5, Aug 2026
Beyond Ola & Uber: Five mobility apps driving the future of urban transportation in India
Aug 5: As India’s urban mobility landscape continues to evolve, the conversation is shifting beyond traditional ride hailing. A new generation of startups is reimagining transportation through electric vehicles, premium customer experiences, technology driven fleet management, and more sustainable business models. These companies are not just moving people from one place to another, they are shaping the future of urban mobility in India.
As India’s urban mobility ecosystem evolves, commuters are looking beyond traditional ride hailing for experiences that are smarter, cleaner, and more reliable. A new generation of mobility apps is redefining how people travel by combining electric vehicles, premium service, technology-led operations, and customer-first experiences. Here are five mobility platforms that are shaping the future of transportation in India.
1. Trev Mobility
A Gurugram-based all-electric chauffeur-driven mobility app, Trev Mobility is redefining premium urban travel with services spanning airport transfers, city rides, rentals, corporate travel, and outstation journeys. Starting with just two electric vehicles, the company has grown to a fleet of over 100 EVs across Delhi NCR and has completed more than 50,000 rides. Its recent ₹3.65 crore community-led funding round, backed by users and customers, reflects the trust it has built by delivering a reliable, premium, and sustainable mobility experience.
2. Green SM
The international electric ride hailing platform has entered India with an app-first approach focused exclusively on electric mobility. Its expansion underscores the growing confidence in India’s EV ecosystem and rising demand for sustainable urban transportation.
3. Rapido
Originally known for bike taxis, Rapido has evolved into a full stack mobility app offering bike, auto, and cab services. Its focus on affordability, accessibility, and technology has made it one of India’s fastest-growing urban mobility platforms.
4. Shoffr
Shoffr is a chauffeur-driven mobility app designed for users seeking scheduled, premium, and dependable transportation. The platform caters to business travellers and professionals who prioritise comfort, punctuality, and a superior ride experience.
5. Namma Yatri
Built on an open network model, Namma Yatri is reimagining ride hailing through a driver-first approach. The platform offers greater transparency, lower commissions for drivers, and a community-led ecosystem that is reshaping the economics of urban mobility.
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- By Neel Achary
5, Aug 2026
Odisha Highways Turn Greener as NHAI Plants Over 2.4 Lakh Saplings Across the State
Bhubaneswar, Aug 5: In a major step towards promoting sustainable infrastructure and environmental protection, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has planted more than 2.40 lakh saplings along National Highways in Odisha, strengthening green cover across the state.
The plantation drive is part of NHAI’s efforts to combine road development with environmental conservation by creating greener highway corridors and improving ecological balance along major transport routes.
As part of the initiative, NHAI has also launched its first bamboo plantation drive in Odisha, recognising bamboo’s potential in supporting sustainable development, soil conservation, and carbon absorption.
Officials said plantation along highways will help improve air quality, reduce dust pollution, provide shade for commuters, and contribute to a healthier environment. The green corridors are also expected to enhance the visual appeal of highways while supporting local biodiversity.
The initiative reflects the growing focus on environmentally responsible infrastructure development, where economic growth and ecological protection move together.
Experts said such plantation programmes can play an important role in tackling climate challenges by increasing green cover and supporting long-term sustainability goals.
With continued efforts towards greener roads, Odisha’s highway network is set to become not only a symbol of connectivity and development but also a contributor to environmental conservation.
5, Aug 2026
RBI’s Stable Policy to Drive Growth in Tier 2 Real Estate Markets:Mr. Nikhil Madan
By:- Mr. Nikhil Madan, MD Mahima Group on RBI MPC Announcement
“The RBI’s decision to maintain the repo rate at 5.25%, coupled with an upward revision in the GDP outlook to 6.7%, reinforces the view that the economy is entering a phase of measured and sustainable growth. For Tier 2 cities like Jaipur, this macroeconomic stability is particularly significant, as rising incomes, infrastructure investments and improving business activity continue to reshape both residential and commercial demand.
In the luxury housing segment, buyers today are driven less by short-term market movements and more by long-term confidence in the economy and the quality of the product they are investing in. At the same time, a stable inflation trajectory creates a supportive environment for commercial real estate, as businesses remain focused on expansion and long-term capacity building. The current economic indicators point towards a market that is becoming more mature, with Tier 2 centres emerging as important engines of growth across both residential and commercial real estate.”
