Blog

Business tourist flow from India in Moscow is one of the most numerous – Evgeny Kozlov

Saturday, October 2nd, 2023: Business + Leisure Travel and MICE 2023 opened on 29th of September with a keynote speech from the Chairman of The Moscow City Tourism Committee, Mr. Evgeny Kozlov. In his speech, the Chairman spoke about the potential for MICE and business tourism in Moscow and the growing number of Indian businessmen who are choosing Moscow as their preferred destination for business events.

Mr. Evgeny Kozlov highlighted that the number of business tourists is expected to grow in the coming years. One of the factors supporting the growth of interest from Indian businessmen was the launch of electronic visa program. From August 1, 2023, it has become easier for Indian citizens to organize a trip to Moscow – they can come simply by applying for an electronic visa. The validity period of an e-visa is 60 days from the date of its issuance. You can stay with it in Russia for 16 days. An e-visa has several advantages over a traditional visa. To obtain it, you do not need to go to consulates or embassies, and the only documents required are a digital photograph of your face and a scan of the page with your passport data.

“Before the pandemic, the tourist flow from India grew by 12-15 percent annually. Now we are on the road to recovery – all the conditions have been created for this. Every year hundreds of international exhibitions, forums, congresses and conferences are held in Moscow. Over the past year, about 3.5 million people visited the capital for business purposes and a significant share of them are from India” – he said.

Evgeny Kozlov emphasized that Moscow is a growing hub for international business events and Indian businessmen could benefit from attending these events to expand their network and explore potential business opportunities. The Moscow MICE Ambassadors program, which also premiered at the exhibition, aims to promote Moscow as a preferred destination for business tourism, and Indian businessmen who have completed the program can serve as valuable resources for organizing conferences and events in Moscow. Furthermore, Moscow offers a range of world-class facilities and services for business travelers, including conference centers, hotels, transportation, and sightseeing. He also mentioned that Moscow’s rich cultural heritage and vibrant nightlife could provide Indian businessmen with unique experiences that could enhance their overall business trip.

In conclusion, Mr. Evgeny Kozlov expressed his optimism for the future of MICE and business tourism in Moscow. Thus, in October 2023, Moscow will host the largest MICE Congress in Russia. Among the participants are 14 countries, including Indians. The event will provide a platform for businesses in the travel and tourism industry to showcase their products and services.

TVS SCS to enhance profitability through strategic asset sale

Mumbai, 2nd October 2023: TVS Supply Chain Solutions Limited (NSE: TVSSCS BSE: 543965), a global supply chain solutions provider and one of the largest and fastest-growing integrated supply

chain solutions providers in India, announced the sale of Circle Express, through its UK Subsidiary RICO Logistics, in a move designed to boost the company’s profitability and sharpen its focus on core

offerings to its customers.

The decision to divest this asset aligns with TVS SCS commitment to deliver superior value to its shareholders and optimize its business portfolio. By shedding this non-core asset, the company will align its strategic focus and resources with its core business objectives.

The sale was completed for a transactional value of £2.1 million (approx. INR 21.32 crore).

Mr. Ravi Viswanathan, Managing Director of TVS Supply Chain Solutions Ltd. said, “The sale of Circle Express, is an important step as it found very little synergy with the core operations and represents an important step in our efforts to enhance our financial performance and sharpen our competitive edge. We are confident that this sale will allow us to allocate resources more effectively and focus on driving, sustainable growth and profitability, and thereby increasing shareholder value.”

If you want to have a great family, you need to create a family of friendship: Mahatriya

October 02, 2023…….In a modern, mechanical, fast world, all the relationship labels–mother, father, sister, brother, wife, husband……….all died. The only label that counts now is Are you a friend or not said, internationally renowned spiritual guru Mahatriya Ra while addressing a gathering of 1500 people immediately after the inauguration of Umang 2.0, South India’s biggest jewellery and lifestyle products expo on Saturday at Hitex in Madhapur in the city.

Mahatriya Ra spoke on a very interesting topic ‘This & That”.

