29, Jan 2024
Greater Noida West’s tallest flag hoisted at Saya South X Mall on the occasion of 75th Republic Day
In celebration of the 75th Republic Day, a grand ceremony unfolded at Saya South X Mall in Greater Noida West. The festivities included the hoisting of a majestic 30-meter high and 20-meter wide national flag. Attendees also relished traditional dishes from Old Delhi, fostering a sense of patriotism through activities like releasing over 500 balloons and tree planting. The event drew more than 500 participants, marking a collective celebration of Republic Day.
Vikas Bhasin, Chairman, and Managing Director of Saya Group, expressed pride in hoisting the largest flag in Greater Noida West at Saya South X Mall on this auspicious occasion.
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- By Rabindra
29, Jan 2024
Union Budget 2024: Recommendations To Sustain 7-8% Growth Throughout The Next Decade
As the final quarter of the financial year unfolds, people of the nation are eagerly waiting for the Union Budget 2024. It is seen as an important moment, with various stakeholders including individual taxpayers to corporate giants eagerly anticipating policy pronouncements that will shape India’s economic trajectory for the coming years. Based on the current economic scenario and policy framework, here are some key expectations and recommendations from Union Budget 2024.
Individual Taxpayers:
Expectations are high for increased income tax slabs and deductions to boost disposable income and consumption. Simplification of the tax code, reducing compliance burdens, and eliminating ambiguities are crucial. A shift towards direct taxes over indirect taxes can encourage economic growth.
Corporate Tax:
Streamlining corporate tax rates and eliminating exemptions can create a level playing field. It will help attract foreign investment. Introducing tax incentives for sectors aligned with the “Make in India” initiative can promote domestic manufacturing and job creation.
Infrastructure Development:
Increased allocations for infrastructure projects, especially in rural areas. It will improve connectivity, create jobs, and stimulate economic activity. Exploring public-private partnerships and innovative financing models can help bridge the infrastructure gap.
Manufacturing and Exports:
Incentives for domestic manufacturing, such as tax breaks for research and development and skill development programs. It will enhance India’s export competitiveness. Simplifying export procedures and reducing transaction costs can further boost outbound trade.
Technology, Media and Telecommunication:
Increased investment in digital infrastructure, including high-speed internet connectivity and data centers. It is crucial for promoting digital literacy, online education, and e-commerce. Incentives for adopting digital technologies in various sectors can boost efficiency and productivity.
Speaking about expectations of the media industry from Union Budget 2024, Pankaj Bansal, founder and CEO of Newspatrolling.com said, “Budget 2024 presents a golden opportunity to power the next wave of growth in India’s vibrant media landscape. It will be great if the 2024 Union Budget can introduce targeted tax breaks for content creation and local language production. I also propose increased investments in broadband infrastructure and digital skill development. By promoting innovation and nurturing domestic talent, we can unlock the immense potential of our stories. It will help attract global audiences and enable India to become a true content superpower.”
As India’s digital footprint expands, cybersecurity becomes paramount. Budgeting for robust cybersecurity measures and awareness campaigns can safeguard critical infrastructure and citizen data.
Healthcare:
Higher allocations for public healthcare infrastructure and medical insurance schemes. It will improve access to quality healthcare, especially for vulnerable populations. Investments in preventive healthcare and telemedicine can strengthen the healthcare system.
Education:
Continued focus on improving education quality at all levels is crucial. Increased funding for infrastructure, teacher training, and scholarships can contribute to a skilled workforce. Skill development programs aligned with industry needs can bridge the skill gap.
Green Initiatives:
Promoting renewable energy sources and energy efficiency through tax incentives and subsidies. It can propel India towards a cleaner and more sustainable future. Investments in green infrastructure and clean technologies can create jobs and attract green investments.
Beyond these specific areas, a key expectation for Budget 2024 is a focus on fiscal consolidation and prudent financial management. Balancing growth-oriented spending with fiscal responsibility is crucial for maintaining macroeconomic stability and boosting investor confidence.
As the countdown to Budget Day 2024 begins, the hope rests on the government’s ability to introduce policies that address these diverse expectations. It is necessary for setting India on a course towards sustained economic growth, social inclusivity and environmental sustainability.
29, Jan 2024
The ‘Mphasis AVAS Walk for Arcause 4.0’ focussed on advocating inclusive approaches for people with disabilities
Bengaluru, January 28, 2024: Mphasis (F1 Foundation) in collaboration with AVAS and Ethos Foundation conceptualised the ‘Mphasis AVAS Walk for Arcause 4.0’, a 335-kilometer walk from Chennai to Bengaluru, undertaken by Gita Balakrishnan, a 55 year old architect, aimed at raising awareness about creating inclusive environments for individuals of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds.
