Air India Unveils Refreshed Website Featuring In-House Design And Significant Technology Upgrade

·         Air India unveils a refreshed website powered by a significantly upgraded technology stack and a new look-and-feel created by the airline’s in-house design team. 

·         New website is expected to improve customer experience across online services, including travel inspiration, flight search, flight bookings, payments, bookings management, loyalty, customer support and digital marketing. 

Air India, India’s leading airline and a Star Alliance member, today announced a major technology upgrade and design refresh to its website www.airindia.com, with the objective of providing its domestic and global customers with an easy-to-use, informative digital channel. The significant experience redesign of the website was planned and executed by Air India’s in-house design and content teams based in Kochi and Gurugram in India and Silicon Valley in the USA. The experience management, digital marketing, analytics and personalization technology upgrades rolled out on the airline’s website are expected to contribute to a significant improvement in customer experience. This will also lead to an increase in the aggregate value and share of direct-channel revenues for the airline, while contributing to the airline’s efforts to provide customers with efficient pre and post-flight support. 

Air India’s Vihaan.AI transformation program envisions a rapid increase in the airline’s customer base driven by improvements in operational efficiencies across the board and a significant fleet expansion made possible by the airline’s historic order of 470 new aircraft. The airline’s website is a key component of serving this burgeoning customer base effectively and thereby increasing its direct-channel revenues. The technology re-platforming of the website will enable the rapid rollout of new customer-friendly features which was not possible with the two-decades old technologies used earlier. It is also expected to lead to user perceptible improvements in the performance of the website in areas ranging from time-to-load to perceived response time while making the website accessible to users with vision or hearing disabilities. Since nearly two-thirds of the airline’s website traffic comes from mobile devices, the website is designed to be mobile-friendly, accessible, and as intuitive on the smaller screens of mobiles as it is on a computer. The company has applied its ‘cloud-only’ principle to its website, with no on-premise components in the system’s architecture. 

“In our mission to digitally delight our customers at every touchpoint, our website plays a central starring role. It is an important medium using which we share our products with customers, help them get inspired by the destinations we serve, book their journeys with ease, and provide outstanding pre-flight and post-flight service. In our quest for the best technological solutions for building our website and the associated suite of digital marketing tools, we have deployed a set of comprehensive and well-integrated set of solutions from the world’s best technology companies that we believe will bring to life the beautiful designs of our in-house designers and provide a pleasing and easy-to-use digital channel for our valued customers,” said Air India’s Chief Digital and Technology Officer, Dr. Satya Ramaswamy. “This website upgrade we have launched now is just the first in a series of design, content and feature improvements we have planned for the coming months that will culminate in what we believe will be a clear global leadership position for Air India’s digital direct channels,” he added.  

Coinciding with the launch of the new website is the change of Air India’s URL to www.airindia.com This change from the earlier ‘.in’ domain URL is consistent with the ambition of the airline to transform into a truly global airline based in India that attracts travellers from countries and cultures around the world. Along with the technology and design upgrade of its website, Air India has also implemented a minor design refresh of its mobile app. The company is working on a major upgrade to its mobile app that is expected to go live towards the end of the year.  

About Air India: Founded by the legendary JRD Tata, Air India pioneered India’s aviation sector. Since its first flight on October 15, 1932, Air India has an extensive domestic network and has spread its wings beyond to become a major international airline with a network across USA, Canada, UK, Europe, Far-East, South-East Asia, Australia, and the Gulf. Air India is a member of Star Alliance, the largest global airline consortium. After 69 years as a government-owned enterprise, Air India and Air India Express were welcomed back into the Tata group in January 2022. The present management at Air India is driving the five-year transformation roadmap under the aegis of Vihaan.AI to establish itself as a world-class global airline with an Indian heart.  

Vihaan.AI is Air India’s transformational roadmap over five years with clear milestones. It focuses on dramatically growing both its network and fleet, developing a completely revamped customer proposition, improving reliability and on-time performance. As part of Vihaan.AI, in January 2023 the airline has placed the industry’s largest-ever order for new aircraft, at 470, and has committed more than USD400m to completely refit the interiors of all widebody aircraft with new seats and entertainment systems.  

