DELHI, 20th MAY 2022
Index of this Newsletter
INDIA
– GENERAL POLICY, INFRASTRUCTURES, COUNTRY FINANCES, ETC.
– AGRICULTURE, FISHING & RURAL DEVELOPMENT
– INDUSTRY, MANUFACTURE
– SERVICES (IT, R&D, Tourism, Healthcare, etc.)
INDIA & THE WORLD
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DELHI, 20th MAY 2022
NEWSLETTER, 20-V-2022
INDIA
– GENERAL POLICY, INFRASTRUCTURES, COUNTRY FINANCES, ETC.
1. NHAI live traffic movement feed at 214 toll plazas now available for commuters to help flag issues
ET Gov., 15 May 2022
The NHAI’s fresh move comes at a time when the penetration of FASTag in cars and bigger vehicles is over 95 percent, which enables automatic deduction of toll charge from the e-wallet.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Thursday made the live traffic movement at 214 toll plazas public by hosting the web link on its site. Officials said in the next few days this number will increase to 407 and subsequently all 700 toll plazas will go live. “The objective is to give information to people which they can see and flag issues that they face. Similarly, as our officers and the toll operators can also see the real time traffic flow at toll plazas, they can take quick action in case there is congestion or vehicle pile up,” said a senior NHAI official. He added this will enable the agency to verify every complaint quickly and take corrective steps. The NHAI has hosted the weblink in its “Citizen Charter” section and hence the commuters can raise the issues at toll plazas they often face for timely action. “We will create a system for commuters to raise complaints for their quick resolution. There will be round the clock monitoring in the backend,” the NHAI official said. Highway ministry officials said by putting the real time feed live in public domain, the NHAI has now taken greater responsibility to ensure that commuters don’t face any problem and there will be no scope of passing the blame on others on any issue. “It's a great move to go live with the real time toll plaza congestion view. But just a live feed makes it monotonous and hence there is a need to get ‘data and analytics’ driven outcome. This will help guide the highway authority to initiate actions and the toll collection agencies to take measures,” said Abhishek Ranjan, co-founder of Bulleye Technologies, a startup, which had developed a technology-based mechanism for ‘Daily Congestion Index’ for each toll plaza. This was launched by Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari in March last year. The NHAI’s fresh move comes at a time when the penetration of FASTag in cars and bigger vehicles is over 95 percent, which enables automatic deduction of toll charge from the e-wallet. A study done by the startup on 164 highly congested NH toll plazas across India show that the waiting time at these plazas have reduced by nearly 31 percent after the government made the use of FASTag mandatory for paying the toll charge.
2. India will have over 250 unicorns by 2025, says Iron Pillar report
IBEF, Apr. 19, 2022
By 2025, India will have around 250 unicorns, according to Iron Pillar, a venture growth investor, who made this prediction based on its unique data analysis in its Tech Unicorns Market Landscape Report IV.
In 2011, InMobi became India's first unicorn. Since then, 129 companies have been added to the list of unicorns, with 100 of them added since January 2019, for a total value of US$ 535 billion. The total number of unicorns in India more than doubled, from 62 to 130, in the last 15 months.
Unicorns built in India included 58 global cloud companies, 59 B2C (business to consumer) companies, and 13 B2B (business to business) companies. When compared to B2C companies, companies producing cloud products for the world from India are incredibly capital efficient, reaching unicorn status with 42% less capital. They also outperform on the number of exits and the value created per unit of capital raised. Global cloud unicorns have fewer financing rounds on average than B2C and B2B unicorns.
Entrepreneurs are growing their businesses at a faster rate, with half of the 130 companies reaching unicorn status within five years of their first institutional funding. The public listing of 12 unicorns is another sign of the Indian IT ecosystem's maturation.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
3. IIT-M, National Health Mission team up to jointly reduce maternal mortality rate
ET CIO, 22 Apr. 2022
A project report 'SmartNRP' was released by the National Health Mission (Tamil Nadu) director recently to reduce the maternal mortality rate in the presence IIT-Madras director-professor V Kamakoti, among others.
Chennai, Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, (IIT-M) were working with the National Health Mission of Tamil Nadu to improve health of newborns, as health workers were facing a major challenge at primary health centres (PHCs) in rural areas of the State. A project report 'SmartNRP' (neonatal resuscitation programme) was released by the National Health Mission (Tamil Nadu) director Darez Ahamed recently to reduce the maternal mortality rate in the presence IIT-Madras director-professor V Kamakoti, among others. A team at the IIT-Madras Centre of Excellence on virtual reality identified skill training of the health workers as the major challenge the country was facing particularly at the PHCs. "Using virtual reality, artificial intelligence/machine learning, the SmartNRP tool will be used for training the workers at PHCs in Tamil Nadu under the National Health Mission. This will be scaled subsequently to other States where NMR is very high", IIT-Madras said in a press release. "If you look at infant mortality, the biggest contributor is the neonatal mortality rate (NMR) which is death within 28 days of birth. Around 40 babies are lost per every 1,000 births. We want to bring this down to single digit and all these initiatives are towards this direction", Ahamed said. "IIT-Madras should also develop tools to train healthcare workers on various other areas such as treating accident victims...there are numerous other areas that virtual reality can be utilised", he said. Kamakoti said, "I am sure virtual reality will make impact not only on healthcare verticals but in other areas as well. There are a lot of very interesting ideas from IIT-Madras research scholars and students." The projects were supported by corporate social responsibility initiatives of INdiaIdeas.com(BillDesk). This support was crucial in developing the healthcare projects, the release said.
4. The Great Resignation – and how to avoid it?
ETHRWorld, 25 Apr. 2022 , Prachi Ghogle
As the world is getting back to normal and companies are calling their employees back to office, many of them are finding it difficult to adapt with the old schedule.
Anyone who works in the Human Resources is not alien to the term ‘Great Resignation’. It has been a constant topic of debate since over a year with some of the biggest publications writing about this new emerging phenomenon. So much so that a large section of modern working population today must be familiar with this term. So, what is Great Resignation? In a nutshell, it is a trend where the young employees or the working population is deciding to walk out of their jobs to be able to have more flexibility in their working hours in an attempt to prioritise their personal wellbeing as well as work-life balance. Many believe that this is the result of the ongoing pandemic and several long lockdown period, which has created a new entangled perspective towards working culture. People saved time by being able to work from home instead of having to travel to work every day, which they believe is a more effective way to spend their time. It also re-introduced them with the joy of spending time with their loved ones or indulging in activities that they find rejuvenating, in places of great comfort to them. Now, as the world is getting back to normal and companies are calling their employees back to office, many of them are finding it difficult to adapt with the old schedule. This is what is fuelling, what we call, the Great Resignation. Reasons for Great Resignation How big is this problem is a question for another time; but we must address the elephant in the room. Burnout rates were higher because of increased workload and extended working hours, as well as a blurring of work and family time. During this time, health and safety became a top focus, as did the rising demand for working from home. This prompted employees to seek for choices that would provide them with a better work-life balance and other benefits. While firms were initially compelled to work from home due to the pandemic's lethality, companies soon grew to appreciate this new way of working. It turned out to be a very efficient working paradigm with robust tracking tools and a clear responsibility and communication strategy. Employees can work from whatever location they like, with a hybrid approach that includes going to the office a few days a week. Now, as companies decide to go back to their old style of working, they are facing a unique resistance. The attrition rates are high because of a number of reasons but also because many companies are willing to offer what the employees seek – work-life balance and better insurance benefits. This, combined with competitive compensation, has given the employees an option to move on from their current employer. Additionally, the employees also have the option of choosing their preferred base location, the flexibility of working in their comfort zone, and the ability to balance work and personal obligations. Inter- and intra-departmental communication, teamwork, and personal development are all enhanced by a few days at the workplace. It also provides a welcoming atmosphere for new employees. How to avoid it Every challenge has a solution, and the problem of Great Resignation can also be avoided. What companies need to do is find the most suitable ground which provides employees what they are looking for without compromising on productivity and growth. The first thing that they need to focus on is preventing employee burnout and this can be achieved in many ways. A strong appreciation and recognition process, providing mental health counselling, organising engaging activities and events, encouraging employees to take leaves, and conducting regular survey to understand their challenges; these are some of the steps that companies can start taking immediately. Apart from this, a more transparent system can be created where employees are provided with regular updates regarding the company. This will help them in feeling connected to the workplace and take ownership for the work. Employees should also have an easy access to the managers so that they can feel heard. In addition, personal feedback sessions can also maintain a strong connect between the employees and the managers. A platform can be created for the employees to share their grievances openly. The option to choose work from home whenever needed due to personal reasons can also be made available depending on the nature of work. These are some of the solutions that can be opted for to halt and reverse the process of Great Resignation. As we have today entered a new era, living in the post-pandemic world, with an entirely different working population, dynamic and critical initiatives are extremely important to ensure that the attrition rates are brought down. This may require setting up of processes and supporting employees in their career progression. However, this can all add-up to overall increased productivity, and benefit the organisations in the long run. The Great Resignation can certainly be avoided. The author, Prachi Ghogle, is Head of HR at SIRO Clinpharm.
