Category Archives: News

Aditya Mehta Foundation Para Cyclists Shine at Para Track Cycling National Championship.

Hyderabad, Feb 20: Para cyclists trained under the Aditya Mehta Foundation (AMF) delivered an outstanding performance at the Para Track Cycling National Championship, held today at the Cycling Velodrome, O.U. Campus, Hyderabad, securing an impressive haul of 18 Gold and 3 Silver medals across multiple events.

The championships featured intense competition in Individual Pursuit, Time Trial, and Sprint, where AMF athletes showcased exceptional performance, resilience, and competitive excellence against the best para cyclists from across the country.

Medal Winners

MC1 Category – Anshuman (15 years), Maharashtra – 3 Gold Medals

MC2 Category – Arshad, Andhra Pradesh – 3 Gold Medals

MC2 Category – Aryavardhan, Telangana – 3 Silver Medals

MC3 Category – Pawan, Andhra Pradesh – 3 Gold Medals

WC3 Category – Vishva (16 years), Gujarat – 3 Gold Medals

MC4 Category – Sameer (16 years), Uttar Pradesh – 3 Gold Medals

MC5 Category – Aabid (17 years), Jammu & Kashmir – 3 Gold Medals

The athletes demonstrated remarkable determination, discipline, and sporting excellence, reaffirming Aditya Mehta Foundation’s commitment to nurturing world-class Indian para-cycling talent and creating pathways for international success.

The Foundation extends its sincere gratitude to its valued supporters Alcon, GMMCO, Invesco, and Flutter Entertainment India for their continued partnership in empowering para-athletes and enabling them to achieve excellence at national and global platforms. 

8 Things You Can Actually Do at Noida’s Most Colourful Festival This Weekend – Noida Flower Show

Noida’s annual 38th Vasant Utsav – Noida Flower Show 2026 is back at Shivalik Park (next to Noida Haat) from February 19 to 22, open from 10 AM to 7 PM with free entry. But if you think it’s just about admiring flowers, think again.

Here’s what visitors can experience beyond the blooms:

1. Walk Through a Tunnel Made Entirely of Flowers

One of the most photographed attractions at the venue is the immersive flower tunnel. Covered in vibrant seasonal blooms, it’s designed for slow walks, selfies and uninterrupted appreciation of colour and fragrance.

2. Explore Theme Gardens That Spark Home Décor Ideas

From compact balcony garden concepts to elaborate landscape displays, themed garden sections demonstrate how texture, colour combinations and plant layering can transform even small urban spaces. It’s an inspiration you can directly replicate at home.

3. Shop Directly From Nurseries

Plant parents, this is your zone. Multiple nurseries have set up stalls offering flowering plants, succulents, indoor greens, herbs and seasonal saplings. Visitors can also pick up seeds to start their own mini garden projects.

4. Upgrade Your Garden With Ceramic and Designer Pots

Beyond plants, the marketplace features ceramic planters, hanging pots, balcony-friendly containers and decorative garden accessories. It’s a great opportunity to refresh your home’s green corner with aesthetic upgrades.

5. Discover Herbal and Medicinal Plants

A dedicated section showcases herbal and medicinal varieties along with basic information on their everyday uses. For those curious about natural remedies or traditional plant knowledge, this zone adds an educational layer to the visit.

6. Learn Composting and Sustainable Gardening

Live demonstrations and interactive sessions focus on practical, city-friendly sustainability techniques from composting kitchen waste to water-efficient gardening and bonsai care. The festival reinforces that green living is achievable even in apartments.

7. Participate in Community Competitions

RWAs, institutions and gardening enthusiasts are showcasing their creativity through competitions in flower arrangement and garden design. Visitors can walk through these displays and observe how different communities interpret the idea of urban greenery.

8. Get a Floral Makeover to Match the Festival Mood

Adding a lifestyle twist to the celebration, Milano7 is offering basic salon services along with floral-inspired hairstyling. Visitors can opt for quick touch-ups or have fresh flowers woven into their hair, making it easy to step into the festival spirit quite literally.

It’s fast becoming a popular stop for those wanting a complete spring-ready look before heading back to explore the installations or click photos.

Why It’s More Than Just a Flower Show

At its core, the Noida Flower Show blends floriculture with sustainability, community participation and experiential activities. Whether you’re there to shop, learn, photograph, experiment or simply unwind, the event offers multiple ways to engage, not just observe.

For four days, Shivalik Park transforms into a space where nature, creativity and urban lifestyle intersect and visitors get to be part of the experience, not just spectators.