About the Tata Group: Founded by Jamsetji Tata in 1868, the Tata Group is a global enterprise, headquartered in India, comprising 30 companies across ten verticals. The Group operates in more than 100 countries across six continents, with a mission 'To improve the quality of life of the communities we serve globally, through long-term stakeholder value creation based on Leadership with Trust’.  

Tata Sons is the principal investment holding company and promoter of Tata companies. Sixty-six percent of the equity share capital of Tata Sons is held by philanthropic trusts, which support education, health, livelihood generation and art and culture. In 2021-22, the revenue of Tata companies, taken together, was $128 billion (INR 9.6 trillion). These companies collectively employ over 935,000 people.  

Each Tata company or enterprise operates independently under the guidance and supervision of its own Board of Directors. There are 29 publicly-listed Tata enterprises with a combined market capitalisation of $311 billion (INR 23.6 trillion) as on March 31, 2022. Companies include Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Tata Chemicals, Tata Consumer Products, Titan, Tata Capital, Tata Power, Indian Hotels, Tata Communications, Tata Digital, and Tata Electronics.     

55% Of MSMEs Use Mobile Hotspots To Connect To The Internet For Business Operations: PayNearby Study

*  80% MSMEs said that the adoption of digital technology has had a positive impact on their businesses and personal lives

*  Most digitally adept small business owners fall in the age group of 18-30 years

*  Smartphones are the most preferred digital device among the MSMEs, followed by desktop/laptop

*  65% chose English as their preferred language to understand technology and conduct business transactions

*  30% said that cost was a deterrent while adopting technology and 28% grappled with poor internet connectivity

*  Facebook is the most popular social media app and YouTube the most preferred entertainment app

The MSME sector in India is on an ambitious growth curve and in recent years, there has been a progressive change in the mindsets of small business owners towards technology adoption. In an interesting insight, PayNearby, India’s leading branchless banking and digital network, today said that more than 71% Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in retail, use some form of digital technology for their day-to-day business operations. The report further highlighted that more than 80% of MSMEs admitted that the adoption of digital technology has had a positive impact on their businesses and personal lives.

The insight was shared as part of a detailed survey titled - MSME Digital Index 2023 - a Pan-India report showcasing technology consumption by MSMEs at the last mile, released by PayNearby today. In its first edition, the report was prepared basis a nationwide survey conducted by the company among 5,000+ MSMEs in the retail space (kirana stores, mobile recharge stores, medical stores, customer service point (CSPs), travel agents, among others), recording their tech awareness and tech consumption patterns in their professional and personal lives.

According to the survey, the small business owners within the age group of 18-30 years were the most digitally adept, with over 75% of this age bracket owning a smartphone to run their day-to-day business operations and accessing digital content through it. It was immediately followed by the age group 31-40 years. Notably, 32% of them citied that their monthly income is more than ?15,000. The uptake of smartphones underlines the critical role played by the internet in helping bridge the infrastructure gap and drive tech inclusion at the last mile by onboarding MSMEs on the digital bandwagon.

Among all digital devices, smartphones were cited as the most popular category, with 68% of the users claiming them as their most preferred choice. 66% MSMEs claimed to use smartphones for business activities consuming 2GB -5GB of the internet in a day. More than 52% of these small businesses spend less than ?500 per month on internet consumption. Thanks to the Digital India mission and the BharatNet initiative of the Government, internet penetration in Bharat has accelerated. It is now accessible to citizens at affordable prices, thus helping bridge the digital divide. In terms of connecting to the internet, approximately 55% cited that they used mobile hotspots to connect to the internet at work. This was followed by Wi-Fi routers at 30%. The use cases of ethernet cable and dongle were a mere 10% and 5%, respectively. 73% used mobile internet to connect to the internet at their homes.