5, Aug 2026
APR Bharat Launches ‘Bottle Ki Recycle Yatra’ to Take the Message of PET Recycling to Millions of Indians
Muzaffarnagar, Aug 5: The Association of PET Recyclers Bharat has launched ‘Bottle Ki Recycle Yatra’, a unique on-ground awareness and collection initiative aimed at educating people about the value of recycling PET bottles and demonstrating how a discarded bottle can become a valuable resource for the economy.
As part of the 15-day pilot campaign, a specially designed Van will travel across four high-footfall locations in Muzaffarnagar and Meerut, along the Kanwar Yatra route. The campaign will engage pilgrims and the wider public on the importance of responsible disposal, while collecting used PET bottles generated during the pilgrimage and channelising them into the formal recycling ecosystem.
The initiative comes at a time when the government has been emphasising on the need to promote austerity in imports to protect its foreign currency reserves and push for indigenisation of over 200 import-dependent petrochemical items. Global geopolitical disruptions and supply-chain volatility have demonstrated the vulnerability of industries dependent on uninterrupted supplies of virgin polymers. Transition to r-PET is crucial to ensure national resource security, reduce import dependence, and ensure a more resilient domestic packaging supply chain.
The ‘Bottle Ki Recycle Yatra’ campaign seeks to turn one of India’s largest mass public gatherings into a platform for communicating a simple but important message: plastic is not waste when it is responsibly collected and recycled.
Commenting on the launch, Goutham Jain, Director General, APR Bharat, said,
“Our main objective of launching ‘Bottle Ki Recycle Yatra’ is to make recycling tangible and relatable. A discarded PET bottle should not be viewed as the end of its journey. With the right collection and recycling systems, it can become the starting point for another bottle. The Kanwar Yatra provides us with a unique opportunity to take the message of recycling directly to people at an extraordinary scale. Rather than simply talking about plastic waste, our campaign demonstrates what happens when PET bottles are collected and channelled into recycling. Through this pilot, we want to create awareness that responsible consumption must also be accompanied by responsible disposal.”
Mr. Jain underscored that, although the Government has mandated the use of 40% recycled inputs in plastic packaging by 2026–27, implementation at the ground level remains limited and falls short of the intended transition towards a closed loop manufacturing ecosystem. He stressed that reliance on virgin PET derived from crude oil depletes national resources. In contrast, the large-scale adoption of recycled PET can help conserve critical resources while accelerating the transition towards a more sustainable, circular, and environmentally responsible plastic value chain.
The awareness van will serve as a mobile information and collection centre, engaging pilgrims and visitors on the importance of segregating and disposing of PET bottles responsibly. The collected PET bottles will subsequently enter the recycling chain, showcasing the circular economy in action.
APR Bharat plans to take the campaign to other parts of the country, including Western, Eastern and Southern India, to build large-scale public awareness around PET recycling and responsible plastic waste management.
“At a time when global polymer supply chains are experiencing volatility and India is simultaneously building significant domestic recycling capacity, recycling has a much larger role to play than simply managing waste. It can help create a more circular, resource-efficient and resilient manufacturing ecosystem for India. Every bottle that is responsibly disposed of and recycled represents a resource that can be recovered and reused,” Jain added.
5, Aug 2026
RBI’s Stable Repo Rate Strengthens Confidence in Real Estate Growth: Mr. Ravi Agarwal
By:-Mr. Ravi Agarwal, Managing Director and Chairman at Lloyds Realty
“The RBI‘s decision to maintain the repo rate reflects a measured approach in navigating evolving global and domestic economic conditions. Policy stability provides greater confidence to businesses, investors, and homebuyers while supporting long-term planning.For the real estate sector, a stable interest rate environment continues to encourage homebuyer confidence and enables developers to plan investments with greater certainty. In the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), strong infrastructure development, urban redevelopment, and sustained demand continue to reinforce the market’s long-term growth potential.We remain optimistic about India’s real estate sector, with structural demand, improving connectivity, and continued policy support positioning it for sustainable long-term growth.”