Crude Oil Caught Between Political Deadline and Tight Spare Capacity

Oil markets are currently moving within a repricing framework to keep pace with geopolitical risks. Setting a time window of 10 to 15 days to reach an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program has created what can be described as a time-compressed risk window, which is an important point from a pricing and price-action perspective. The market is not dealing only with the probability of escalation and its continuation, but with a timeline that could shift the scene from political pressure to a field development within a relatively short period, especially given that military assets are already present in the Gulf. This time factor in itself justifies the move in prices to their highest in several months.

Price action indicates that Brent crude is not moving in a vacuum. It shows a transition since the January low near 60 dollars, where we see a sequence of higher highs and higher lows, reflecting a shift in investor behavior from selling rallies to buying dips. The return of price to test the 71 to 72 dollar range, a supply zone that previously formed a ceiling, suggests that consolidation below it is characterised by relatively lower volatility compared to prior rejection waves, pointing to an absorption of available demand. A break of this area would reflect a shift from a temporary risk premium to a broader repricing of the range, and the path toward 80 dollars per barrel appears to be a realistic target should geopolitical tensions evolve further.

The fundamental angle is more complex as the Gulf region represents around one third of global crude supply, a high geographic concentration of risk. A broad disruption could affect flows exceeding 15 million barrels per day in a severe scenario. On the other hand, data has shown Saudi exports declining to around 7 million barrels per day, a relatively low level compared to previous periods, implying available spare capacity to compensate for supply shortages.

Logistically, Saudi Arabia possesses important elements of flexibility. Ras Tanura port is capable of handling around 6 million barrels per day, and the East–West pipeline transports approximately 5 million barrels per day to Red Sea ports, reducing reliance on the Strait of Hormuz. Yanbu facilities also provide additional export alternatives. However, this flexibility remains within a normal operating framework. In the event of military escalation or a direct threat to routes, insurance risks and shipping costs could become independent pressure factors in their own right, potentially amplifying costs.

As for the world’s ability to absorb a major supply shock, the picture is less reassuring. Strategic reserves held by International Energy Agency countries are estimated at around 1.5 billion barrels but the actual daily draw capacity ranges between 4 and 6 million barrels only. If we assume a disruption exceeding 15 million barrels per day in a worst-case scenario, the theoretical gap between the shock and compensation capacity could reach roughly 9 to 11 million barrels per day before accounting for any spare production capacity. Even the US strategic reserve, at about 380 million barrels, provides relatively limited time coverage in the event of a severe disruption.

Therefore, the market is not currently pricing in a major supply outage, but it recognises that the margin of safety is not wide. The current risk premium reflects a mix of the political time factor, the geographic concentration of supply and the limited effective ability for rapid compensation. In the coming days, the price path will remain contingent on whether tensions shift from negotiated pressure to a material event affecting global oil flows.

INSHUR Appoints Christopher Aragon as Head of US Sales and Operations to Drive Growth and Expand Mobility Insurance Footprint

Executive from Turo and Outdoorsy will oversee the company’s revenue engine and sales operations, supporting commercial growth across the car share and mobility insurance industry

(New York, NY, February 19, 2026) – INSHUR, the leader in insurance solutions for the on-demand economy, announced today the appointment of Christopher Aragon as Head of US Sales and Operations. In this role, Aragon will be responsible for overseeing the company’s revenue engine and commercial operations, with a focus on scaling profitable growth, strengthening execution across sales functions, and ensuring tight coordination between commercial strategy and execution as INSHUR continues to expand globally.

Aragon joins INSHUR with more than 20 years of experience in the insurance and mobility industry, having held senior leadership roles at Tint, Outdoorsy/Roamly, Turo, and Progressive. His background spans sales, underwriting, claims, risk management, and automation, with a focus on designing and scaling data-driven insurance programs for shared economy, fleet, and gig-driver ecosystems, aligning closely with INSHUR’s mission to build insurance infrastructure designed for how mobility actually works today.

“Christopher brings a strong blend of expertise and insights thanks to his successes in building data-driven insurance programs across the on-demand mobility economy,” said Dan Bratshpis, CEO and co-founder of INSHUR. “His experience at leading mobility and insurance companies gives us valuable perspective on where the market is headed and where we can push it forward. As we scale our first-to-market Off-rental (Period X™) and On-rental (Period Z) car share products, his expertise in this category will be invaluable. His deep understanding of the on-demand economy allows him to translate complex regulatory and operational constraints into innovative products and scalable commercial systems that customers actually need.”