DISCLAIMER: The views expressed are solely of the author and ETHRWorld does not necessarily subscribe to it. ETHRWorld will not be responsible for any damage caused to any person or organisation directly or indirectly.
5. Odisha urges Centre to establish exclusive university to promote maritime studies, training and research
ET Gov. 15, May, 2022
About 95 percent of India's trade by volume and 70 percent by value moves through maritime transport, which shows the importance of ports and their contributions in sustaining the growth of the Indian economy.
Transport and Commerce Minister of Odisha Padmanabha Behera
The Odisha government demanded on Friday that the Centre should establish a maritime university in the state. Transport and Commerce Minister of Odisha, Padmanabha Behera, raised this demand during the third meeting of National Sagarmala Apex Committee (NSAC) held under the chairmanship of Union Minister for Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, in New Delhi on Friday. Maritime transport is extremely important for both economic and cultural development. About 95 percent of India's trade by volume and 70 percent by value moves through maritime transport, which shows the importance of ports and their contributions in sustaining the growth of the Indian economy, Behera said while speaking at the meeting. "Keeping in the future scenario of Odisha in mind, establishment of a maritime university is felt necessary to facilitate and promote maritime studies, training and research," he said. He requested the Centre to examine and help the state in establishing the university for future development of the maritime sector in the whole east coast of India. Behera requested for proper examination at the time of finalising the Indian Port Bill, which would strengthen the spirit of cooperative federalism. The Odisha minister also demanded funding for Gopalpur-Rairakhol, Buramara-Chakulia and Badampahar-Keonjhar rail link projects under the Sagarmala scheme. Odisha, a principal maritime state, has a coastline of about 480 km. The state government has already identified 14 potential sites for development of non-major ports. The minister further said the state government has received one proposal for setting up of ship building and ship recycling industries at Chandabali in Bhadrak district, which is under active consideration.
- AGRICULTURE, FISHING & RURAL DEVELOPMENT
6. AAI to provide space for self help groups to display locally-developed products at airports
ET Gov. 15 May, 2022
SHGs are already showcasing their products at 12 airports, including at Agartala, Kushinagar, Udaipur and Madurai, under the Airport as Venue for Skilled Artisans of the Region (AVSAR) initiative.
In efforts to help artisans, Airports Authority of India (AAI) has started providing space for self help groups at various airports to sell their locally-developed products. Self help groups (SHGs) are already showcasing their products at 12 airports, including at Agartala, Kushinagar, Udaipur and Madurai, under the AVSAR (Airport as Venue for Skilled Artisans of the Region) initiative. Airports at Varanasi, Calicut, Kolkata, Coimbatore and Raipur, among others, in coordination with the respective state governments are in the process of allotting space to local SHGs, according to AAI. Other airports that plan to have SHG outlets are Vizag, Bhubaneswar, Raipur, Silchar, Dibrugarh and Jorhat. "Showcasing the unique identity and culture of the various regions and states, the objective of AVSAR initiative is to not only provide visibility/platform to SHGs at airports but also introduce the heritage and ethos of the place to air travellers," AAI Chairman Sanjeev Kumar said in a statement to PTI.
He also said AAI is committed to contributing to the prime minister's vision of creating an atmosphere for strengthening SHGs and promoting local artisans. Outlets of various SHGs are already open at 12 airports -- Agartala, Dehradun, Kushinagar, Udaipur, Amritsar, Belagavi, Chennai, Ranchi, Indore, Surat, Madurai and Bhopal. In the given space -- an area of 100-200 square feet -- at each airport, SHGs will display the products made by rural women and artisans. The space would be allotted to SHGs by turns wherein each group will get to display their products for 15 days. AVSAR has been started to help build strong grassroot institutions empowering poor rural women and to provide promising market opportunities and right promotional avenues, AAI said.
7. Fresh engineering graduates from rural Nashik cash in on IT job demand
ETHRWorld, 21 Apr. 2022
"After high school, my friends advised me not to choose engineering, as many remained unemployed even after graduating. But my parents had a lot of expectations from me, and I decided to pursue engineering," said the 23-year-old.
However, his anxiety dissipated after he landed a job in Wipro in 2021 - when the pandemic was still raging and most companies were struggling to stay afloat.
Nashik: Santosh Kangane from Gulwanch village in Nashik was in his final year of engineering when the lockdown was imposed. Like scores of others, he feared he would drown in the pool of the growing unemployment figure in the country, amid the pandemic. "After high school, my friends advised me not to choose engineering, as many remained unemployed even after graduating. But my parents had a lot of expectations from me, and I decided to pursue engineering," said the 23-year-old. However, his anxiety dissipated after he landed a job in Wipro in 2021 - when the pandemic was still raging and most companies were struggling to stay afloat. "I didn't think I'd find a job so quickly, especially when the lockdown had slowed down the economy," Kangane added. After Covid-19 broke out across the world in 2020, students and job aspirants were seemingly staring at a bleak future. Companies had imposed a freeze on recruitments, and many had started laying off employees. But it was relatively smooth sailing for students from the rural areas of Nashik who completed their engineering course in 2020 and 2021. Most managed to secure jobs in the information technology (IT) sector. Harshal Awhad from Nimgaon in rural Nashik was part of this lucky bunch. He studied mechanical engineering and got placed in Cognizant after completing another six-month course. "I had never imagined I'd get a job during Covid times. I realised there was a huge manpower demand in the IT sector and cashed in," the 21-year-old told 101Reporters. A digital shift In recent years, hiring in the IT sector saw an unexpected surge. In fact, the country's four major IT service providers Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Wipro and HCL Technologies, which employ more than one-fourth of India's total workforce recruited around 1,20,000 freshers in FY22, according to News18. Furthermore, TCS, Wipro, HCL Technologies and Infosys ramped up their hiring in the second quarter of FY22 and recruited over 50,000 people. This took their total recruitments to more than one lakh (1,02,517) in the first six months of the financial year. While one may wonder how such employment opportunities cropped up at IT firms, at a time when most companies were laying off large chunks of their workforce, the human resources department of Wipro attributes it to the spurt of digitalisation. "The IT sector was expected to offer vacancies in five to 10 years, but the lockdown expedited the process," said a Wipro human resources executive, requesting anonymity. "Everything moved online - from banking and shopping to education and offices. This opened up more job opportunities for fresh engineering graduates from rural areas." Moreover, the introduction of remote and hybrid work during the pandemic - an added effect of digitalisation - also increased pressure on the IT sector, calling for more hands on deck and ushering in a spike in recruitment. "Direct campus recruitment rose due to the increased workload," explained Suraj Roy from the HR department of Mindtree. "Companies are trying to get work done by hiring and training freshers. The recruitment process is the same, but hirings are now being done on a larger scale."