5, Aug 2026
Leap Launches AI Answer Engine to Give Study-Abroad Students Instant, Counsellor-Grade Answers
Aug 05: Leap, South Asia’s largest AI-powered study–abroad ecosystem, today announced the launch of the Leap Answer Engine, an AI system that answers the questions Indian students ask most while preparing to study overseas: visas, budgets, English-proficiency tests and university requirements. The engine serves students directly and acts as an always-on co-pilot for Leap‘s counsellors, who otherwise field hundreds of these questions each day.
Study–abroad advising is high-volume: a single counsellor can be handling dozens of students at once, each tied to different visa rules and shifting test-score cutoffs. Students who cannot wait often turn to forums for answers Leap‘s own team already has. The Answer Engine puts that experience directly in front of them.
When a student asks a question, such as whether IELTS is required for a Canadian master’s degree, the engine searches three sources at once, Leap Brain, the open web and the 11/10 Knowledge Base, and writes a tailored response in seconds.
Leap Brain serves as the foundation of the Answer Engine, acting as Leap‘s institutional memory built from years of guiding students through the study–abroad journey. It contains transcripts from past counselling sessions, documents from previous applications, country-specific guides and curated knowledge articles, enabling the engine to draw on real application experience rather than relying solely on information available on the internet.
“Our counsellors already knew most of the answers students needed. What was missing was speed,” said Arnav Kumar, Co-founder, Leap. “The Answer Engine puts that experience in front of students the moment they need it and frees our counsellors for the decisions that need a human.”
Every answer is logged and reviewed. A flagged response is fixed at the rule level, added to Leap Brain as new knowledge, or promoted into the 11/10 Answer Bank if it was excellent, with a human reviewer signing off before any change reaches the live system. Leap calls these rules its Skill Library, built from mistakes reviewers catch repeatedly, such as the engine misrouting a country-specific question or overstating a visa timeline.
“We wanted a system that learns judgment the way a counsellor does, case by case,” said Rajan Chaudhary, Co-founder, Leap. “That is what makes it something students and counsellors can rely on.”
The Leap Answer Engine:
● Draws on Leap Brain, Leap‘s own record of past applications, transcripts and country guides
● Cross-checks the open web for current visa and university requirements
● Serves gold-standard answers directly for Leap‘s most common questions, through the 11/10 Knowledge Base
● Logs and reviews every answer, routing mistakes into rule updates, gaps into Leap Brain, and strong answers into the 11/10 bank
● Works for students on web and app, and for counsellors as a live co-pilot
The Answer Engine went live last week across Leap‘s app and web platform for all students.
The Answer Engine now handles 11,000 questions a day and has served 6,314 students directly since launch. Monthly active users on Leap‘s app have climbed to nearly 20,000, with adoption running strongest outside the metros, in cities including Kolkata, Patna, Lucknow, Surat and Jaipur, as well as Bengaluru, Hyderabad and New Delhi. 50% more users come back to user after seeing the answer which helps them to gain trust and confidence over leap
5, Aug 2026
Commissionerate Police Issue Cyber Alert Over Fake Income Tax Notices on WhatsApp
Bhubaneswar, Aug. 5 (UDN): The Commissionerate Police on Tuesday issued a public advisory cautioning taxpayers against a surge in fake Income Tax notices being circulated through WhatsApp, warning that cybercriminals are exploiting the ongoing belated Income Tax Return (ITR) filing season to defraud unsuspecting citizens.
Pic Credit: x.com/cpbbsrctc
WhatsApp ରେ ଆସୁଥିବା ନକଲି Income Tax Notice, Link କିମ୍ବା Attachment ଠକେଇର ମାଧ୍ୟମ ହୋଇପାରେ।
❌ ଅଜଣା .zip କିମ୍ବା .exe ଫାଇଲ୍ Download କରନ୍ତୁ ନାହିଁ।
🔐 ନିଜର Banking Details, Password ଓ ବ୍ୟକ୍ତିଗତ ତଥ୍ୟ ସୁରକ୍ଷିତ ରଖନ୍ତୁ।👉 କୌଣସି Tax Notice ଉପରେ ବିଶ୍ୱାସ କରିବା ପୂର୍ବରୁ ଏହାର ସତ୍ୟତା ଯାଞ୍ଚ… pic.twitter.com/8TBYhc0EHd
— COMMISSIONERATE POLICE (@cpbbsrctc) August 4, 2026
According to the advisory, fraudsters are posing as officials of the Income Tax Department and sending deceptive messages containing fake tax notices, malicious links and suspicious file attachments. The objective is to trick users into downloading malware or sharing sensitive personal and financial information.