“I was drawn to INSHUR by the environment they’ve created at the intersection of deep insurance knowledge and modern mobility needs,” said Aragon. “The company’s focus on building durable and cohesive systems is a flywheel where revenue growth, operational integrity, and customer outcomes are constantly reinforcing each other. It’s a rare combination, and I believe it’s the foundation for carrying on the future of mobility insurance in both a responsible and sustainable manner.”

With over 40 million people in the US involved in gig economy work, rideshare and delivery drivers are the backbone of the on-demand economy, powering one of the biggest economic shifts in decades. INSHUR supports this workforce by simplifying commercial insurance for rideshare, carshare, and last mile delivery, aligning coverage with real driving activity to build trust between drivers, platforms, and insurers. Through embedded, flexible commercial auto insurance, INSHUR enables coverage that fits how people actually work today.

Next-generation OLEDs rely on finetuned microcavities

Researchers have developed a unified theory of microcavity OLEDs, guiding the design of more efficient and sustainable devices. The work reveals a surprising trade-off: squeezing light too tightly inside OLEDs can actually reduce performance, and maximum efficiency is achieved through a delicate balance of material and cavity parameters.  Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) offer several attractive advantages over traditional LED technology: they are lightweight, flexible, and more environmentally friendly to manufacture and recycle. However, heavy-metal-free OLEDs can be rather inefficient, with up to 75% of the injected electrical current converting into heat.

OLED efficiency can be enhanced by placing the device inside an optical microcavity. Squeezing the electromagnetic field forces light to escape more rapidly instead of wasting energy as heat.

“It is basically like squeezing toothpaste out of a tube,” explains Associate Professor Konstantinos Daskalakis from the University of Turku in Finland.

After a certain squeezing threshold, the original energy levels of the emitting material and the electromagnetic field hybridize. These mixed light–matter states are known as polaritons.

While the static energy levels of polariton OLEDs are well understood, much less is known about how the squeezing affects transitions between these states. As a result, the development of polariton OLEDs has largely relied on trial and error.

Now, a research group at the University of Turku has developed the first theoretical model that explains how these transition mechanisms change as the squeezing increases. Surprisingly, the model predicts that efficiencies decrease once polaritons are formed. This reduction arises from two distinct effects.

“Although polaritons emit light very quickly, they are shared states of typically hundreds of thousands of molecules, which dilutes the processes populating them,” explains Postdoctoral Researcher Olli Siltanen. “These population mechanisms can be further weakened if the polariton energies lie too far from the original molecular energy levels.”

According to the model, maximum efficiency in microcavity OLEDs is achieved through a delicate balance of material and cavity parameters. While the model finds polaritons with many molecules disadvantageous, all hope is not lost.

“Alternative device architectures allow us to reduce the number of molecules involved from hundreds of thousands to just a few,” says Daskalakis. “Such OLEDs have the potential to achieve record-breaking efficiencies.”

The results have been published in the journal Materials Horizons.

Read the research article: https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2026/mh/d5mh01958c#!divAbstract

Concept Medical Group Hosts Momentum 6.0 Conference

Surat, Feb 19 : Concept Medical Group successfully concluded Momentum 6.0, its sixth annual sports fest, held in Surat, India. The two-day celebration brought together employees from across the organization for high-energy competition, camaraderie and connection.

Momentum 6.0 featured tournament-style matches across Cricket, Volleyball, Badminton, Table Tennis, Chess and Carrom. The event opened with an Opening Ceremony and Team Flag March, setting the tone for two days of spirited participation and sportsmanship.

Evenings added a celebratory dimension through performances, employee recognition and Concept Got Talent showcase. The fest concluded with the recognition of winning teams and standout performers, including the Momentum 6.0 Champions.

Dr. Manish Doshi, Founder & Managing Director, Concept Medical Group, said,

“Momentum has evolved into more than a sports fest. It is a shared experience that strengthens bonds, deep-rooted camaraderie, nurtures leadership beyond the workplace, and reinforces the values that drive Concept Medical forward every day.”

Parth Doshi, Executive Director, Concept Medical Group, added,

“Momentum is about energy, unity and belief. What we witnessed over these two days was our people coming together with pride, passion and purpose. That spirit is what defines Concept Medical.”

Momentum 6.0 reflects Concept Medical’s commitment to building a people-first workplace grounded in trust, inclusion and a strong sense of belonging, demonstrating the organization continues to be recognized among the country’s top Great Place To Work year after year.

With support from volunteers, mentors and cross-functional teams, the event was delivered through structured coordination and a vibrant on-ground experience. Concept Medical will continue to invest in initiatives that promote wellbeing, collaboration and shared success.