The use of digital devices was primarily for work purposes, with 32% spending 4-6 hours on their phones. However, when it came to leisure activities like social media or online entertainment, the report noted that 60% were spending less than 3 hours. Among the social media apps, Facebook took the top slot with 27%, and YouTube was the most preferred entertainment app with 47% usage. Interestingly, 57% of the respondents said that they did not have gaming apps of any kind installed on their phones.

The report further stated that of all the tech-savvy MSMEs, a majority of 25% used accounting software, followed by POS software and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software at 20% and 17%, respectively, to manage their business operations. When asked about the purpose of the usage of digital devices, 25% used them for account keeping and payment acceptance, while 20% stated that technology was used to process transactions. It validates the need to create a thriving tech ecosystem to empower MSMEs so that they can be brought up the growth curve for a stronger India.

In the financial services category, Aadhaar banking and UPI were the two most popular banking services availed by MSMEs at the last mile. Additionally, WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business, cumulatively, were the most widely used messaging apps with 97% usage.

On being asked about the positive impact of technology on their businesses, 32% said that it has helped grow their business by improving efficiency in business operations and 28% said that with technology they have seen an increase in their sales and income. When it comes to the main challenges faced in using technology for business operations, 30% said that they could not afford the high cost of technology, and 29% grappled with poor internet connectivity. Remarkably, 65% chose English as their preferred language to understand technology and conduct business transactions, followed by Hindi at 24%.

Commenting on the report findings, Anand Kumar Bajaj, Founder, MD & CEO, PayNearby, said, “The findings in the report are inspiring and emphasize the fact that Bharat is gearing to walk hand-in-hand with India. The digital gap in the country is gradually getting bridged. Riding on the back of the smartphones, internet and fintechs, MSMEs at the last mile are increasingly embracing tech. However, this is just the start. We need to create a strong eco-system where not only access to technology is made cheaper and easier, but also provide an infrastructure where people can be skilled and their tech inhibitions and apprehensions suitably addressed. For this, technology has to be form factor agnostic, easy-to-use, easy-to-manage and easy-to-scale.

At PayNearby, we focus on providing new-age technology solutions—such as providing data insights, artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR) and machine learning (ML) – to help MSMEs in Bharat harness the full potential of tech deployment in their operations. Our innovative, tech-led Distribution-as-a-Service (DaaS) platform has encouraged small businesses to explore novel revenue streams, which has, in turn, fueled significant growth in the MSME sector. This digital transition will usher in a new era of commerce and create millions of livelihood opportunities in the hinterlands and small towns, thereby driving economic growth and social upliftment in the real Bharat.”

Commenting on the MSME Digital Index, Jayatri Dasgupta, CMO, PayNearby, said, “India is at the cusp of a tech revolution. However, for this to happen, MSMEs need the necessary tools to get inducted into this fast-moving economy. The MSME Digital Index is our effort to understand the uptake of technology in the MSME segment and highlight areas that need to evolve to bridge the digital divide in our industry.

While it is heartening to see that there is an uptake of technology, in some form, among MSMEs, much needs to be done on upskilling, connectivity and cost of infrastructure to make it more affordable and accessible at the last mile. The MSME report is an eye-opener as it will help us create the right solutions for this sector, in a form that is of most value to them. At PayNearby, our commitment to connect Bharat with India and bridge the digital divide remains stronger than ever.”

About PayNearby:

Incepted in April 2016, PayNearby is a DPIIT-certified company and India’s leading branchless banking and digital network. PayNearby operates on a B2B2C model, where it partners with neighbourhood retail stores and enables them with the tools to provide digital and financial services to local communities. PayNearby’s mission is to make financial services available to everyone, everywhere. The company aims to simplify high-end technology so that it can be easily assimilated at the last mile while transforming the lives of its retail partners and customers.

Today, PayNearby, through its tech-led DaaS (Distribution as a Service) network, serves 75% of India and is enabling services like cash withdrawal, remittance, Aadhaar Banking, bill payment and recharges, savings, travel, digital payments, insurance and more. Currently, PayNearby’s 50 lakh-plus micro-entrepreneurs across 20,000+ PIN codes assist 20+ crore customers across the country to the tune of more than ~7500 crores GTV per month.