Police have urged taxpayers not to open or download files, particularly those with .zip or .exe extensions, received from unknown or unverified sources. Such files may contain malicious software capable of compromising mobile phones and computers, allowing cybercriminals to steal banking credentials, passwords and other confidential data.
The advisory also warns against messages promising tax refunds or demanding immediate action to avoid penalties or resolve tax-related issues. Citizens have been advised to verify the authenticity of any Income Tax communication only through official government platforms before responding or clicking on any links.
Emphasising the importance of cyber hygiene, the Commissionerate Police reminded the public never to share banking details, passwords, one-time passwords (OTPs) or other confidential information through messaging apps, emails or unverified websites.
The warning is part of the Commissionerate Police’s ongoing cyber awareness initiative to educate citizens about emerging online frauds and promote safe digital practices. Officials noted that scammers often become more active during the tax filing period, targeting taxpayers with convincing but fraudulent messages.
Appealing to the public to remain vigilant, the police urged citizens to ignore suspicious communications and report any attempted cyber fraud to the appropriate authorities.
“Awareness remains the strongest defence against cybercrime. Stay alert and verify before you trust,” the advisory said.
5, Aug 2026
VAHDAM India Appoints Akhil Arora as Chief Business Officer for UK & Europe
New Delhi, Aug 5: VAHDAM India, the homegrown global wellness brand bringing India’s finest herbs and botanicals to consumers worldwide, today announced the elevation of Akhil Arora as Chief Business Officer – UK & Europe.
In his expanded mandate, Akhil will lead VAHDAM’s UK and Europe business end to end, with complete ownership of the region’s strategy, growth, profitability, and P&L. He will oversee all channels across the region, including direct-to-consumer platforms, online marketplaces, offline retail, and distribution, while building the organisation and partnerships required to establish VAHDAM as a leading wellness brand across these markets.
Akhil has been an integral part of VAHDAM’s growth story for over eight years, having joined the company in 2018 as Senior Business Analyst to the CEO. An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur, he has held multiple leadership roles at VAHDAM and played an instrumental role in building and scaling the company’s global online business.
In his new role, Akhil will define the strategic direction of the UK and Europe business, including revenue and profitability growth, brand building, category expansion, consumer acquisition, marketplace leadership, D2C growth, retail and distribution expansion, pricing strategy, supply-chain alignment, working-capital efficiency, and the development of high-performing regional teams.
He will continue to report to Bala Sarda, Founder and CEO of VAHDAM India, and will work closely with the company’s leadership and functional teams to build the UK and Europe region into a significant global business for VAHDAM.
Commenting on the elevation, Bala Sarda, Founder and CEO, VAHDAM India, said:
“Akhil has played an instrumental role in shaping VAHDAM®’s growth over the last eight years, particularly in building and scaling our global online business. As we move towards a geography-led organisation and work to establish the UK and Europe as one of our largest global markets, his leadership will be critical in building a consumer-first, locally relevant, and profitable business across the region.”
On his elevation, Akhil Arora, Chief Business Officer – UK & Europe, VAHDAM® India, said:
“VAHDAM® has always been more than a workplace for me. It has given me a front-row seat to the building of a truly global Indian brand. I’m incredibly grateful to Bala and the leadership team for this opportunity and for the trust they have placed in me over the years. Wellness, conscious consumption, and digital-first commerce are coming together in a way the world has never seen before, and India is uniquely positioned to lead this shift. I’m excited to work with our incredibly talented teams to deepen our business in the UK and Europe”
5, Aug 2026
Goa Tourism Set to Showcase a Range of New-Age Experiences at TTF Ahmedabad 2026
Focus on Weddings, MICE, Spiritual, Wellness, Culinary and Adventure Tourism to Strengthen Western India Market
Panaji, Goa, Aug 05: The Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, will participate in the Travel & Tourism Fair (TTF) Ahmedabad 2026, one of western India’s leading travel trade exhibitions, being held from August 6 – 8, 2026 at the Mahatma Mandir Convention & Exhibition Centre in Gandhinagar, with a renewed focus on positioning Goa as India’s most diverse year-round tourism destination. Led by the Hon’ble Tourism Minister, Government of Goa, Shri Rohan A. Khaunte, the state’s participation will highlight Goa’s expanding portfolio of high-value tourism experiences that extend far beyond its beaches.