Spotlight on the talent Lending another perspective to this spike in IT recruitments from rural Nashik, NASSCOM Vice President (Industry Initiatives) KS Vishwanathan attributes it to more than just the newly adopted work-from-home model of operation. Speaking to 101Reporters, he said there's a larger strategic plan to take work to where the talent is - a plan that was accelerated into action by the advent of Covid. The IT industry's discovery of digital talent in what he called "emerging towns" - Nashik among them - was sharp and quick. Vishwanathan said it allowed the workforce, scattered by the lockdown and often residents of Tier-2 cities and small towns, to rejoin work. "This trend will continue," he added, on work being redirected from the existing IT hubs of India. "NASSCOM is working with state and central governments to develop the next 10-15 cities in the country as micro IT hubs, taking their number from eight to 20. In fact, IT companies part of NASSCOM reported that during Covid, IT services were being delivered from 170 different locations across India. The push now is on developing these centres into hubs." This hiring spree made one Hrishikesh Bodke's dream a reality. He graduated in civil engineering in 2021. As the pandemic had severely affected the construction sector, he had applied for a job in the IT sector and was hired by Capgemini. "My job will make my parents' and my life better," said the 22-year-old from Nashik's Nimgaon. Furthermore, Vishakha Shankar, a talent acquisition specialist at Pen Mark, an IT firm in Pune, said the company had been receiving a much higher bulk of job applications since the Covid outbreak - more than 150 job applications a day, a significant spike from 20 to 25 a day earlier. She also alluded to another reason why aspirants from rural Nashik landed jobs amid such economic turbulence in India. "Companies hire on the basis of skill and quality, but rural youth have comparatively lower salary expectations," she said. "I've also observed that rural youth work harder than those from urban areas." Advantage for women In addition to added opportunities for the rural youth, the introduction of the work-from-home model has benefitted women tremendously. Often the victim of familial pressures, being disallowed from working because it involved travelling or moving to another city, this new normal in the IT sector altered the course of their lives. Take Sarika Gangurde, for instance. Her life changed after she was offered a job at TCS, Pune.
"Child marriages are common in rural areas, and my hometown is no different. My friends got married when they were 15 or 16. But today, I earn around Rs 27,000 a month," said the 22-year-old from Malegaon, Nashik. "This job not only made me financially independent, but also freed me from the shackles of patriarchy." In fact, IT firms also retained many of their female employees by giving them the option to work remotely. "Looking at the problems that women from rural areas face, we gave some of them the freedom to work from home permanently," said Roy.
8. Malabar Gold & Diamonds to generate over 6,000 jobs
ETHRWorld, 22 Apr. 2022
The company will expand its manufacturing bandwidth by opening a new unit near Hyderabad and expanding the existing Kolkata and Kerala units, apart from rolling out three more units in the UAE, according to a statement.
Jewellery retail chain Malabar Gold & Diamonds has unveiled its retail expansion plan for fiscal year 2023 with an aim to achieve revenue of Rs 45,000 crore and generate more than 6,000 jobs in India. The company will expand its manufacturing bandwidth by opening a new unit near Hyderabad and expanding the existing Kolkata and Kerala units, apart from rolling out three more units in the UAE, according to a statement. The manufacturing expansion and showroom expansion will generate more than 6,000 jobs this fiscal year and 90 per cent of this new recruitment will be in India. Currently, Malabar has 14,169 staff members, as per the statement.
MP Ahammed, Chairman, Malabar Group, said, “Our glorious three-decade old journey from a small showroom in Kozhikode (now Calicut) to a global jeweller is based on transparency, trust, goodwill and design and service excellence. In FY23, with our aggressive expansion plan, we aim to make more and more jewellery buyers in India a part of our journey.” “Our global expansion plan this year continues to reflect the ethos of the brand Malabar Gold & Diamonds - Make in India and Market to the world. Our goal is to establish the supremacy of Indian craftsmanship at the global level,” Ahammed added.
As per the growth plan, Malabar Gold & Diamonds will launch 97 showrooms - 60 across India and 37 overseas. This will take the company’s total showroom count to 373 by end-March 2023 and the company will have its strong presence in 13 nations. The company clocked Rs 30,000 crore turnover in fiscal year 2022, a growth of approximately 35 per cent compared to the previous year’s business, the statement noted. Malabar Gold & Diamonds presently has around 276 showrooms spanning 10 countries — India, the GCC (the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia), Malaysia, Singapore and the US.
Globally, Malabar Gold & Diamonds will venture into Africa by opening showrooms in Egypt, Morocco and Algeria. It will also be foraying into Canada and Britain apart from fortifying its presence in the US to four showrooms from two, as per the statement.
9. Govt launches revamped Zero Effect Zero Defect Scheme for MSMEs
IBEF April 29, 2022
The Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) inaugurated a new Zero Defect Zero Effect (ZED) Certification Scheme, with the goal of making Indian businesses more globally competitive and facilitating capital access.
The Scheme is designed to help MSMEs implement Zero Defect Zero Effect practices while also motivating and incentivizing them to pursue ZED certification. Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Mr. Narayan Rane said that the Zero Defect Zero Effect (ZED) Certification Scheme will improve the productivity and performance of MSMEs, it has the potential to shift manufacturers' mindsets and make them more environmentally conscious. The redesigned scheme's first phase would target manufacturing MSMEs, while the second will target MSMEs in the services sector.
The certification's number of parameters, which are divided into bronze, silver, and gold, has also been reduced from 50. For participating in business exhibitions and fairs overseas, ZED-certified MSME players will be provided subsidies on stall fees, airfares, and freight charges. Certified MSMEs would also be eligible for reduced bank processing fees and interest rates, as well as lending priority. Certified MSMEs are also more likely to have a higher credit rating.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
10. Visit of Indian Delegation led by Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare to Agriculture Research Organization (ARO), Volcani Institute, Israel
Press Information Bureau, May 12, 2022
On May 10, 2022, an Indian team led by Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Mr. Narendra Singh Tomar, paid a visit to the Agricultural Research Organization (ARO), Volcani Institute of the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. He discussed various concerns regarding agricultural technical breakthroughs in the Indian context with ARO experts. Crop cultivation in protected habitats, freshwater fish farming, innovative plant protection techniques, precision agriculture, remote sensing, and post-harvest science and technology are among the challenges under consideration.
ARO, Volcani Institute, and its six institutes are responsible for academic and basic research in Plant Sciences, Animal Science, Plant Protection, Soil, Water, and Environmental Sciences, Agricultural Engineering, and Post Harvest and Food Sciences under the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The ARO Volcani Center campus also houses Israel's Gene Bank for Agricultural Crops. ARO concentrates specifically on arid zone agriculture, allowing Israel - a country lacking in all agricultural resources - to reach among the greatest levels of agricultural output in the world. ARO maintains tight ties with the numerous international, regional, and national organisations concerned in the promotion of good agricultural practises, particularly the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Nearly 60 Post-doctoral fellows from India are undertaking research activities in various institutes of ARO Volcani Centre. Fellowships are typically for a duration of three months to two years. The Indian team discussed several problems of current agriculture technologies with the Indian Post-doctoral Fellows and resource persons of the ARO Volcani Centre.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
- INDUSTRY & MANUFACTURE
11. We Are Making Big Investments In India In Motion Biz, Robotics: Abb Top Executive
ET CIO, 17 Apr. 2022
Demand for energy efficiency and automation is growing rapidly, including in India, and these are major investment focus areas, ABB’s chief financial officer Timo Ihamuotila said.
Bengaluru: Demand for energy efficiency and automation are growing rapidly, including in India, and these are major investment focus areas, ABB’s chief financial officer Timo Ihamuotila told TOI on a visit to Bengaluru, where the Swedish-Swiss company has a large manufacturing base and one of its largest global R&D, engineering and shared services operations.
ABB makes motors and drives, which are central to anything that moves – water supply, transportation, elevators, escalators, windmills, industrial equipment, factory production lines. These involve enormous use of energy. Electric motors consume over 45% of the world's electricity. Adoption of high-efficiency motor systems, ABB says, would cut global electricity consumption by up to 10%. A drive is the electronic device that controls the electrical energy sent to a motor. The more efficient a drive is in controlling a motor’s speed and torque, the more energy it saves.