To know more: www.paynearby.in

Economic Crime And Fraud Continue To Plague Indian Companies, 57% Of All Fraud Incidents In India Are ‘Platform' Frauds: PwC India

*       99% of frauds in the past 24 months have been on platforms such as financial, social media, goods, enterprises, media sharing, knowledge sharing and services

*        44% of the perpetrators commit fraud for financial gains

*        26% of Indian organisations suffered losses of over USD 1 million due to platform fraud

The onset of the pandemic has led to an increase in platform fraud, a novel form of economic crime that involves fraudulent activities associated with social media, e-commerce, enterprise and FinTech platforms. The surge in remote work, e-commerce, delivery applications and contactless payments has further contributed to the rise of this type of fraud. 57% of all fraud incidents in India were platform fraud. More than 26% of Indian organisations lost over USD 1 million due to platform fraud, and 44% of the perpetrators were found to commit fraud for financial gain. This is as per the second edition of PwC’s Global Economic Crime and Fraud Survey 2022: India Insights, titled “Platforms: The new frontier of fraud in India”.

Economic crime and fraud continue to be a significant challenge for Indian companies, with 66% of organisations experiencing at least one form of economic crime in the past two years as per the first edition of the report. Platforms have emerged as a new avenue for committing economic crime. The survey highlights that 99% of fraud incidents in the past 24 months have been on platforms such as financial, social media, goods, enterprises, media sharing, knowledge sharing and services.

Amongst the motives identified in such cases, financial gain is the most prevalent, with 44% of perpetrators in India engaging in such activities for monetary reasons. Brand damage is another common motive cited by 32% of the surveyed organisations, followed by competitive advantage at 21%.

Unfortunately, platform fraud is continuously evolving and spreading rapidly, which is concerning for Indian companies.

Puneet Garkhel, Partner and Leader, Forensics Services, PwC India, said: “Indian consumers and organisations have been rapidly embracing new platforms over the past few years. On average, an Indian company operates with five different platforms as part of its regular business activities today. The emergence of and surge in e-commerce, contactless payments, home delivery models, remote working, etc., have not only led to various platform-based innovations but also opened avenues of entry for fraudsters. Organisations need to be cognisant of these evolving threats and adequately invest in fraud prevention and detection strategies to safeguard themselves.”

Enterprise platforms are a prime target for malware, phishing, money laundering and ransomware. The threat of ransomware, in particular, has grown to an alarming level. Financial frauds on transactions made to or from platforms accounted for 89% of all platform frauds. These frauds vary from basic unauthorised digital purchases to more complex identity theft and triangulation fraud. Further, payment fraud, particularly through credit cards and digital wallets, accounted for 92% of all customer frauds in India. Customers also face various other types of frauds, such as impersonation, authorised push payments and application/lending fraud.

“Business leaders are often unaware of their exposure to platform fraud, as they do not view platforms as a distinct sector with common risk considerations. Instead, they treat each platform as a separate vendor with its own threat profile. As transaction processing shifts to platforms, the obligation towards security is also transferred, but many platforms are not equipped to identify, prevent and mitigate fraud like banks are,” Puneet added.

Combating platform fraudsters

* Four out of every ten platform frauds in India were conducted by internal perpetrators. Moreover, 26% of platform frauds involved collusion between internal actors and external perpetrators. This implies that if companies have stronger internal controls in place, over two-thirds of all platform frauds can be mitigated.

* Fraudulent activity on platforms demands the involvement of executives and a cohesive approach that spans the entire enterprise, prioritising the ability to recover from adverse events.        A high-ranking executive should oversee the implementation of risk control policies. Leaders within the organisation should take charge of the risk management programme, especially in situations where a new threat could significantly disrupt the business.