Recognising Gujarat as one of Goa’s most important domestic source markets, Goa Tourism will engage with travel trade partners, wedding planners, MICE organisers, tour operators, airlines, hospitality stakeholders and media to strengthen collaborations and promote specialised tourism segments that appeal to today’s evolving traveller.
Speaking ahead of the event, Hon’ble Minister for Tourism, Government of Goa, Shri Rohan A. Khaunte, said: “Goa’s tourism story is evolving. While our beaches remain an enduring attraction, today’s traveller is looking for meaningful, immersive and personalised experiences. Through our participation at TTF Ahmedabad, we want to showcase Goa as a destination that offers world-class weddings, business events, wellness retreats, spiritual journeys, culinary discoveries and adventure experiences throughout the year. Our focus is on creating greater value for visitors while ensuring tourism growth benefits local communities and businesses across the state.”
Director of Tourism, Shri Kedar Naik, said: “TTF Ahmedabad serves as an important platform for Goa Tourism to engage directly with travel trade stakeholders and strengthen partnerships in one of our key domestic markets. Through our participation, we are showcasing a wide spectrum of tourism experiences that cater to diverse traveller interests, while creating new opportunities for collaborations with tour operators, wedding planners, MICE organisers and the hospitality sector.”
At TTF Ahmedabad, Goa Tourism will showcase six strategic tourism pillars that are driving the state’s transformation into a year-round experiential destination.
– Weddings – Goa has emerged as one of India’s preferred destinations for destination weddings, offering an unmatched combination of luxury resorts, heritage venues, beachfront celebrations and a mature hospitality ecosystem capable of hosting intimate ceremonies as well as large multi-day celebrations.
– MICE – The state is also strengthening its position as a leading MICE destination, with premium hotels, modern convention facilities, excellent air connectivity and a unique blend of business and leisure experiences that make Goa an ideal choice for conferences, corporate meetings, incentive travel and executive retreats.
– Spiritual Tourism – A key highlight will be the recently launched Ekadasha Teertha Yatra, a curated spiritual circuit connecting 11 ancient temples across Goa. The initiative offers visitors an opportunity to experience Goa’s sacred heritage, local traditions, village life and cultural legacy while supporting tourism in the state’s hinterland.
– Wellness – Goa Tourism will also spotlight the state’s growing wellness tourism offerings, including Ayurveda, yoga, holistic healing, nature retreats and luxury wellness resorts that cater to travellers seeking rejuvenation and mindful travel experiences.
– Food and Culinary Trails – The state’s vibrant culinary tourism landscape will be another major focus, celebrating Goa’s diverse gastronomic traditions through authentic local cuisine, seafood, temple food, farm-to-table experiences, feni heritage, local markets and culinary trails that reflect the state’s rich cultural heritage.
– Adventure and Water sports – For adventure enthusiasts, Goa continues to expand its portfolio of adventure tourism experiences across land, sea and forest landscapes, including kayaking, trekking, cycling, wildlife experiences and eco-adventures in the Western Ghats, reinforcing its appeal as an all-season destination.
Goa Tourism’s participation at TTF Ahmedabad aligns with the state’s long-term strategy of promoting high-value, sustainable and regenerative tourism while encouraging visitors to explore the state’s culture, heritage, nature and communities throughout the year. Visitors to the Goa Pavilion will have the opportunity to interact with tourism officials, hospitality and travel stakeholders, discover new itineraries and explore collaborative opportunities across leisure, weddings, MICE, wellness, spiritual, culinary and adventure tourism.