Ihamuotila said rise in energy prices and environmental concerns are driving demand for high-efficiency motors and drives. Digitalisation, where India plays a significant role, is also enabling remote monitoring and predictive maintenance of these products. This motion business (motors, drives, etc), Ihamuotila said, is a clear investment priority for ABB in India. Automation too, he said, is being driven by inflation, as also the need to move into higher value-added tasks and to keep people away from hazardous work. Ola is utilising ABB’s automation solutions in its factory in Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu – ABB robots, built in its Bengaluru factory, are used in the painting and welding lines, and in the battery and motor assembly lines. The solution also ensures remote digital connectivity and monitoring of the robots. He added the biggest user of robotics solutions is automobiles, but other industries are catching up. “Some years ago, we had about 50% of the robotics solutions in automobiles, now it's between 25% and 30%. The next biggest is what we call general industries, which includes things like food & beverage, and logistics. Consumer electronics is very big. Pharma is growing,” he said. ABB has done the digitalisation of JSW’s steel melt shop – it tracks the movement of ladles and cranes that carry molten steel and makes thermal loss predictions, which then help to optimise the casting speed of steel (conversion into a solid state) and increase productivity. It has implemented automation solutions in Amul’s milk processing. Ihamuotila said it’s possible today to automate almost the entire ecommerce chain.
“New technologies in automation allow you to build production lines that can be described as `lot size of one’, where you can say you want these many chips and these many cans of something, and so on, and then the production line will produce this, package it, and ship it,” he said. Warehouse automation, he said, is growing fast. Sorting and palletising is crucial in warehouses. “You order something, and then in the warehouse, it has to be found, and there are different sizes of packages. The new robots can recognise packages and move them to the right place. These are big, big projects for us,” he said, adding that while automation is growing, it is robotics that is growing faster and that’s a major focus of investments in India. Ihamuotila said ABB will also continue to make significant investments in India in R&D and shared services. India hosts several of ABB’s centres of expertise that use new-age digital and analytics tools. In shared services, which involve things like transaction support, bill booking, and invoicing, the focus increasingly is on analysis, projections, budgets, and planning. India hosts a transfer pricing analytics team that supports a number of countries.
12. Govt okays 61 firms for textiles PLI scheme, aims Rs 19,077 cr investment
IBEF, Apr. 18, 2022
For textiles production, the government authorised financial aid to 61 enterprises under the Production linked incentive (PLI) scheme, including seven international companies. These firms intend to invest Rs. 19,077 crore (US$ 2.5 billion).
Part one of the scheme includes 13 companies, including Shahi Exports, Paragon Apparel, and Trident, with a minimum investment of Rs. 300 crore (US$ 39.28 million). Part two has 48 enterprises with a minimum investment of Rs. 100 crore (US$ 13.09 million), including Arvind Ltd, Suchi Industries, and SVP Global Textiles.
During the gestation period, seven international companies—US-based Autoliv and Kimberly Clark, Israel's Avgol, South Korea's Evertop Textile & Apparel Complex, Germany's Rane TRW Steering Systems, Sri Lanka's Teejay, and Japan's Toray International—have committed investments totalling Rs. 1,904 crore (US$ 249.28 million) and a total investment of Rs. 3,559 crore (US$ 465.96 million).
Secretary of the Ministry of Textiles Mr. UP Singh stated that if India is to meet its US$ 100 billion textile export aim by 2030, it must also make a mark in manufactured fibres (MMF). The programme was approved by the Union Cabinet on September 8 last year, with a budgeted investment of Rs. 10,683 crore (US$ 1.39 billion). Man-made fibre (MMF), garments, and technical textiles production and trade in India were boosted by the scheme.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
13.1. ‘Make in India’ at heart: How Airbus is building local teams for global growth
ETHRWorld, 21 Apr. 2022
The recruitment plan for India is in line with Airbus’ growth forecast of around 6,000 new hires worldwide across the group.
For Aerospace major Airbus, ‘Make in India’ is at the heart of its local business strategy, and the company has been building its local engineering and innovation for global growth. Currently, Airbus Engineering Centre and Airbus Information Management Centre in India have a combined workforce of over 1500 engineers and the company plans to raise the number of engineering and IT positions to more than 2,000 by the end of 2022 – as a part of its growth strategy for India that foresees capacity building to address future requirements, including in sustainable and decarbonisation technologies. The recruitment plan for India is in line with Airbus’ growth forecast of around 6,000 new hires worldwide across the group. “At Airbus, we believe India’s strength lies in its talent, with the presence of perhaps the largest engineers and Information Technology partner ecosystems in the world,” Suraj Chettri, Director - Human Resources, Airbus India & South Asia, says.
The Focus Airbus unveiled wide-ranging employment opportunities for leading-edge engineering and IT professionals at a recruitment event at the Wings India airshow held in March. The company is actively recruiting to fill positions in avionics software, aircraft system simulation and airframe structures. Additionally, opportunities also exist in digital technology roles such as Cybersecurity, API Development, Full Stack Development, Big Data, Cloud, DevOps and IoT. Fully integrated into the company’s global network, Airbus India’s engineering operations are a key resource hub for capabilities in structural analysis, loads, aerodynamics, avionics software design and testing, system simulation, digital mock-up and system installation. Airbus India is also ramping up focus on in-sourcing core capabilities across Product Life Cycle and ERP solutions as well as digital capabilities such as Big Data, Internet of Things, Cloud and Cybersecurity.
Chettri reveals that various recruitment programmes are deployed such as Hackathon, FlyAgain (women returnee programme), WonderHacks (coding challenge designed for women candidates), and on-campus recruitment initiatives. “We take pride in saying that Airbus has been recognised as a ‘day one’ recruiter at most of the Indian Institute of Technology (IITs), Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Tier-1 universities,” he adds. The Process Chettri agrees that the success of an organisation depends upon how effective its recruitment process is, which also plays a significant role in a candidate’s experience. And Airbus India believes in having a good balance of automation and human touch in the recruitment process. The 7,000 employees-strong company uses Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to manage high volume hiring requests and to filter applications, in addition to the dashboards and real-time analytics tool. The HR team also has predictive recruitment solutions that use data and analytics to improve recruitment outcomes by recommending best-fit candidates. “We also organise events like Airbus India Hackathon to shortlist applications and screen profiles that are more relevant to the available position,” Chettri says. As a recruiter, he says, Airbus India makes additional efforts to understand the skill matrix for each profile, which enables the company to connect with the candidates and help them understand the job requirements. Airbus also leverages tools and technologies which help it scout talent via social media channels. “We also keep a tab on the candidate traffic using Google Analytics and other artificial intelligence (AI) powered social media tools,” Chettri says, adding, “Our digital team keeps on updating the technology to see what fits best for the organisation.” The Duration At Airbus India, the recruitment process consists of two important steps -- scouting the candidates and conducting the selection process. These two steps take about 85 per cent of the time before onboarding someone, Chettri explains. Presently, it takes around one month to complete the entire process for a candidate from the day the HR team receives a request for a new position.
“It is our priority to optimise the duration of this process, for which we review and conduct value stream mapping at each step of the recruitment process,” Chettri says. The company has also introduced IPO (Interview Process Outsourcing) to make its selection process unbiased and efficient, wherein the partner agencies help conduct interviews that are aligned with the Airbus' selection process and expected ratings. Further, to ensure a smooth induction process for the candidate, HR teams at Airbus establish a connection with them before their joining – the induction programme includes technical sessions, department introduction, on-the-job training, MOOC certification, etc. “Employees in certain cases also have to travel to Europe during this process, depending on the nature of the job,” Chettri says. The EVP First of all, Chettri says Airbus pioneers sustainable aviation and this is what it offers to newcomers: to join the company for this new journey. “We provide Airbus India employees with a clear career map with growth paths in the technical sphere, people management or project management,” he adds. He shares that the company uses online tools to assess employees’ development and also to create individual development plans and also support them to pursue higher education, obtain technical certifications and provide language learning support. Matching the demand, Airbus India supports hybrid working and shares the success with the workforce through ESOPs and long-term incentives, as well. On a social aspect, “we partner with local NGOs, national educational programmes and national events and we encourage our employees to explore their passion and work towards creating a positive impact in the society,” Chettri concludes.
13.2. 1 mn 'Make in India' iPhones shipped in Q1 2022 as Apple grows 22%
IBEF April 27, 2022
Apple shipped approximately 1 million 'Make-in-India' iPhones in India in the first quarter of 2022, a staggering 50% increase YoY in iPhone shipments from within the nation.