Mahatria is a great storyteller. His powerful one-liner messages are so powerful that they cause a transformation in so many lives. Some of the most popular and inspiring messages of Mahātria are: What is, is; What is not, is not; There is no way to happiness, happiness is the way; The power of a man is in the power of his mind; An hour a day of investment in health, 23 hours of freedom to enjoy life; There are three essential relationships – relationship with self, relationship with others and relationship with Thy; Energy + Intelligent Efforts + Faith in the Energy = Miraculous possibilities and many more like these.

Jain International Trade Organisation–JITO Hyderabad, which is organising a three-day expo Umang 2.0 invited Mahatriya Ra to address them on matters around family and relationships.

Mahatriya Ra said, If you want to have a great family, you need to create a family of friendship. What counts the most in the family today is an understanding nature of the family member. Do you know how relationships are in modern societies of the world? he asked his audience.

Brother meets sister only Raksha Bandhan. And of the year, they live like strangers. Our relationships are day-oriented –Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Parent’s Day. Our mother ends up eating dinner all alone in the house after her day-long work, while the family members are busy on mobile, laptops. Nobody has time for the mother or parents. A brother who didn’t have time to speak to his brother for the past couple of days but he keeps talking about the India-Canada relationship. We don’t know what is happening in our own marriage, but we keep talking about newly wedded Parineeti Chopra and Raghav Chadha and their marriage.

If you want to reunite a family, ask, is there respect still exists in that relationship? If respect is lost, there is no future in that relationship. You will get back that relationship if respect exists mutually. He gave an example of Lord Shriram and Bharath. Though they were separated, they were united because mutual respect still existed. Take the example of Mahabharata. Pandavas and Kauravas’ relationship soured and there was no respect, so they never got united.

Nowadays, the family means only the wife and husband staying together and no one else. The world has become individualistic.

If you want to nurture good relationships you need to give quality time and keep deep communication. That is the only way to save the relationship, he said.

If families have to stay united, no matter what, a family must have to come together for at least one meal in a year. The next generation will forget what the relations are. Families must take time out for outings, and holidays once in a while. Invest time with the family. Family is a responsibility. Friendship is for pleasure. It is the family that stands by you when you are hospitalised. Friends only send emojis. They send speedy recovery messages on WhatsApp. But, it is the family that sleeps with you in the hospital.

When Lord Mahavir told this world about the message of Love, it was fine. But he was not the first to talk about loving people. But he was the only one who told us to love everything around life.

A true Jain doesn’t shy away from responsibilities. If a Jain shies away from responsibilities, he is not the true Jain. And the one who by birth may not be a Jain, but takes the responsibility, is living the life of Jain, said Mahatriya Ra.

The best way to a holistic life is not to make your evening the same and repetitive. Make every evening different from the rest of the evenings, he told the audience

Stressing upon various points related to the happy family and other related issues he gave several examples, which received thunderous applause from time to time

Speaking about another state of affairs, Mahatriya said, the plantation is a new buzzword now. Plantation doesn’t solve the problem. Growing those plants actually solves it. Even if three plants are planted and if they are nurtured well into trees makes much more difference he said

Gratitude is the way to a happy life. Grateful heart is always happy, he added.

Speaking about how money spoils relationships, he said financial surplus in a good human being will build the world and in a bad person destroys the world. A Rs 100 crore in the hands of Osama Bin Laden would have destroyed another equally tall building. At the same time, the same amount in a good person’s hand would have saved many lives.

His sixty-plus minutes of talk was heard with rapt attention. Towards the end, he received a standing ovation.

Many Jain Community members and JITO Office bearers were among the audience at the talk session.

Umang 2.0, the three-day South India’s biggest Jewellery and Lifestyle show kicked off at Hitex

Jains may be fewer in numbers but contribute significantly to the GDP: Rajarshri Shah, IAS, Dist Collector, Medak

Hyderabad, September 30, 2023...Jain International Trade Organisation–JITO Hyderabad organising Umang 2.0, South India’s biggest Jewellery and Lifestyle Expo at Hitex in Madhapur city. This is open from 10 am to 8 pm till Sunday. Entry to the expo is free.

The inauguration was a grand affair. To mark the inauguration, Colours of India, a dance drama was performed. It featured various cultures of India with an inspiring message.