Is Humanity Sleepwalking Into a Digital Dark Age… Why Nearly All Knowledge Is Still at Risk…

PHOENIX, Ariz, Feb. 19— What if humanity’s greatest knowledge crisis isn’t in the past — but unfolding right now? In an age of cloud storage, artificial intelligence and instant information, global innovator and engineer Jack R. Bialik warns of the hidden risks of a fully digital society — and what history reveals about how knowledge is lost.

 “A DVD or a CD … those only last 30 or 40 years,” Bialik said in a recent interview. “Thumb drives or USB drives or solid-state drives … how long do those last? How long does your computer last? Five or 10 years? We’re taking our information, putting it on denser things with no thought about how long it lasts.”

 In his new book, Lost in Time: Our Forgotten and Vanishing Knowledge, Bialik reveals a startling reality: only 1.6 percent of our collective history has been preserved, and today’s preferred method of preservation — digital records — may be placing humanity’s memory on its most unstable footing yet.

 Through bite-sized nuggets of wisdom, Lost in Time takes readers on a captivating exploration of humanity’s lost ingenuity and the forgotten knowledge that once shaped civilizations. Spanning centuries and continents, the book uncovers astonishing technologies, philosophies and cultural practices that have been buried under the sands of time — some of which are more advanced than what people use today. Bialik effortlessly confronts the assumption that only modern-day humans are capable of producing innovative feats of technology and brilliance.

 With meticulous research that spanned over 10 years and compelling storytelling, Bialik highlights how these past innovations could still hold the potential to address modern challenges, from knowledge sustainability to societal resilience. Lost in Time unravels the intricate tapestry of human civilization, weaving together narratives of inventions of yesterday, overlooked pioneers and epoch-defining discoveries that have shaped the modern world.

 Among the amazing facts readers will learn:

•             Cataract surgery was being performed in India more than 2000 years ago.

•             The first known fountain pen was created centuries before Europe “invented” it.

•             Ancient civilizations debated waste disposal and sanitation solutions that rival or even surpass some modern systems.

 Through thought-provoking analysis, Lost in Time examines the fragile nature of human knowledge and the forces — be they war, natural disasters or changing priorities — that contribute to its disappearance.

 However, Lost in Time is more than an archive of historical losses. Bialik inspires readers to reconnect with the lessons of the past as a means of fostering a more informed and innovative future. He challenges readers to consider whether humanity is building a legacy of accessible wisdom — or an archive of forgotten lessons.

 In Bialik’s own words: “We keep trying to save knowledge, and what we need to do is turn the knowledge into wisdom so that it can be saved from generation to generation.”

 Both a cautionary tale and a celebration of resilience, this book illuminates the enduring power of human curiosity and determination. Readers will contemplate how much of humanity’s ingenuity has been left behind, urging them to consider the steps needed to safeguard knowledge for generations to come.

 From history enthusiasts to curious thinkers to those passionate about reclaiming lost wisdom, this book offers a fascinating lens through which to view humanity’s enduring quest for progress. This book is appropriate for grade school children all the way to adults of all ages.

Aetna Donates $50,000 to Child Care Aware of Missouri

Contribution will strengthen infrastructure for the nonprofit’s new child care cost-sharing program.

(St. Louis, Mo., February 18, 2026) Child Care Aware of Missouri (CCAMO) recently received a $50,000 donation from Aetna to support Child Care Works, the newest initiative administered by CCAMO designed to increase family access to affordable, high-quality child care through locally coordinated cost-sharing exchanges.

The support from Aetna is important at a time when many Missouri families are struggling to balance the rising cost of child care with work and other basic needs. Aetna’s contribution will directly support Child Care Works in making child care more affordable, providing families with quality child care options, which can lead to greater employment opportunities, improved quality of life and overall health benefits. Child Care Works launched in late 2025 as Missouri’s first statewide child care cost-sharing initiative.

Modeled after the Tri-Share approach, Child Care Works divides the cost of child care among employers, families and either state government or a philanthropic partner, making it easier for working parents to find and afford reliable care while helping employers retain a stable workforce.

“Access to reliable, high-quality child care is directly tied to a family’s health and stability,” said Dr. Michelle Bucknor, Chief Medical Officer, Aetna Better Health. “When parents know their children are safe and supported, it is easier to stay employed, keep medical appointments and manage chronic conditions. Our support for Child Care Works reflects our commitment to addressing the real-life barriers that affect health, far beyond the walls of a clinic or hospital.”

“Child Care Works was created to make quality child care a realistic option for more Missouri families who don’t qualify for state child care subsidy,” said Robin Phillips, CEO of Child Care Aware of Missouri. “Aetna’s investment strengthens this new program by helping employers, families, and community partners share costs, stabilize the child care workforce, and keep parents connected to the jobs that power our state’s economy.”

