subscription to its preferential share allotment earlier this year, which enhanced its Common Equity Tier 1 Capital. Furthermore, Life Insurance Corporation of India has also subscribed to the bank’s preferential equity issue. Additionally, CAR would be improved through sale of non-core assets, continued GoI support and churning of corporate loan book to reduce risk weight of the portfolio.

The bank will look at reducing its operational cost and sell non-core assets over a period of time. The exact schedule and quantum of such a sale will depend on market conditions and the Bank has already initiated the process.

“We are looking at all avenues to improve our capital position and bring the bank on the recovery track. We will look at aggressive recovery and cost cutting measures and plan on churning our corporate book and risk weighted assets which should also ease the pressure on capital. The Government of India, our Principal shareholder, continues to support the Bank,” said V. Narayanamurthy, Field Chief General Manager, IDBI Bank (Bengaluru Zone). 

Besides, the bank will reduce its exposure to corporate sector and instead focus aggressively on retail lending, adds Narayanamurthy.