* Risk leaders should design a strategy for identifying, assessing and responding to fraud. This includes implementing a monitoring programme to detect anomalies and being aware of spikes in online activity or negative media coverage. It is crucial for businesses that rely heavily on platforms to pay attention to news coverage, consumer opinions and watchdog sites. Social media monitoring can also be a valuable tool for detecting potential fraudulent activity.

* Although purpose-built transaction monitoring systems are useful for preventing and detecting issues, it is also important to have knowledge of partners’ controls, such as third-party audit reports, particularly if the exposure is significant.

With its rapid growth and increasing sophistication, platform fraud is a major threat to Indian organisations. Despite anti-fraud measures, platform fraud remains a serious and mounting threat, exacerbated by the pandemic’s impact on digital transactions. Technology offers potential solutions, such as document verification and anomaly detection, as revealed in our 2022 survey. However, the key to safeguarding against this new wave of fraud lies in building resilience into a comprehensive risk strategy.

Report Link: https://www.pwc.in/GECS 

Launching Revvity: A Scientific Solutions Company Powering Innovation From Discovery To Cure

* Transformation aimed at revolutionizing next generation scientific breakthroughs that solve the world’s greatest health challenges

* Trusted partner to pharma, government and diagnostics customers with complete, end-to-end solutions

* To begin trading as RVTY under new name on May 16th (formerly NYSE: PKI)

Revvity, Inc. officially launches today as a science-based solutions company that leverages innovation across life sciences and diagnostics to help improve lives everywhere. Born from two words, “revolutionize” (rev) and “vita” (vit) meaning “life” in Latin, Revvity delivers end-to-end expertise and solutions from research discovery to development, and diagnosis to cure. The Company was previously affiliated with PerkinElmer, Inc.

“The unveiling of Revvity is the capstone of a nearly year-long journey that has transformed who we are and reinforces why our work matters,” said Prahlad Singh, president and chief executive officer of Revvity. “At Revvity, we are united with our customers to impact health across the lifespan. Our purpose is to expand the boundaries of human potential through science. We view the challenges facing our customers as a call to action.”

Revvity provides reagents, consumables, assays, instruments and software to customers in markets ranging from pharma and biotech, diagnostic labs, academia and government agencies. “We’re a translational company in the sense that our capabilities facilitate decision making between research and clinical customers,” remarked Singh. “With cross-business collaborations between our automation, multi-omics offerings, and our Signals software business, we have unique capabilities which put us in an optimal position to accelerate breakthrough solutions – starting with preclinical research and scientific discovery, all the way through to diagnosing and helping to treat disease.”

Changes to Brand Architecture

Industry leading franchises, BioLegend, EUROIMMUN, Tulip Diagnostics and ViaCord retain their own names as unique product lines.

The Company’s comprehensive scientific software platform, previously known as PerkinElmer Informatics, will become Revvity Signals Software, Inc.

Revvity Omics replaces PerkinElmer Genomics as the Company's genomics services business.

Cisbio, Horizon Discovery, Nexcelom Bioscience, Omni International, Oxford Immunotec, SIRION Biotech and SonoVol will now identify as Revvity, while maintaining their specific product names.

Renewables & Hydro Cross 40% Of India's Installed Power Generation Capacity In FY23: CEEW-CEF

– Renewables corner 92% of India's power generation capacity addition in FY23

– Total RE capacity stands at 125 GW, with another 83 GW under implementation

– Wind capacity addition picks up – doubles in FY23 compared to FY22

India's total installed power generation capacity reached 416 GW in FY23, of which 125 GW (30 per cent) comes from renewable energy (RE) and 47 GW (11 per cent) comes from hydro, according to a report by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water's Centre for Energy Finance (CEEW-CEF). Another 83 GW of RE is under implementation as of February 2023. Under its Nationally Determined Contributions, India has committed to 50 per cent of cumulative installed power capacity from non-fossil fuel-based sources by 2030. The CEEW-CEF's Market Handbook for 2022-23 identifies and analyses trends critical to India's energy transition.