JITO Hyderabad, the organisers have also roped in a band Mirajkar, composed of 50 performers, both men and women from Solapur, Maharashtra, performing on the dol(drums).

The visitors were given a surprise by ferrying them in retro, vintage cars such as Rolls-Royce, Jaguar and Audi cars.

The expo spread over 2 lakh sq foot areas is spread over all three hangers at Hitex and has 500 exhibitors showcasing jewellery, lifestyle, furniture, automobiles, home decoration products and others.

It was formally inaugurated by Shri Rajarshri Shah, IAS, Dist Collector, Medak accompanied by JITO Dignitaries Sanjay Ji. Ghodawat, Director, JITO Apex, Prithviraj Jii Kothari, Zone Chairman, Mumbai.

The other office bearers of JITO who graduated include Sushil Sancheti, Chairman; Paresh Shah, Chief Secretary; B.L. Bhandari, Treasurer–JITO Hyderabad Chapter; Gautam Sehlot, Expo Chairman and Surender Bantia, Rohit Kothari, Lalit Chopra, Expo Co-Chairman.

Speaking at the inauguration, Rajarshri Shah, District Collector of Medak District said that Umang 2.0 is not just an expo but is a spirit of entrepreneurship and a platform celebration. It is also a fusion of tradition. The Jain community is traditionally a business community. Business is there in their genes. But, of late they are also getting into administration, Judiciary, Police and service sectors. I am an example of Jains getting into administrative services. The major philosophy taught in Jainism is to keep the tradition to heart. And this expo is about both tradition, trade and whatnot. The Jain community may be less in numbers in terms of population, but their contribution to the GDP is very significant.

Jains are less than 0.5% in India still; they are among the highest contributors to personal Income tax. Jains are the only minority community in this country that never sought any minority favours/reservations.

Giving his opening notes, Sushil Sancheti said the exhibition is the labour of love of many months. It is spread over 4 halls. Hall 1 is the Corporate and Wedding Arena; Hall 2 is the Diamond / Gold / Silver Jewellery section; Hall 3 is the Lifestyle Arena and related Products and Hall 4 is the Automobile Arena. Nearly 75,000 footfall is expected in the next three days.

Prakash Sethiya, TNAPTS Zone (Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu Zone) described it as a red-letter day, as JITO Hyderabad has put up a mega Jewellery show, which has now become the talk of the nation.

Paresh Shah, Chief Secretary said JITO Hyderabad has done 169 programs in the last year

The Project Chairman Gautam Sehlot said the expo is a result of 4 months of labour. The main aim of this is to provide a platform to showcase products, start-up ideas and women entrepreneurs’ potential to explore the market, encourage economically poor women, and businesses by offering stalls at economical prices, and also celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurship.

A spiritual session by renowned spiritual leader Mahatria Ra was held. Over 1,500 people were in attendance at the session. If you want to have a great family, create a family of friendship, he told his audience, who listened for 90 minutes with rapt attention.

GM Modular stationed a unique bus, a ‘showroom on the wheels. This is the world’s first luxury showroom on wheels. The bus which is said to have been built at a cost of Rs 5 crore is designed by Dilip Chhabria, an acclaimed automobile designer in India. The state-of-the-art bus fully equipped with the latest innovations like designer switches, decor lighting, home automation solutions and more from GM offered an opportunity for everyone to experience the cream-of-the-crop products in a unique way. This bus has turned many heads and visitors have been enthusiastically checking up on the products on display in the bus.

Besides the exhibition, the expo has a conference and motivational enclosure, where speaker sessions and entertainment activities are held. Women, youth conclaves, Sufi Night, Dr Vivek Bindra, Motivational Session, Kavi Sammelan, Dandiya Raas etc.

Applied Ventures Selects Seven Deep tech Startups during ASTRA 2023

Bengaluru, India | Singapore; September 30, 2023 – Applied Ventures, LLC, the venture capital arm of Applied Materials, Inc., along with Applied Materials India Private Limited, selected seven deep tech startups during the fourth cohort of its start-up engagement program – ASTRA (Applied Startup Technology & Research Accelerator) in Bengaluru. ASTRA aims to collaborate with start-ups and transform disruptive possibilities into reality.