According to market intelligence firm CyberMedia Research (CMR), iPhone sales in India increased by 22% in the first quarter of 2022, with iPhone 12 and 13 sales leading the way. Apple's improved and diversified iPhone manufacturing capabilities in India, as well as aggressive retail activities, have contributed to the country's strong growth momentum. In 2022, Apple is anticipated to have a 5.2% market share in India.
Apple manufactures some of its most advanced iPhones in the country, including the iPhone 11, iPhone 12, and now iPhone 13, in the Foxconn factory, while the iPhone SE and iPhone 12 are being assembled at the Wistron factory. In India, iPhone 12 retained its lead with a 52% market share in the first quarter of 2022, followed by iPhone 13 with 20% and iPhone 11 with 18%. When it comes to iPads, Apple registered a 31% growth in India, with the iPad 9th generation (Wi-Fi) taking 45% of the market. | Estrada do Zambujal, N. 38-A, Alfragide | 2610-294 Amadora | Portugal | Tel. +351 21 301 9926 |
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
14. India exports 13.5 MT finished steel worth Rs. 1 trillion in FY22: Minister
IBEF, Apr. 28, 2022
In FY22, India exported 13.5 million tonnes (MT) of completed steel worth Rs. 1 lakh crore (US$ 13.05 billion). India's steel consumption reached an all-time high of roughly 106 MT in FY22, while the country produced a record 120 MT of crude steel. On a YoY basis, the sector is increasing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of roughly 5-6%.
The steel industry has the capacity to improve in all sectors. The engineering sector, which is intertwined with the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors, is critical to India's economy, and the steel sector is integral to it.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
15. Ace, Tata Motors small truck, wins big
ET PRIMESHOTS, 9, May, 2022
In the news. Tata Motors wins big orders for electric small truck Ace. Hidden in plain sight. Reflecting the strong demand for electric trucks, and Tata’s solid brand equity, Tata Motors has bagged orders for 39,000 vehicles from Amazon, Bigbasket, Flipkart, and their logistics partners. The delivery of the vehicles begins this year, and will be completed in 24-36 months. The cost of ownership of these trucks will be significantly lower compared to ICE trucks, says Pushkar Singh, co-founder and CEO at LetsTransport, one of the eight companies which ordered the trucks. LetsTransport will use an initial set of its trucks to educate driver partners about the vehicles. Tata Motors will set up an electric-vehicle support centre and Tata Group companies will offer financing and leasing options, charging stations, and fleet-management software to customers. One last thing. Powered by 21.3kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery, the Ace has a certified range of 154km, but while in use, it could be 20%-30% lower. The truck specs indicate significantly better power and torque compared to its ICE counterpart, while its single-speed gearbox will make driving easier.
- SERVICES (Education, Healthcare, IT, R&D, Tourism, etc.)
16. AI supported Co-bots: The next transformational wave in surgeries
ET CIO, 18 Apr. 2022
While a lot may have happened, AI is still limited to automating the administrative tasks of the hospital, collecting the e-medical records, and running analytics onto it. With AI-supported robots, modern technology has also reached the operation theatre and in the human body too!
Artificial Intelligence has helped move the needle in hospital workflows in a big way. In an already stretched healthcare ecosystem with limited resources, AI has enhanced operational efficiency by helping effectively route capital resources through smart allocation, with a focus on addressing specific gaps in the system. While a lot may have happened, it is still limited to automating the administrative tasks of the hospital, collecting the e-medical records and running analytics onto it. With AI supported robots, modern technology has also reached the operation theatre and in the human body too! The collaborative robots not only just perform the surgery on patients but can also provide real time scans and images of the inside of the human body which could be a big help in making the decision for operations. "Today robotic surgeons are coupled with AI. If you were to look at the CT scans of a patient who has a brain tumor. You will only see 2-D images. It does not tell you the third dimension of depth. With these robots, the doctor can continuously scan the brain at the time of operation and with the help of AI, they know the third dimension of the tumor which further tells how far is the tumor or if the robot has reached the right depth to scrape the tumor,” explained Srinivas Iyengar, Vice President- Healthcare, Happiest Minds Technologies. In the operation theatre, the precision required is extremely high that the scope of human error must be zero. This is what the AI-coupled robotic surgeons are aiming to do. A few of the robots available today to perform surgeries also perform vision analytics at the time of insertion into the human body. He further explained that in a few use cases like the detection of tumors we can use the information already available for the algorithm to train on. "We have a lot of labelled information available on the detection of tumors which can be used to train the model. And the more images we put in, the more intelligent the model becomes. This can assist the doctor in making his decision. That is why we prefer saying augmented intelligence. Because the aim is to provide more information for more clarity but not to eliminate the doctor's part, ”he added. Girish Raghavan, VP, Engineering, GE Healthcare feels that the most effective use of AI in surgery is related to surgical planning. “At the time of execution, the cobots can potentially assist in ensuring safe manipulation of tools and offer trajectories and paths inaccessible to human articulation. When compared to conventional techniques, surgeons who utilize remote controlled cobots might find that it improves precision, flexibility, and control throughout the operation and allows them to navigate better around surgical insertion points,” he said. The most popular robot in the market today is the creation of Intuitive, Da Vinci. Be it Apollo Hospitals or Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital or the popular chain of eye clinics, they have all experimented with these collaborative robots and have been able to successfully perform surgeries on patients. Sharing his experience with the robots in OT, Dr Prof Narsimhaiah Srinivasaiah, Colorectal Surgeon, Apollo Hospitals said that the robots give better visibility, manoeuvrability and are the best in terms of operational efficiency. “Robotic-assisted surgery combines the skills of technology-trained surgeons with cutting-edge computer technology. At Intuitive, we have focused our digital technologies on curating high-quality data from clinical procedures - data that is relevant and secure, and that can reveal actionable insights. This strategy, rooted in more than 10 million da Vinci surgeries performed worldwide, is supported by artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques that are integral to our product design and strategy,” said Mandeep Singh Kumar, Vice President & Country GM, Intuitive India. Though the use of analytics and AI in co-bots is limited today, the scope is not. With the pace of research going around the doctor-less operations or operating from distance, science fiction may soon be turning into a reality.
There may be an instance where the robot will do the complete surgery in the guidance of a doctor but the doctorless operation is just a theoretical phenomenon as of now. There also have been use cases where they create a digital twin of humans and the doctor operates on this twin in location A whereas the robot mimics the action of the actual human body in location B. But these use cases are still in research at this point in time. Today, a lot of problems are being looked at, to ascertain how technology can help solve them, be it inside the OT or outside. And as Charu Sehgal, Partner and Life Sciences and Healthcare Leader, Deloitte India puts it, “The potential for AI to help India solve several of its healthcare problems is immense. Lack of access to doctors and specialists, a huge load on the tertiary healthcare care system. Improved and timely preventive care and diagnosis. All of these can potentially be eased by the use of analytics and AI.”
However, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has accelerated the need for dual trading systems and dual (business) ecosystems which will need to be kept mutually independent and technology will increasingly play a bigger role to enable such a world order, Gopinathan pointed out. From fiscal 2018 to 2022, the Mumbai-headquartered company has seen revenue expand by 30% and last September, it crossed the $200 billion mark in market capitalisation, making it second only to Accenture by this metric among global IT services companies. Further, as global business moves towards a "post-pandemic world", companies are now discussing transformation agendas instead of coping mechanisms.
"This year the dialogue is a lot more about where the growth opportunities are, where the transformations are, that is the big shift that has happened," according to Gopinathan. India, which he described as "very much a local tech story (and) not an imported technology story", has " allowed free capital flows" unlike China which " forced localisation of ownership" he said while pointing to companies like Flipkart — acquired by Walmart — or Zomato or Swiggy, which are all locally built.