In FY23, renewable energy once again dominated India's power generation capacity addition – of the 17 GW added, 92 per cent came from renewables. Further, the report highlighted that solar (grid-scale and rooftop) continued to take the lead, accounting for 84 per cent of RE capacity added. However, wind capacity addition doubled over the year to reach 2.3 GW. The overall share of renewables in India's power generation mix now stands at 11.8 per cent. Meanwhile, net capacity addition for coal declined by 60 per cent compared to last year.

Gagan Sidhu, Director, CEEW-CEF, said, "There are several positive indicators of India's renewable energy capacity maturing and evolving beyond the solar-focussed market of recent years. FY23 saw wind capacity addition pick up again and, in fact, the newly notified renewable purchase obligation (RPO) trajectory has a dedicated wind RPO to be met with projects commissioned after 31 March 2022. Further, procurement under innovative formats such as hybrids and RE plus storage accounted for 31 per cent of capacity auctioned during the year. Finally, over 4 GWh of standalone energy storage tenders were concluded.”

In March 2023, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy directed renewable energy implementing agencies (REIAs) to conduct bids for 50 GW RE annually until FY28. The report found that ~10 GW of RE capacity was auctioned in FY23 and another 41 GW was under the tendering process. This was also a significant year for energy storage in India – 4,020 MWh of standalone energy storage tenders were concluded.

Ruchita Shah, Programme Associate, CEEW-CEF, said, "FY23 has been a pivotal year for renewable energy. First, the reverse auction mechanism for wind projects was scrapped and the MNRE announced a five-year RE bidding trajectory that directs the REIAs to conduct 50 GW bids annually till FY28. A long-term bidding trajectory will provide a clear vision to RE developers, enabling them to plan financing and manage their supply chain for a longer duration. In addition, it will support the domestic RE manufacturing industry in estimating the demand for solar modules, wind turbine generators and other components."

About CEEW

The Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) is one of Asia’s leading not-for-profit policy research institutions. The Council uses data, integrated analysis, and strategic outreach to explain – and change – the use, reuse, and misuse of resources. It prides itself on the independence of its high-quality research, develops partnerships with public and private institutions, and engages with wider public. In 2021, CEEW once again featured extensively across ten categories in the 2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report. The Council has also been consistently ranked among the world’s top climate change think tanks. Follow us on Twitter @CEEWIndia for latest updates.

NESCAFÉ Showcases The Art Of Becoming Special In Their New Cold Coffee Campaign “Jo Banaye, Special Ban Jaaye”

NESCAFÉ, one of the world’s most loved coffee brands, has launched a new campaign this summer. The campaign shows the ease of making a delicious glass of NESCAFÉ Cold Coffee and becoming the ‘special one’ in the process.

Commenting on the campaign Sunayan Mitra, Head, Coffee & Beverages, Nestlé India said, “The love for cold coffee is growing in India as many youngsters are entering the category through cold coffee. We have witnessed this trend in out-of-home consumption points and believe that it presents us with a great opportunity. The challenge remains that many consumers are not sure about preparing it at home. Through this campaign we wanted to showcase how coffee connects loved ones at home and how easy it is to make an indulgent glass of cold coffee using NESCAFÉ.”

Ashish Chakravarty – Executive Director and Head of Creative, McCann India said, “To dispel the belief that it’s difficult to make great-tasting Cold Coffee, we decided to show how the young teenage son of the family uses this incorrect perception to his advantage and enjoys the privilege of not having to do laborious home chores. The film uses the popular and iconic NESCAFÉ sonic branding (Paparapa) in a clever manner by making it a part of the pivotal dialogue in the story, making it more than just a musical hook.”

The latest TVC highlights story of how a young boy smartly paves his way out of doing household chores in absence of an essential member of the family - the house help, by making NESCAFÉ Classic Cold Coffee for the family.