Based in India and Singapore the selected startups during ASTRA 2023 include Lightspeed Photonics, Portkey, Sungreen H2, Exposome, OIP Technologies, App Sentinels, and Ethereal Machines.

Chosen from a pool of 50+ outstanding applications, the selected start-ups pitched their business proposals to Applied Materials executives and industry leaders during the event. The start-ups were then evaluated based on criteria such as Fit to Applied Technology and Business, High-Value Problems Addressed, Differentiation from Existing Market Solutions and Business Models, and Growth Potential. The areas of focus for ASTRA 2023 were Generative AI, Semiconductor and Display Technologies, Sustainability, Supply Chain Solutions, Cybersecurity, Advanced Materials, Advanced Optics and Photonics, and AI Hardware.

Commenting on the occasion, Om Nalamasu, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Applied Materials, Inc., and President of Applied Ventures said, “I would like to congratulate the seven selected start-ups for their innovative solutions. All of them have showcased exciting visions of the future, and we look forward to helping them reach their full potential through collaboration and mentorship. The ASTRA program connects us with some of the most dynamic deeptech startups, and we want to continue this incredible journey where Applied Ventures can play a significant role in fostering innovation, collaboration, and entrepreneurship to cultivate a thriving start-up ecosystem.”

Anand Kamannavar, Global Head, Applied Ventures, and sponsor of ASTRA, said, “The fourth cohort of ASTRA has showcased breakthrough innovations across the broader Materials to Systems™ stack in the areas of Generative AI, Semiconductors, ESG, and Supply Chain. We are thrilled to engage with the shortlisted startups; they all have tremendous potential to transform the market ecosystem. Applied Ventures will continue to support breakthrough companies across the globe, help bring their innovations to market, and guide their journey towards becoming successful business models.”

Srinivas Satya, Country President, Applied Materials India said, “We’ve always believed in the power of entrepreneurship to drive meaningful change, and we’re excited to see how these shortlisted startups will contribute to India’s semiconductor ecosystem. By collaborating with these cutting-edge businesses, we are accelerating the creation of a local semiconductor ecosystem and building on the recent announcement of our intent to establish a Collaborative Engineering Center in India.

With ASTRA 2023, Applied Materials and Applied Ventures are leveraging their extensive technical and industry expertise to accelerate the growing start-up ecosystem. The companies selected during the fourth cohort of ASTRA will now be assessed for mentorship, possible collaboration with Applied Materials, and investment opportunities from Applied Ventures. As a consultant, Applied Materials will help the final start-ups selected this year address market and technology challenges and explore potential scale-up pathways. The selected companies will also have access to Applied Materials’ product development expertise, best-known methods for maximizing market opportunities, infrastructure, and ecosystem connections.

Following are the selected start-ups during ASTRA 2023

HDFC Pension launches a first-of-its-kind National Pension System (NPS) Preference Index on the occasion of NPS Diwas

Mumbai, September 30, 2023: HDFC Pension, one of India’s leading Pension Fund Managers, has been at the forefront in creating consumer awareness amongst Indians about retirement planning using the National Pension System (NPS).

October 1st is marked as NPS Diwas. To coincide with the day, HDFC Pension has launched a first-of-its-kind NPS Preference Index that highlights the preference of NPS amongst different consumer groups.

The NPS is a government-backed retirement savings program designed to provide financial security to Indian citizens during their retirement years. NPS can be subscribed to by any Indian citizen, aged between 18-70 years, on a voluntarily basis.

HDFC Pension commissioned an independent market research specialist, Ipsos for conducting the survey for the NPS Preference Index. The findings are based on a consumer market research study*with 1,801 NPS aware consumers across Tier I/II/III locations in the age cohorts of 30-40 years and 45-55 years.

The objective of the survey was to understand consumer outlook towards retirement and gauge consumer familiarity, appeal and consideration, leading to the ‘NPS Preference Index’ which can be tracked over time.

The survey findings indicate that currently the NPS Preference Index stands at 54 (on a scale of 0 to 100). Hence, it can be concluded that NPS Preference Index is currently at a moderate level and is equally influenced by the three pillars of familiarity, appeal and consideration.

NPS Preference Index improves with increasing income level of the consumers. North region has the highest NPS preference index (57) compared to other regions.