"The digital transformation of India — both public and corporate — has been entirely executed locally and that is why we are so uniquely placed among all emerging markets," Gopinathan said as he called out the country’s digital payment infrastructure for special mention. "Today people are putting wrappers on that payment infrastructure and putting a brand around it. Many of the global brands are doing a much better job advertising it on TV, but the underlying rail which makes it possible is locally (built)," he said. While it has taken the Tata Group company – established in 1968 – over 50-odd years to reach the $25-billion mark, Gopinathan’s ambitious target to double revenue this decade is built around a company-wide organisation rejig that was kicked off earlier this month. The strategy includes betting big on partnering customers on their transformation journeys as they navigate a more uncertain world and fast changing technology landscape. "Today we have about 1,200-odd customers. When we double, we want to (have) let’s say, 2,000 or 2,500-odd customers. But we want to make sure that the level of service that we are able to provide to all of them is equal or better than where we are today," he said. This includes TCS’s ambitions to snag more business from its parent group such as from iconic Air India. While TCS may have a natural advantage, "as with all our group companies, we have fought hard and won, so we can’t presume that we'll have it automatically", Gopinathan said. "We have a trusted relationship that we can leverage but beyond that we need to earn our right. So, Air India is still at early stages of that dialogue," he said.
17.2. Meity to train over 85,000 engineering students in chip design through centralized infrastructure
ET Gov. 10 May, 2022
The centralized chip design infrastructure will be made available at India Chip Centre setup at C-DAC.
The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) aims to train over 85,000 engineers on chip design by expanding the infrastructure available for the technology to 120 academic institutions across the country in the next five years, an official statement said on Wednesday. The electronics and IT ministry had done a pilot deployment in 2021 under special manpower development programme for Chips to System Design (SMDP-C2SD), wherein a centralized design facility at state-run C-DAC was enabled for remote access by over 50,000 engineering students at 60 academic institutions for designing chips. "Leapfrogging, Meity now intends to make accessible a centralized chip design infrastructure to be made available at India Chip Centre setup at C-DAC, to train over 85,000 B Tech, M Tech and PhD students at 120 academic institutions across the country in chip design area for next 5 years," an official statement said. For making available the chip design infrastructure at India Chip Centre of C-DAC, leading industry vendors from EDA (Electronic Design Automation), Electronic Computer-Aided Design (ECAD), IP Core and Design solutions Industry are being partnered with. "Specific collaborative arrangements are being made available with Synopsys, Cadence Design Systems, Siemens EDA, Silvaco and other leading tool vendors, IP & design solution providers and Fab aggregators," the statement said. As SemiconIndia 2022 concluded successfully last week, most of the global semiconductor leaders like Intel, Micron, Qualcomm, LAM Research etc not only highlighted the contribution of their Indian research and development centres, which are now the biggest centres out of their headquarter locations but also acknowledged the semiconductor design strength in our country, which now makes up for 20 percent of the world's engineers. Electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the Semicon India conference had highlighted that India's democracy and talent pool sets it apart from other countries fighting for chip sovereignty. (With PTI inputs)
18.1. TCS aims to be world's largest IT company; says large-scale ops not a worry
ETHRWorld, 23 Apr. 2022
"Absolutely, in many ways we already are," Gopinathan said, without giving a timeline, while answering a question on whether he sees TCS becoming the largest IT company in the world.
He said the company, which is the biggest IT services provider to the banking, financial services and insurance sector, comes a close second on employee count and has had instances of topping the global market capitalisation tables as well.
Mumbai: India's largest software exporter TCS on Friday said it aims to become the topmost IT services company in the world, asserting that it does not "fear" its large-scale operation is hindering the firm's ambitions. Speaking at the Times Network India Economic Conclave, Rajesh Gopinathan, chief executive and managing director of the company with USD 25 billion in revenues and 6 lakh employees, said there is no reason for the company not to aspire to double, triple or quadruple the revenues from the current levels. "Absolutely, in many ways we already are," Gopinathan said, without giving a timeline, while answering a question on whether he sees TCS becoming the largest IT company in the world. He said the company, which is the biggest IT services provider to the banking, financial services and insurance sector, comes a close second on employee count and has had instances of topping the global market capitalisation tables as well.
"Today we are USD 25 billion in size. There are many companies which are USD 50, USD 100 billion in size. There is no reason we shouldn't aspire to be double, triple, quadruple of the size we are today. The question is how do we go about it, what should we do right towards it? But the opportunity is unbounded. Both on demand and supply side we are sitting in a sweet spot," he said. "Our aspiration in no way should be constrained to where we are today, we should be aspiring to set new standards and we are far away from where the current standards itself are. (There is) huge headroom to still go forward," he added. The comments from the TCS chief are significant because this means that the Tata Group would displace Accenture which had reported over USD 50 billion in revenue last year. A few weeks ago, TCS had said that it is targeting for revenues to touch USD 50 billion by 2030. Gopinathan said that back in 2001, the company had set a target of breaking into the top-10 in the world on multiple parameters and adopted specific way of working towards the goal. Admitting that there is scepticism about a company being too big every time a boundary of scale is broken, Gopinathan pointed out that companies in the supply chain or logistics and consumer packaged goods segment have successfully managed to keep on bettering on their performance.
About having a large base of over 6 lakh employees, Gopinathan said, "We are approaching it very systematically. I don't have any fear that we are at the limit or near the limit of what can be achieved. The focus for us is to structure ourselves to be able to manage the scale and leverage the scale to our advantage, both of which we are doing quite well." TCS which is witnessing attrition levels of around 17 per cent, amid heavy demand for talent which has seen quite a few companies surpassing 20 per cent attrition level, has been able to command staff loyalty because it recognises that the talent is its biggest strength and is true to its word on all counts. "There are no legacy people, only legacy technologies. By continuing to train people, providing them with first right of refusal for all new opportunities to our existing people, we have been able to systematically, and in a sustainable way, manage the multiple transitions that the industry sees and the pace of change that the industry sees. this is the magic sauce (for loyalty)," he said. He said periods of volatility like the current one because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine are natural phenomena for a business like theirs but the key for the company is to be close to the customer, helping them in their hour of need and invest in what will be required in the future so that it forms long relationships. TCS scrip closed 0.50 per cent down at Rs 3,611.85 a piece on the BSE as against a 1.23 per cent correction on the benchmark.
ET CIO, 24 Apr. 2022
In fact, net hiring by TCS alone – at 103,000 for FY22 — has trumped the cumulative net recruitment by the top three in any of the previous years. “They (new hires) reflect growth numbers and companies want to leverage on the growing demand. It has to be seen in line with the deal wins and revenue growth shown by the companies over the last couple of years,” said Gaurav Vasu, founder and chief executive of UnearthInsight.
Bengaluru: India’s top three IT service providers by revenue — Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and HCL Technologies — have added nearly 198,000 people (net recruits) in the financial year 2022 (FY22), data analysed by ET showed. This is 56% more than what these three companies added in the preceding two fiscal years cumulatively and only slightly lower than in the preceding three financial years cumulatively. ET’s analysis showed that the top three have contributed almost two-thirds to the total projected hiring for the IT industry in FY22. The data underscores strong revenue growth on the back of robust demand leading to workforce expansion. At the same time, it has also fuelled alarming attrition rates. In fact, net hiring by TCS alone – at 103,000 for FY22 — has trumped the cumulative net recruitment by the top three in any of the previous years. “They (new hires) reflect growth numbers and companies want to leverage on the growing demand. It has to be seen in line with the deal wins and revenue growth shown by the companies over the last couple of years,” said Gaurav Vasu, founder and chief executive of UnearthInsight. The trend of massive hiring by the IT industry is likely to continue in the current fiscal year as well due to the robust demand outlook shared by the top companies. TCS and Infosys have guided for 45,000 and 50,000 campus hires, respectively, for financial year 2023 (FY23). Last year, too, companies had forecast similar numbers but had significantly overreached their targets. Hiring from campuses was close to 100,000 and 85,000 for TCS and Infosys, respectively, in the just concluded financial year. HCL Tech, which hired 23,000 freshers in FY22, has stuck to its previous guidance of increasing the number by 50% for the ongoing financial year. Higher revenue According to market intelligence firm UnearthInsight, the Indian IT industry overall is likely to add 280,000-300,000 net employees in FY22. TCS has seen its highest-ever incremental revenue in a year in FY22, while Infosys grew the fastest in 11 years, led by digital demand, as clients front-loaded technology spends to chase new revenue streams and optimize costs.
