Foxconn to Start Assembling Top-End iPhones in India by 2019

Apple Inc will begin assembling its top-end iPhones in India through the local unit of Foxconn as early as 2019, the first time the Taiwanese contract manufacturer will have made the product in the country, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Importantly, Foxconn will be assembling the most expensive models, such as devices in the flagship iPhone X family, the source said, potentially taking Apple’s business in India to a new level. The work will take place at Foxconn’s plant in Sriperumbudur town in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, said the source, who declined to be named.

Foxconn, which already makes phones for Xiaomi Corp in India, will invest Rs 25 billion ($356 million) to expand the plant, including investment in iPhone production, Tamil Nadu’s Industries Minister M C Sampath told the media.

The investment may create as many as 25,000 jobs, he added. Another source also said Foxconn planned to assemble iPhones in India, in a move that could help both it and Apple to limit the impact of a trade war between the United States and China.

Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller declined to comment.

Lower-end phones

Until now, Cupertino, California-based Apple has only assembled the lower-cost SE and 6S models in India through Wistron Corp’s local unit in the Bengaluru technology hub.

Its sales in India have also been focused on lower-end phones - more than half of its sales volume is driven by models older than the iPhone 8, launched last year, according to technology research firm Counterpoint.

Apple launched the pricey iPhone X last year but has cut production of that phone, according to industry analysts, since it began selling the newer versions, iPhone XS and XR, globally this year. Still, it could potentially get Foxconn to make the older iPhone X version in India where it sells cheaper models in a bid to get a bigger share of the world’s fastest-growing major mobile phone market.

It is not known if any of the iPhone assembly is being moved from existing Foxconn factories in China and elsewhere. It is also unclear whether the production will be confined to assembly or include any component production in India. Indian taxes on import of devices and components have also heightened Apple’s headache in a market where it has only a 1% share by smartphone shipments. Making more phones locally will help Apple save costly duties and boost Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s flagship drive to make India a manufacturing hub, Singh said.

Apple shocked investors last month with a lower-than-expected sales forecast for the Christmas quarter that jolted parts suppliers across the world.

Boeing Inc Forecasts Demand for 2,300 New Airplanes in India

Boeing raised its long-term forecast for commercial airplanes in India as unprecedented domestic passenger traffic and rapidly expanding low-cost carriers (LCCs) drive the need for 2,300 new jets – valued at $320 billion – over the next 20 years.

This year alone, more than 10 million passengers, on average, traveled within India each month.

“To meet this increased domestic air traffic growth, we see the vast majority of available airplane seats coming from LCCs,” said Dinesh Keskar, senior vice-president of sales for Asia Pacific and India, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “The success of this market segment will mean more than 80 percent of all new airplane deliveries in India will be single-aisles. And the superior economics and fuel efficiency of the new 737 MAX airplane will be the perfect choice for Indian carriers.”

According to Boeing's Commercial Market Outlook (CMO), India's commercial aviation industry has achieved 51 consecutive months of double-digit growth. This growth is matched in other sectors of the country's economy.

“The Indian economy is projected to grow by nearly 350 percent over the next two decades to become the third largest economy in the world,” said  Keskar. “This will continue to drive the growth of India's middle class and its propensity to travel both domestically and internationally, resulting in the need for more new fuel-efficient short- and long-haul airplanes.”

With more than five percent of the world's fleet expected to operate in India by 2037, services will continue to be a major driver of growth in the region's commercial aviation industry. Commercial services such as flight training, engineering and maintenance, digital analytics among others will provide airlines with optimal operational efficiencies as they continue to expand to meet growth in the marketplace. In the South Asian market, including India, Boeing forecasts a commercial services market valued at $430 billion over the next 20 years.

Owing to its close proximity to Arunachal Pradesh, the Lilabari airport serves both Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Under UDAN! SpiceJet to Commence Direct Flight Between Kolkata and Lilabari

SpiceJet is starting a daily direct flight service on the Kolkata-Lilabari route, under the UDAN scheme. The airline is also starting another service from Kolkata and Jabalpur. It will also add an additional frequency on Hyderabad-Jabalpur route. All new flights and frequencies are scheduled to commence from January 15.

The unserved market of Lilabari, located in the Lakhimpur district of Assam, was awarded to SpiceJet under the second phase of regional connectivity scheme. Lilabari is the airline's tenth destination under it.