Founded in 1999, CCAMO is a statewide nonprofit that focuses on a comprehensive early childhood education experience through impactful programs and partnerships. The organization’s services include resource and referral, workforce development, child care business supports, advocacy and policy work. For more information, call (314) 535-1458 or visit  www.mochildcareaware.org .

Xitus Names INTX as Core Insurance Operating System Supporting Global Portfolio and Captive Operations

AUSTIN, Texas– INTX Insurance Software, a complete Insurance Operating System for specialty P&C insurers, MGAs, reinsurers and captives, today announced that Xitus has selected INTX as its core insurance operating system to support and scale global run-off, LPT, IBT and captive (re)insurance- operations across its subsidiaries, Xitus Bermuda, Xitus UK, Xitus Europe including its latest acquisition of Chevron Captive, Insco. 

Xitus expanded its use of the INTX platform for capital visibility across long-tail portfolios and faster execution of LPTs and acquisitions. INTX supports this work by enabling enhanced portfolio monitoring, reporting, and coordination tied to acquisitions and loss portfolio transfers. 

“As an early adopter, we are growing the relationship with INTX because the platform gives us the control to manage our business at scale and as our transaction volume and geographic footprint expand, INTX is the core system we can rely on to operate with confidence and control,” said Benjamin Dovey, Head of Commercial & Operations at Xitus. “INTX brings structure to historically fragmented and manual processes and gives our team confidence to move quickly as we take on more transactions.” 

Unlike general-purpose core systems, INTX is designed for the operational and financial realities of legacy and captive insurance. As transaction activity increases and management of reinsurance treaties becomes more complex, by implementing the INTX platform Xitus puts the operational structure in place to manage that evolution with a modern approach, combining specialized expertise with a unified technology designed to scale. 

“Runoff and captive portfolios demand a level of financial control and the ability to utilize Predictive AI Actuarial modelling that legacy systems were never designed to deliver. INTX gives organizations like Xitus real-time visibility and governance across complex, multi-entity portfolios as they scale globally,” said Rob Lewis, CEO of INTX Insurance Software. “Our platform gives leadership real-time visibility into reinsurance and claims activity that provides clean data for their predictive AI Models and regulatory oversight.”

Indian Potash Limited Honored at Kandla & Vizag Ports on International Customs Day 2026

New Delhi, Feb 18 : Fertilizer major Indian Potash Limited has been recognised for its outstanding import performance at Kandla Port and Visakhapatnam Port on the occasion of International Customs Day 2026.

 IPL has been awarded ‘Top Importer’ for fiscal 2025-26 at Kandla port, Gujarat.

It has also been awarded Appreciation Certificate for one of the highest performers under ‘Importer (PSU)’ for 2025 at Visakhapatnam port, Andhra Pradesh, by the Customs Department, Government of India.

‘Top Importer’ award was presented to IPL on 15 February 2026 at the IFFCO Auditorium, Gandhidham. The award was presented by Shri Nitin Saini, Commissioner of Customs, Kandla, in the presence of the Chief Guest, Shri Narayan Joshi, Padma Shri Awardee, Kutch.

On behalf of IPL, Mr. Jatin Shah, Sales Officer, Kutch, IPL Gujarat, received the award.

IPL received Appreciation Certificate at Visakhapatnam, which acknowledges the organisation as one of the highest importers in the PSU sector. The award ceremony took place on 16 February 2026 at the Sagarmala Convention Hall, Salagramapuram.

The certificate was presented by the Chief Guest of the event, Dr. Shankhabrata Bagchi, IPS, Police Commissioner, Visakhapatnam, and was received by Ms. Aptakama Sarangi, Deputy Manager, Port Operations, on behalf of Indian Potash Limited.

These recognitions underscore IPL’s sustained commitment to operational efficiency, regulatory compliance, and transparent trade practices. The awards reflect the organisation’s capability to manage large-scale import operations while adhering to the highest standards of governance and process discipline.

The twin honours further reinforce IPL’s position as a responsible and performance-driven organisation, contributing significantly to India’s agricultural supply chain and trade ecosystem.

 Commenting on the recognition, Dr. P S Gahlaut, MD, Indian Potash Limited said:

“These recognitions reflect Indian Potash Limited’s strong focus on operational excellence, compliance, and reliability across our import operations. They are a testament to the dedication of our team working at ports and logistics touchpoints across the country. We remain committed to strengthening transparent trade practices and supporting India’s agricultural supply chain.”