Some other highlights of the report:

Even though, on an average, 32 years is considered as an ideal age to start retirement planning, the retirement corpus need is often underestimated. Average ideal retirement corpus of Rs. ~1.3 Cr stated by consumers is observed to be less than 10X of their current annual household income reflecting the need to educate consumers about the recommended levels of retirement corpus
Capital security, tax benefi­ts, and continued income after death are key factors for retirement products. While being a relatively new instrument, NPS ownership is at 24%, with appealing features like tax-free withdrawals, safety (being Government regulated) and benefit for spouse. Tax benefit (80C/80CCD) has a relatively higher appeal (35%) among those enrolled for NPS compared to all consumers (31%)

While tax bene­fits, peers, and ­financial advisors trigger NPS purchase, educating people about NPS and its features is critical to drive adoption. It has further been noticed that individuals who have enrolled for NPS feel more confident about their financial health during retirement years. It can thus be said that NPS ownership is a strong indicator of financial preparedness for one’s retirement years.
*Note: This consumer research study was conducted as Face-to-Face personal interviews between Aug-Sep 2023 across 12 cities in India among NCCS A, annual household income above INR 10 lakhs (above INR 7 lakhs for Tier III cities),

Speaking on the launch, Sriram Iyer, Chief Executive Officer, HDFC Pension said, “On the occasion of NPS Diwas, we are pleased to unveil the NPS Preference Index, a report that puts the industry-first spotlight on the National Pension System (NPS). In an age where financial security is paramount, our commitment to empowering individuals for a secure retirement gains unprecedented strength.

National Pension System (NPS) is instrumental to facilitate an income post retirement, making it pivotal for long-term financial security. In India, a significant opportunity exists to boost NPS adoption, which is why there was a need to delve deeper into the intricacies and understand why.

Our pursuit is not limited to mere awareness; it extends to building an earnest understanding of NPS among individuals, which is why we worked further ahead to present the ‘NPS Preference Index’, a powerful metric derived from three broad aspects that delve into familiarity, appeal and consideration for NPS.”

HDFC Pension is the fastest growing legacy Pension Fund Manager in India, under Retail and Corporate NPS segments with the highest number of subscribers (16,92,504 as on September 1st 2023). HDFC Pension has crossed the milestone of Rs. 50,000 cr. of Assets Under Management (AUM) on May 15th 2023 and has been awarded as the ‘Best Performing PFM’ by Money Today for 3 consecutive years from 2019 to 2022.

Affordplan announces management buyout by CEO, Aditya Sharma. Ex-Coca Cola Chief, Sanjiv Gupta, amongst new investors

New Delhi, 30th September 2023: Affordplan – a healthcare finance technology platform that works to address revenues for hospitals while addressing out-of-pocket-expenditure for patient families, announced a management-led buyback of all the equity investment previously held by Affordplan’s founders and 4 prominent private equity investors. The buyout was led by Affordplan’s CEO, Aditya Sharma, and a set of new equity investors that include Sanjiv Gupta, ex-Chief of Coca Cola, who now own 100% stake in the fintech company.

Affordplan’s CEO, Aditya Sharma commented, “We are happy to provide a fresh direction to the company and remain committed to working with our partner hospitals and their patients to help with unique ways of managing healthcare costs. Our aim is to ensure that as many people as possible in the country are able to get access to quality healthcare at the most affordable costs. We are very grateful to our previous investors who have been highly supportive and have helped us on every step of the way”.

According to Sanjiv Gupta, “It is very exciting to be a part of the Affordplan growth journey in its quest for partnering with hospitals in the country to make care affordable, digital and equitable. I am very confident of its success with a strong team led by the dynamic Aditya Sharma who has demonstrated a successful business model.”

Since its launch in June 2020, Swasth has onboarded 3,50,000 families delivering cost savings to the tune of INR 20 crores to these families. Swasth is a digital wallet that enables OPD (Outpatient Department) payments including lab tests, purchase of medicines, and IPD payments. Equipped with a digital stack, customers will also enjoy additional benefits in the form of instant cashback, exclusive hospital offers, and exclusive discounts on preferred brands through the Affordplan Swasth partner tie-ups.