"SpiceJet is celebrating the launch by announcing an introductory promotional fare starting at Rs 3,700 on Kolkata-Lilabari and Lilabari-Kolkata routes, Rs 3,969 on Kolkata-Jabalpur and Rs 3,949 on Jabalpur-Kolkata, routes," said SpiceJet in a statement. The airline will deploy its Bombardier Q400s on all these routes.

Meanwhile, Shilpa Bhatia, chief sales and revenue officer, SpiceJet, said, "Lilabari is our first destination in Assam under the UDAN scheme and we are confident that the new flight will provide impetus to the tourism potential of the state."

Mundra Port Concludes Delivery and Dispatch of 50 U.S. Made GE Locomotives to Indian Railways

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) successfully concluded the import and dispatch of 50 General Electric Transportation (GE) locomotives from Mundra port for the Indian Railways with full customer satisfaction and ‘zero’ incident. All 50 locomotives were manufactured by GE Electromotive Division in the United States and imported at Mundra port for the Indian Railways, a first for Indian shopping and logistics. The final locomotive was handed over to the Indian Railways at the Roza Loco Shed (UP) on 23 November 2018. The commissioning of the locomotives was completed in the period of Oct.2017 to Nov.2018, which is a landmark record for the logistics and ports sector.

Mundra port has the unique distinction of handling consignments critical for development and defence of the nation. In a short span of time, the port has played an instrumental role in logistics of wagons for various Metro projects pan-India, mining dump truck of 240 MT capacity and heavy duty air-crane (helicopter). Sources say that the port is set to receive the first batch of Boeing Chinook helicopters which is purported to give a decisive edge to India’s defence forces in war like scenario and also during times of humanitarian crisis.

APSEZ is India’s largest private multi-port operator and a part of the Adani Group, an integrated infrastructure corporation. Since 1962, after the import of WDM2 ALCO locomotives for the Indian Railways, the current import of GE locomotives (WDG4 series 49002) is the biggest import consignment in India. The first GE locomotive was imported to Mundra and successfully handled by Adani Port on 10th Oct. 2017. The loco was dispatched from Mundra to the Roza Loco Shed on 11th Feb. 2018 and the 50th loco was dispatched on 23rd Nov. 2018 within 10 months. With the purpose of Dedicated Freight Cargo Corridor, the selling point for the port was available to facilitate the commissioning of locos. Also, the strategic location of port was a huge advantage.

Avinash Rai, Chief Operating Officer, APSEZ said, “Efficiency in logistical operations is given an utmost priority at Adani Ports. Therefore, while handling the logistical operations for the Indian Railways and GE, we made sure the transportation of cargo from the vessel to its destination is seamless and without any incident. This achievement by the team at Mundra takes our standards to another level in India and sets new benchmarks for us to cross. Our aim is to continue leveraging the strategic advantage of our ports along the entire coastline of India to create a vast network of inland logistics in the country. The idea is to give end to end logistics solutions to customers using our ports and create new records.”

Mundra Port is the second largest port in India in handling container cargo. In 2014 – 15, Mundra port handled 1.75 Million TEUs and has the installed terminal capacity to handle 2.3 Million TEUs p.a. Adani Ports operates two terminals at Mundra - Adani Mundra Container Terminal (AMCT), which started operations in 2007, and Adani International Container Terminal (AICTPL), which was operationalised in 2013. Jointly both terminals handle 26 services, connecting India to destinations across the world.

Karnataka Most Welcoming Indian State: OYO Travelopedia 2018

OYO Hotels, India’s largest and the world’s fastest growing chain of hotels, homes and quality living spaces released the OYO Annual Travelopedia 2018 today. The one-of-its-kind index revealed that Karnataka is the most welcoming state in India basis the number of travellers and bookings received throughout the year. The national capital was the most popular for visitors all year round, however, most Delhiites recorded the maximum number of travel cancellations followed by re-bookings which made it the most confused city of 2018. The analysis also recorded that an OYO was booked every 0.75 seconds in 2018.

The study revealed interesting facts like 22nd December 2018 was the most OYO’d day – where the hotel chain received maximum number of bookings of 1,38,000. The data also revealed that OYO recorded a 2.9X year-on-year jump in the number of bookings with an OYO being booked in every 0.75 seconds. Interestingly, Goa was the most-searched destination for OYO.

This year’s OYO King emerged from Pune who stayed in over 239 OYO hotels and OYO Queen from Ahmedabad who stayed in 125 OYO hotels across the year. Some fascinating facts that also emerged were that a single user stayed at an OYO property for 228 maximum continuous nights while another user travelled to 4 different countries and stayed in OYO properties throughout. The most popular time to book an OYO property in 2018 was 8:00pm.