The Indian IT services industry has grown twice as fast compared to pre-pandemic levels to touch $227 billion in revenue in FY22. TCS, Infosys and HCL Tech have all clocked double-digit revenue growth rates in FY22, spurred by robust demand and record deal wins. To be sure, the top three added 207,248 people in the previous three fiscal years – 2021, 2020 and 2019 – cumulatively, and 126,872 employees in the previous two fiscal years – 2021, 2020. Of this, the three companies added 75,987 people in FY21, 50,885 in FY20 and 80,376 in FY19. The strong demand is in turn leading to higher salary costs, weighing on operating margins. These companies are aggressively onboarding freshers, doubling down on campus hires as experienced hands demand steep wage hikes. Separately, strong demand for digital and new-age technologies is forcing these companies to take the fresher route, analysts said. The digitisation programmes in large corporations and demand for new technologies such as Internet of Things, cybersecurity, blockchain, automation, data and analytics is also fuelling the need for freshers, said Aditya Narayan Mishra, director and chief executive of staffing services provider CIEL HR Services. “It makes sense to deploy a fresher in emerging technologies than an experienced candidate,” Mishra said. IT industry body Nasscom forecast earlier this year that 450,000 new jobs would be created in FY22. It said the IT sector’s total workforce would touch 5 million by the end of FY22. Last year (FY21), the industry added a net 138,000 new employees. Downside The downside to increased demand is higher attrition rates. Though net hiring numbers do not reflect the backfilling of vacancies and only an increase in headcount, attrition rates have hit record levels for all companies. For TCS and Infosys, the metric stood at 17.4% and 27.7%, respectively, in the quarter ended March 31. HCL Tech’s attrition came in at 21.9% for the same period. Companies, however, expect fresher hiring over the past two years to help arrest some of their attrition woes as these associates become experienced resources. “Fresher hiring and productive use of freshers is a long-cycle activity. But you have seen the industry step up hiring over the last four quarters… as that supply hits productive use, it will ease up a lot of what was going on over the last few quarters,” TCS chief executive Rajesh Gopinathan said during an analysts’ call. “So, that’s why…as we look forward two quarters ahead, we think that attrition will flat line and then start tapering. Gopinathan added that the expectation is that the bulk of this industry-wide hiring over the last calendar year will start playing a role going forward. Infosys also sees attrition slowing down in the coming quarters. “...Because we've seen a decline of five points (in attrition) in this Q4. We believe that things will start to look better in the coming quarters,” Infosys chief executive Salil Parekh told ET in a recent interview. After increasing compensation packages three times in the previous fiscal year, the company has started rolling out annual wage hikes with effect from April and is also working on “something actively” to stem the steep rise in attrition rates, he added.
IBEF, May 12, 2022
Global smartphone shipments are expected to surpass 170 million in 2022, with 5G mobile shipments in India increasing by more than 300% YoY in the first quarter.
According to Cyber Media Research's (CMR) 'India Mobile Handset Market Review Report,' while inexpensive smartphone shipments [under Rs. 7,000(US$ 90.35)] decreased, premium smartphone shipments [Rs. 25,000(US$ 322.68) and above] increased 58%, indicating strong customer willingness to switch and upgrade.
In the first quarter, Samsung dominated the 5G market with a 23% market share.
Apple's shipments increased 20% YoY in the first quarter, with a 77% share of the super-premium [Rs. 50,000-100,000 (US$ 645.37-1,290.73)] sector.
The whole feature phone category decreased 43% YoY in the first quarter of 2022, owing to supply shortages, increased operator tariff plans, and rising inflationary tendencies.
The 2G and 4G feature phone segments both decreased by 42% and 50% YoY, respectively.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
20. PM to inaugurate WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine at Jamanagar today
Press Information Bureau, Apr. 19, 2022
A curtain raiser press conference was held by the Ministry of Ayush and the Government of Gujarat to discuss two important developments in traditional medicine in India: the groundbreaking event of the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) and the convening of the Global Ayush Investment and Innovation Summit (GAIIS). Both ceremonies will take place in Gujarat and will be attended by the Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Mr. Pravind Jugnauth, and the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus. Both ceremonies will be graced by a galactic array of ambassadors.
The WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine, the world's first of its type, will open in Jamnagar on April 19, 2022. The Centre's goal is to harness traditional medicine's potential by combining it with technological breakthroughs and evidence-based research. The new Centre will be based in Jamnagar, but it will engage and benefit the entire world. To maximise conventional medicine's contribution to global health, the GCTM will focus on four core strategic areas: evidence and learning, data and analytics, sustainability and equity, and innovation and technology.
The Global Ayush Investment and Innovation Summit will be place in Gandhinagar from April 20-22, 2022. The goal of the Summit is to increase investment and highlight breakthroughs in traditional medicine. It's a one-of-a-kind effort to build long-term relationships, increase exports, and protect the environment.
The GCTM aims to establish policies and standards for traditional medicine goods, as well as to assist countries in developing a complete, safe, and high-quality healthcare system. The Worldwide Ayush Investment and Innovation Summit aims to plan India's efforts to become a global centre for traditional products, practises, and related services.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
INDIA and THE WORLD
India in the Portuguese News
Observador, 2022/04/27
Na conclusão de uma visita oficial à Índia, João Gomes Cravinho, o ministro português dos Negócios Estrangeiros, afirmou que Portugal e a Índia querem reforçar as relações em diversas áreas.
Com os nossos alertas, pode seguir o seu autor, tópico ou programa favorito. Para não perder nada do que lhe interessa.
Portugal e a Índia querem reforçar as relações nos planos económico, científico, cultural, educacional e de mobilidade, afirmou à Lusa o ministro português dos Negócios Estrangeiros, João Gomes Cravinho, na conclusão de uma visita oficial à Índia.
Os dois países estão “muito bem” em termos de relações políticas, garantiu Gomes Cravinho em declarações à Lusa, salientando que “há um excelente relacionamento entre os dois primeiros-ministros”, mas há outros aspetos que é preciso desenvolver.
“No plano das relações culturais, económicas, científicas, educacionais e também em termos de mobilidade há possibilidades de fazer mais e melhor” e vontade mútua para o fazer, disse o ministro.
Há “um sentimento de ambição partilhada”, assegurou Cravinho, depois de uma reunião com o seu homólogo indiano, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, em Nova Deli, onde participou nos Diálogos Raisina, conferência anual indiana sobre geopolítica e geoeconomia que junta vários líderes mundiais.
A expectativa é que, “daqui por um ano ou dois, em todos esses domínios tenha havido avanços significativas”, referiu o ministro português dos Negócios Estrangeiros em declarações à Lusa.
Para salientar a importância que dá à relação Portugal-Índia, lembrou que o primeiro país que visitou enquanto chefe da diplomacia foi Angola e o segundo foi agora a Índia.
Também na relação da União Europeia com a Índia, Portugal tem um papel significativo, já que o governo indiano “reconhece a Portugal um empenho especial (…) um trabalho muito próprio dentro das instituições europeias” no que toca a esse relacionamento, sublinhou Gomes Cravinho.
“Fizemos a diferença em momentos-chave”, referiu o ministro português, recordando que foi na presidência portuguesa da UE, em 2000, que aconteceu a primeira cimeira UE-Índia e que, no ano passado, Portugal conseguiu a realização da primeira cimeira no formato completo, ou seja, não só com os líderes das instituições, mas com os líderes dos Estados-membros dos 27.
Para enfatizar a importância na política externa de Portugal, Gomes Cravinho referiu o crescimento demográfico, económico e noutros domínios da Índia, um país que “está a impor-se internacionalmente”.
Essa posição no mundo é ainda maior, “uma posição nova e intensificada”, depois da invasão da Ucrânia pela Rússia, considerou o ministro.
Já antes, num debate em que participou com outros convidados, tinha realçado a importância da Índia como ator global confiável e o contributo que, conjuntamente com a União Europeia (UE), pode dar para uma nova governação no mundo.