Name of Creative Agency: McCann India

YouTube Link: (104) NESCAFÉ Classic Cold Coffee | Jo banaye, special ban jaye - YouTube

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Honoured With CII-ITC Sustainability Awards 2022 for ‘Excellence In Biodiversity’

Recognizing the commitment towards sustainable business practices, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) was honoured today with the CII-ITC Sustainability Award 2022, under the category ‘Excellence in Biodiversity’ (Manufacturing Sector) by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in the gracious presence of Shri. Nitin Gadkari – Honourable Union Minister - Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Government of India as the Chief Guest.

Towards environmental sustainability, in 2015, Toyota’s Eco-efforts were enhanced by the announcement of its six aspirational global environment challenges. As a part of this, Toyota’s key focus is to achieve ‘Carbon Neutrality by 2050’ & ‘Net Zero Carbon in Manufacturing Operations’ by 2035.

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. In this direction, TKM has been recognised for its multi-fold efforts dedicated to conserving the environment by not just improving the products and processes, but also proactively working towards developing a future society in ‘Harmony with Nature’ under its three key verticals, namely:

(i)                  Green Wave Project - Promoting mass plantation activities inside and outside TKM by consistently expanding the afforestation efforts, involving all its stakeholders.

- Over the years, TKM has planted more than 3,26,000 trees across 112 acres of land within its factory premises that includes 650 different floral diversity, contributing to a cumulative reduction of 4,700 tons of carbon and attracting the faunal diversity of more than 260 species.

- More than 2 lakh saplings have been distributed to its employee households & nearby community, restoring habitat and enhancement of biodiversity

(ii)                Education for Sustainable Development: Under this initiative, TKM aims to promote learnings and good practices on sustainable development amongst all its stakeholders. In this direction, TKM has created an environmental experiential learning center namely Ecozone (spread across 25 acres with 17 theme parks and home to 65,000 trees with 650 native species) for children, within our manufacturing facility aimed at creating the environment leaders and change champions for the future, to usher in desired behavioral change in the communities. The center also enables to explore and understand suitable solutions to address various existing environmental issues as well as to sensitize stakeholders towards adopting eco-friendly lifestyle and minimizing the impact on the planet. This facility demonstrates to young minds the importance of various elements of environment covering the seven modules of Water, Waste, Climate Change, Biodiversity, Energy, Silent Garden and Underground Ecology by sharing sensory experiences, which is beyond classroom learning. So far, more than 30,000 students have been a part of this learning experience.

(iii)               Today for Tomorrow Project: Through this program, TKM undertook Lake Rejuvenation project of Abbanakuppe Lake under TKM CSR initiative, benefitting more than 8,000 villagers from 6 nearby villages.

Furthermore, TKM adheres to the Learn, Perform, and Drive approach to foster an eco-mind among its employees. The company through its employee volunteer program called i-CARE (Community Action To Reach Everyone), involves its employees in various eco activities such as Dibbling for plant seeding (so far 3000 dibbles), land clean-up covering more than 0.5 acres of area, making bird nests from plastic bottles (230 bottles were recycled into planters) & imbibing the sense of  biodiversity conservation amongst youths from 100 shelter homes, reaching out to more than 59,000 people till date.

Needless to mention, Environment Conservation is inherent in the Toyota culture. The company’s vision, philosophy and guidelines are true reflections of its commitment for a sustainable future. It is 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'.

On receiving this prestigious award, Executive Vice President of Toyota Kirloskar Motor - Mr. Raju B. Ketkale said "We are delighted to receive this recognition for our unwavering commitment to sustainability and biodiversity conservation. This esteemed award serves as a testament to our relentless efforts in driving positive change towards environment protection and restoration. We believe it is critical to increase in-depth knowledge about ways and means to combat carbon emissions, beyond providing technologically advanced solutions, while achieving goals of carbon neutrality, as part of our ongoing effort to promote the adoption of sustainable mobility solutions across regions.

He further added, “Our focus extends beyond being an automobile manufacturer; we strive to become a responsible mobility company that actively contributes to safeguard our planet. This award underscores our continued pursuit of sustainable development, showcasing our various eco initiatives and contributions towards creating a harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature."

TKM will further continue to evolve & adopt eco touch in its every business operation towards creating more happier society for people to live in.