Commenting on the findings, Abhinav Sinha, Chief Operating Officer (COO), OYO Hotels said: “We are really delighted to release OYO’s Annual Travelopedia which showcases some really unique booking and travel trends of 2018. One of the most interesting findings was that the maximum number of tourists visiting India were from the UAE. This reiterates the fact that we have been a great host to our valuable guests not just within the country but also internationally, this motivates us to constantly work towards our mission of providing great quality living spaces for our customers at affordable rates.”

The most preferred OYO locations in Mumbai and Delhi were around the airport whereas Koramangala in Bengaluru and Salt Lake in Kolkata topped the charts.

Additionally, the data also revealed that the top 5 OYO properties of the year 2018 were:

●      OYO Hotels namely Palette resorts - Le Pondy
●      OYO Townhouse 021 Bombay Exhibition Centre
●      OYO 9771 Hotel Glitz Westend Inn
●      Capital O 10212 Hotel West Willows Xanadu
●      OYO Townhouse 028 Corporate Suite

Showcasing how digitization and internet is turning out to be a boon for mobile users as well as for businesses, the data revealed that of the total online bookings made, around 92% of the hotel bookings were done through the mobile phone in the 2018. OYO further saw different types of travel enthusiasts, including:

●      The Lone Star Weekender - Solo travellers checking on a weekend
●      The Weekday Winner - Solo travellers checking in on weekdays
●      The Big Weekenders - Group travellers exploring a destination with their friends and family
●      The Mid-week Trippers - Group travellers, planning their vacations well in advance and taking weekday trips
●      The One Who Got Away - OYO is eagerly waiting to host these explorers in 2019. Whichever destination they decide at any time of the year - there’s always an OYO around!

TKM Bags CII-ITC Sustainability Awards 2018 for ‘Significant Achievement in Environment Management’

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) was recently honoured with the prestigious award for ‘Significant Achievement in Environment Management’ awarded by CII-ITC Centre for Excellence for Sustainable Development [CESD] under the category ‘Environment Domain’ of CII ITC Sustainability Award 2018. The company is awarded for its multifold efforts recognizing the eco strengthens in incorporating green technologies for production, optimization of renewable energy utilization within the plant, its green product portfolio and handholding its supply chain partners in enhancing their environmental performance.

Toyota leads through its long-term objectives towards carbon neutral value chain, thus creating a positive impact on the environment. TKM also engages with its dealer partners in establishing eco-systems to attain sustainability in its dealer operations at various regions across India.

Environment Conservation is inherent in the Toyota culture. Toyota Kirloskar Motor’s vision, philosophy and guidelines are true reflections of its commitment for a sustainable future. Its focused on achieving harmony between its manufacturing activities and the environment based on the concept of 'a plant that optimally utilizes natural resources while operating in harmony with the natural environment'.

TKM aspire to be the most loved and admired automobile company in India by following the Toyota-way philosophy. Toyota has consistently exhibited its relentless commitment to add value through its world class systems and processes. TKM works consistently towards making quality cars, built to international quality standards, yet keeping in mind the local sensitivities. Toyota is committed to manufacture technically advanced and environment-friendly products. TKM’s ISO 14001 certified plant at Bidadi, Karnataka is surrounded by a green belt and meets high environmental standards. The company embeds sustainability across all our business practices and constantly strived to implement best practices that promote reuse, reduce & recycle of wastes within the manufacturing plant.

TKM’s plant facility 2 has been established based on Toyota Eco-Factory Concept, designed to contribute towards reducing overall environmental impact based on the concept of “Monozukiri” (Manufacturing in Harmony with Environment]. Through its philosophy of “KAIZENS”, TKM drives continuous improvement in its environmental performance with active participation of employees in bringing the change. Through its globally advanced & innovative technologies - Toyota manufactures & offers world-class fuel efficient, quality vehicles such as Camry Strong Hybrid. Further, Toyota always looks forward to bringing in more of such technologies which aims to reduce the impact on the eco-system.

Speaking at the award ceremony, Mr. B. Padmanabha, Vice President - Toyota Kirloskar Motor said, “With our advanced eco-initiatives in 2017-18, we were able to source 85% of our total energy consumed from renewable energy. In the same year, we have met 94% of our total water requirement from recycled water and harvested rain water. We have also moved beyond our operational boundaries with a view to spread our eco-spirit throughout the supply chain and community. Through our efforts, we are glad that we are moving towards a sustainable future for all. This award further inspires to continue our focus on building a greener mobility for the nation.”