Um dos efeitos da invasão da Ucrânia pelas forças russas é que “estimulou as necessidades da UE de pensar e atuar estrategicamente” e a Índia, defendeu, emerge como parceiro de confiança, o que é bom para a Índia e a UE, e para “o contributo que conjuntamente podem dar para uma governança internacional regulada e baseada num sentido comum de decência e previsibilidade em relação uns aos outros”.
Jornal de Leiria, 1 Mai. 2022
Evento foi a primeira apresentação oficial da empresa de Fátima no mercado indiano
Mais de uma centena de pessoas, entre arquitectos, designers e prescritores de obra, estiveram esta sexta-feira reunidos no evento Beleza da Pedra, promovido pela Filstone em Mumbai, Índia.
O evento foi a primeira apresentação oficial da empresa de Fátima neste país, que representa um dos seus principais mercados de exportação.
Entre os oradores esteve o embaixador português na Índia, Carlos Pereira Marques, “que mostrou disponibilidade para apoiar a Filstone nos desafios que surgirão”, aponta a empresa em nota à comunicação social.
Do painel fizeram também parte arquitectos e designers de reconhecidas empresas na Índia, que abordaram temas como construção, desafios para o sector, aplicabilidade, estética e durabilidade da pedra natural, entre outros.
O evento foi organizado em parceria com a ABVA, empresa portuguesa representante da Filstone na Índia.
Diversificar os mercados externos é um dos principais objectivos da Filstone, que em Abril celebrou 20 anos. Com a China a ocupar o lugar de topo dos países para onde mais exporta, outros mercados têm surgido como oportunidade para a empresa, como a Índia e a Polónia.
Depois da abertura de dois Filstone Centers em Yunfu e em Shuitou, na China, a empresa quer apostar noutras localizações, “de forma a favorecer a compra de blocos de pedra natural sem os normais constrangimentos de tempo e distância”.
Actualmente, a Filstone emprega cerca de 250 colaboradores nas pedreiras de Casal Farto (Fátima) e de Alpalhão (Nisa), tendo gerado um volume de negócios na ordem dos 45 milhões de euros em 2021.
23. ICICI Bank ties up with Santander for India-UK business ease
IBEF, May 11, 2022
ICICI Bank, one of India's largest private sector banks, announced a tie-up with Santander bank in the UK on Tuesday, aimed at making banking easier for businesses operating in both countries. ICICI bank will offer UK corporates operating in India banking solutions in trade, cross-border payments, supply chain, treasury solutions, and retail banking, while Santander UK will support Indian corporations.
ICICI bank and Santander UK Plc signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Mumbai to build a framework of partnership between the banks to satisfy the financial service needs of corporate customers operating along the India-UK corridor.
India and the UK have always had strong bilateral ties, and India has long been a favourite foreign investment destination for UK businesses. According to official government statistics, the UK is India's sixth largest investor, with US$ 31.7 billion in cumulative foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows, accounting for 6% of overall FDI inflows.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
ETHRWorld, 25 Apr. 2022
The WTTC's latest Economic Impact Report (EIR) says the travel and tourism sector will be a driving force of the global economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. The report forecasts that the travel and tourism sector's GDP will grow at an average rate of 5.8 per cent annually between 2022 and 2032, outstripping the growth rate for the global economy, to reach USD 14.6 trillion, equivalent to 11.3 per cent of the total global economy.
The report also shows that global travel and tourism GDP could reach pre-pandemic levels by 2023.
The global tourism industry is expected to create almost 126 million jobs worldwide within 10 years, the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) said in a report released on Thursday in the Philippine capital.
The WTTC's latest Economic Impact Report (EIR) says the travel and tourism sector will be a driving force of the global economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, reports Xinhua news agency.
The report forecasts that the travel and tourism sector's GDP will grow at an average rate of 5.8 per cent annually between 2022 and 2032, outstripping the growth rate for the global economy, to reach USD 14.6 trillion, equivalent to 11.3 per cent of the total global economy.
WTTC President and CEO Julia Simpson said at the Global Tourism Summit in Manila that "one in three of every new job created will be related to the sector". The report predicts that the travel and tourism sector across Asia and the Pacific region will rebound significantly and is estimated to create almost 77 million new jobs over the next decade.
At the same time, the sector's contribution to regional gross domestic product (GDP) is forecast to grow at an average annual rate of 8.5 per cent between 2022 and 2032, faster than the region's overall economic growth.
The report also shows that global travel and tourism GDP could reach pre-pandemic levels by 2023, just 0.1 per cent below 2019. "This will be matched by a boost in travel and tourism employment, which is expected to approach 2019 levels in 2023, only 2.7 per cent below," Simpson added.
According to the WTTC, the global tourism sector started recovering in 2021 when its contribution to GDP climbed by 21.7 per cent year on year to reach more than USD 5.8 trillion.
IBEF, May 9, 2022
Around a dozen global consumer-facing companies reported robust growth in India in the January to March quarter, surpassing even pre-Covid levels with a high double-digit rate for several. India is among the top-performing areas for several of these firms, including Unilever, Visa, Whirlpool, and Pernod.
Companies sold inventory amid increased Covid-19 instances and municipal restrictions, resulting in large discounts on some discretionary products such as apparel and shoes across platforms throughout the country. Several CEOs have also stated that they are increasing their investment in India.
Sales of everyday household products and basics grew mostly owing to price increases, as corporations raised prices to offset rising raw material, energy, packaging, and transportation costs. Crude and palm oil prices, which are major constituents in soaps, shampoos, and detergents, have increased by 60%, while packaging material costs have increased by 20% from a year ago.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
ET Gov. 15 Mat 2022
The Delhi government will pay up to 50 percent of the rent of a startup's office lease or pitch in for a portion of the salaries that these startups will pay to their employees.
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. The Alliance of Digital India Foundation (ADIF) on Friday welcomed the 'Delhi Startup Policy' which aims to support 15,000 startups by 2030 and generate new avenues of employment. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has said that the government will provide fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to youth who want to build startups.
"The National Capital Region, which is already a hub for start-ups in India, will see an accelerated transformation under the aegis of these integrated and effective policy pillars in the coming years," the ADIF said in a statement.
"The multiplier effect of this ambitious policy will help boost the startup ecosystem of our entire nation," added the foundation that represents hundreds of startups.
The Delhi government will pay up to 50 percent of the rent of a startup's office lease or pitch in for a portion of the salaries that these startups will pay to their employees.
"We will also reimburse them for the costs incurred on applying for patents, copyrights and trademarks," Kejriwal said.
According to the Economic Survey 2021-22, Delhi has replaced Bengaluru as the startup capital of India. Between April 2019 to December 2021, more than 5,000 recognised start-ups were added in Delhi while 4,514 startups were added in Bengaluru.
The Delhi government said it would also offer collateral-free and interest-free loans to incentivise incubation centers and fabrication labs. A 20-member task force will also be set up to oversee the registration of startups.
"The policy targets a holistic growth of the capital's startup ecosystem and promises to manifest the ambitious goals envisioned by the youth," said the ADIF.
IBEF, May 9, 2022
With Neobank Open being the country's 100th unicorn, India's unicorn wave has reached an all-time high. According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, one out of every ten unicorns born globally was born in India. With the recent fundraising of US$ 50 million from IIFL and current investors, neobank startup OPEN becomes India's 100th unicorn.
As of May 5th, the Indian Startup Ecosystem, which is the third-largest in the world in terms of unicorns, has 100 unicorns with a total valuation of US$ 332.7 billion. According to the Ministry, 14 unicorns worth US$ 18.9 billion were born in India during the first four months of 2022. The year 2021 saw a significant increase in the number of unicorns, with 44 firms joining the club during the course of the year, with a combined valuation of US$ 93 billion.
Until fiscal year 2016-17, approximately one unicorn was added per year. This figure has been expanding exponentially over the last four years (from FY 2017-18), with a whopping 66% Year-on-Year growth in the number of additional unicorns introduced each year. Furthermore, according to ministry data, more than 69,000 startups have been recognised in the country since the inception of the Startup India initiative on January 16, 2016. We have identified startups solving problems in 56 varied areas, including 13% from IT services, 9% from healthcare and life sciences, 7% from education, 5% from professional and commercial services, 5% agricultural, and 5% food and drinks.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
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