As Goa continues to diversify its tourism offerings and strengthen partnerships with key domestic markets, TTF Ahmedabad provides an important platform to build new business relationships and inspire travellers to experience a side of Goa that is richer, deeper and more immersive than ever before.
5, Aug 2026
SK Telecom Announces Q2 2026 Results
SEOUL, Korea, Aug 5 — SK Telecom (NYSE: SKM, hereinafter “SKT”) today announced its consolidated earnings for the second quarter of 2026, based on Korean International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS): revenue of KRW 4.3591 trillion, operating income of KRW 566.0 billion, and net income of KRW 466.0 billion.
Compared with the same period last year, revenue increased by 0.5%, driven by growth in the data center business. Through efficient, profitability‑focused management, operating income rose 5.3% quarter over quarter (QoQ). Year over year (YoY), it surged 67.3%, supported in part by a favorable base effect from one‑off expenses in the prior year.
The telecommunications business, which has remained focused on restoring customer trust, showed a clear turnaround driven by efforts to enhance customer value and improve profitability. The AI business also recorded robust growth as execution accelerated under the company’s strategy of focus and prioritization.
On a non-consolidated basis, the company reported revenue of KRW 3.1170 trillion, operating income of KRW 427.7 billion, and net income of KRW 310.6 billion. The second-quarter dividend is KRW 830 per share,unchanged from the first quarter.
AI data center business gains momentum, fueling growth through rapid execution
The AI data center (AIDC) business is the fastest-growing segment among SKT’s business areas. In the second quarter, AIDC revenue reached KRW 136.2 billion, up 92.5% year over year, driven by expanded operations.
As generative AI adoption spreads across industries and demand for high-performance computing infrastructure surges, timely delivery of AI infrastructure for customers such as global Big Tech companies has never been more critical.
Last month, SKT established SK Hyper to spearhead AIDC business development, strengthening the company’s execution engine. SK Hyper will proactively secure key resources, including land and power capacity, and attract global customers to accelerate execution and seize market leadership.
Led by SK Hyper, SKT has set an initial goal of bringing AIDCs online in phases starting in 2029, targeting a combined capacity of 5 GW.
The telecommunications business continues to deliver qualitative growth centered on customer lifetime value (CLV). Through efficient marketing activities such as identifying new customer segments and running differentiated campaigns, it achieved net additions in mobile subscribers amid a stable market environment.
Customer Lifetime Value represents the total value a customer generates over the entire period of using a particular service, serving as a critical metric that reflects the depth of the relationship between the company and its customers.
In particular, SKT launched integrated 5G and LTE plans in July to reorganize its overall pricing structure while continuously enhancing customer value by improving customer experience and service accessibility.
“In the first half of the year, we focused on strengthening our fundamentals based on stable telecommunications business profitability while laying the foundation for the rapid expansion of our AI data center business,” said Park Jong-seok, CFO of SK Telecom. “Going forward, we will make every effort to play a leading role in enabling Korea to emerge as an AI infrastructure hub in Asia.”
※The conference call regarding SKT’s Q2 2026 earnings will be available on SKT’s website on Wednesday, August 5, at 16:00 KST.
https://irsvc.teletogether.com/skt/skt2026Q2eng.php
1. Summary of Consolidated Income Statement (Unit: KRW billion)
|
Type |
26.2Q |
25.2Q |
YoY |
26.1Q |
QoQ |
|
4,359.1 |
4,338.8 |
0.5% |
4,392.3 |
△0.8% |
|
|
Operating Income |
566.0 |
338.3 |
67.3% |
537.6 |
5.3% |
|
Net Income |
466.0 |
83.2 |
459.8% |
316.4 |
47.3% |
2. Summary of Non-Consolidated Income Statement (Unit: KRW billion)
|
Type |
26.2Q |
25.2Q |
YoY |
26.1Q |
QoQ |
|
Revenue |
3,117.0 |
3,135.1 |
△0.6% |
3,105.8 |
0.4% |
|
Operating Income |
427.7 |
250.9 |
70.5% |
409.5 |
4.4% |
|
Net Income |
310.6 |
36.9 |
742.2% |
332.7 |
△6.6% |