On receiving this award, Senior Vice President and Environment Director of Toyota Kirloskar Motor - Mr. Raju B Ketkale said, “Since its foundation, Toyota has continuously strived to contribute to the sustainable development of society through manufacturing of Innovative-Quality products and services leading the times.

Toyota always believes in the philosophy of ‘Respect the Planet’ and has meticulously endeavored to work towards the betterment of the environment. We are committed for our vision of greener tomorrow and have announced our long-term commitment towards the Society and Environment through our Global Environment Challenge 2050. TKM has been able to prove its eco commitments with continuous improvements in Environmental Performance year-on-year.

Moving beyond our boundaries of operations, Toyota is committed to establish the society that will be in harmony with nature and recognize the importance of Environmental Education in achieving this vision. In line with this belief, we have developed the program of “Education for Sustainable Development” and established an experience-based learning center “Ecozone”. The Ecozone will be a tool to spread Toyota eco-spirit to the society where our stakeholders including the school children will be educated on the current environmental issues and try to impart positive behavioral changes in the young citizens. We have recently started the education program in this 25-acre eco park for the Government school children and will be reaching out to other stakeholders in the days to come.”

Guided by Toyota’s Global Environmental Challenge 2050 that aims to reduce CO2 emissions to ZERO, Toyota Kirloskar Motor further up-scaled its various eco-initiatives in and around its manufacturing facility. Toyota has decided to challenge itself to reduce vehicles CO2 emissions to ZERO by 2050. From fuel efficient vehicle to developing ever better eco-technologies and approaches, TKM focuses on environmentally sustainable solutions in every business operation and every vehicle that is manufactured.

The Toyota Environment Challenge 2050, which is developed in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, aims to have new vehicle zero CO2 emissions; zero CO2 emissions throughout vehicle lifecycle, plants with zero CO2; challenge of minimizing and optimizing water usage; establishing a recycling based society and system and establishing a future society in harmony with nature. Toyota Kirloskar Motor India has aligned its environmental activities in line with these challenges and is recognized as a “Eco-model Plant” aligning with its second challenge of “Plant with ZERO Co2” among the Asia Pacific affiliates of Toyota.

Instituted in 2006, the CII-ITC Sustainability Awards recognizes and rewards excellence in businesses that are seeking ways to be more sustainable and inclusive in their activities. CII CESD has developed an awarding framework based on the EFQM [European Foundation for Quality Management] Business Excellence Model and the organizations are evaluated against this framework. Winners of this award are India's Most Sustainable role models creating benchmark, inspiring all business entities to follow. This award is a part of the continued efforts of CESD to create awareness on sustainability practices and to generate capacities in business.

In continuation to the above efforts, TKM also follows the approach of Learn, Perform and Drive to develop the Eco-Mind of employees. In addition to creating awareness, TKM also involve its employees physically in afforestation drives, environment month promotion and other Eco CSR activities with an intent to bring a sense of ownership towards the environment.

Some of the key sustainable plant initiatives are the afforestation drive which includes plantation of 2.75 lakh saplings inside the premises, utilization of best available technology and promotion of eco-activities such as on-site rainwater harvesting pond of capacity 51,000 cubic meter meets 19% of our total water requirement. In addition to this, our modern effluent treatment plant further recycles about 63% of treated effluent, thereby reducing the dependency on freshwater usage. TKM will further continue to evolve & adopt eco touch in its every business operation towards creating more happier society for people to live in.

Indian IT, Startups Likely to Hire 5 Lakh People in 2019: Mohandas Pai

India’s information technology (IT) services sector and startups together are expected to hire up to five lakh people in 2019 as demand for freshers are on the upswing, an industry veteran said on Wednesday.

Former Chief Financial Officer of IT major Infosys Ltd, T V Mohandas Pai said entry-level packages in the industry went up by as much as 20% in 2018, after stagnation in salaries for the past seven years. “Growth is coming back to the Indian IT services industry,” he said, talking about industry highlights in 2018 and prospects in the coming calendar year. Pai said 2018 saw “H-1B visa situation getting tougher,” Indian companies focusing more on Japan and Southeast Asia, massive expansion of captives and buy-backs by big companies.

Hyderabad has become a hot destination, with many new age companies coming to the Telangana capital, thanks to good infrastructure, and “very good marketing” by KTR (K T Rama Rao, who served as IT Minister in the previous TRS government), according to him.

He also said Indian companies were now trying to expand in markets in Asia.