The last lap of this unique journey took place on the 28th of January from a significant location – The Spastics Society of Karnataka, a nonprofit organization formed through the shared passion of its members, committed to dedicating their lives to the well-being and advancement of individuals with developmental disabilities. Together with a group of avid runners and other supporters, Gita completed the last 5 kilometres of this journey arriving at Bangalore’s landmark Cubbon Park.
From Cubbon Park, a commemorative walk ensued with the guests of honour for the occasion Mr. Arman Ali, Executive Director at National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People, and Mr. Raghavendra, who became the first Indian para-fencer to bag a medal at the Commonwealth Fencing Championships. Raghavendra won the silver medal in Men’s Individual Wheelchair Epee Category B (2022). Students with disabilities from the Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled and employees of Mitti Cafe committed to the cause of employment and livelihoods for people with special needs, the Fourth Wave Foundation and EKanksh Trust were amongst the organisations championing the cause who joined this momentous occasion. Walking in solidarity were representatives from Mphasis (F1 Foundation), AVAS, Ethos Foundation, Indian Institute of Architects, the Council of Architecture, India, the Indian Institute of Interior Designers, students, academicians, and people from different walks of life.
The gathering finally reached the point of culmination – the Museum of Art and Photography (MAP), which is entirely accessible for people with disabilities. Ms. Rama Krishnamachari, who was the accessibility auditor and consultant for the museum, took people on a detailed tour of the premises focusing on the various aspects that deem a space inclusive. The program began with an invocation by children from the Spastics Society of Karnataka, followed by Mr. Srikanth Karra, Chief Administrative Officer, Mphasis addressing the audience after which Gita spoke on the intent, learnings and findings from the initiative. The discussions that followed were punctuated by a Dance by Saisha of Spastics Society of Karnataka, a recitation by children of Samarthanam, and a song by a group from AVAS. The event came to a close with questions to the audience urging them to cultivate empathy and to encourage those in a position to make a difference, to ensure that their actions only uphold the Fundamental Right to Equality for all citizens around them or impacted by them regardless of abilities or disabilities.
This initiative is supported by the Indian Institute of Architects, the Council of Architecture, India, the Indian Institute of Interior Designers, Vidya Sagar, and National Association of Students of Architecture. Other partners of this initiative include Saint-Gobain, Nippon Paint, TVS Ronin, Samarthyam, Wheeling Happiness, SPA Bhopal, and BVDU, Pune.
25, Jan 2024
Nehal Chudasama shares some behind the scene moments
Mumbai, January 25, 2024: Amazon miniTV- Amazon’s free video streaming service has excelled at romantic comedies with some of the best web series and films. The free video streaming service announced another rom-com series, Badi Heroine Banti Hai. The story gives us a glimpse into the life of a young and ambitious girl – Kajal from Ludhiana, who comes to Bombay to intern at the famous fashion firm Veer Singhania Designs. Little did she know that on her first day on the job, she got fired by Advait Singhania, the company’s owner. On that fateful day, both Veer Singhania and Advait were taken by surprise when Veer Singhania’s recently departed father, in his last will, designated her as the company’s heir. As a result, due to their radically different personalities, Kajal and Advait’s paths have been deeply entwined in a game of love and blame.
Nehal Chudasama who plays the character of Anastasia in the series, shares some BTS moments from the set, here’s what she said, “I am a fun-loving person, so on set I would be chaotic, jump here and there and talk to people. And while all of these things, I had hurt myself in my vanity and got my nose bruised and everybody started panicking. They were really helpful but it was a deep bruise, so I couldn’t shoot for 4-5 days because I wanted my skin to heal. Eventually, everyone came and met me. I shot on the same day, despite the challenge, we successfully filmed the important outdoor scenes, utilizing a location reserved exclusively for that day. So, I somehow managed to shoot some of the scenes, it was horrible but beautiful at the same time, a bittersweet experience for me on sets.”
The beauty pageant titleholder further went ahead and added her experience working with her co-stars saying, “It was truly wonderful, I share a strong bond with each of them. They were very adaptable, kind, and jolly without any negativity. Their helpful and fun-loving attitude made the experience truly brilliant.”
Created by Gul Khan, Badi Heroine Banti Hai features Prerna Lisa, Rajeev Siddhartha, Nehal Chudasama, and Utkarsh Kohli in pivotal roles. The series is streaming exclusively on Amazon miniTV for free, available on Amazon’s shopping app, on Fire TV, and Play Store.
25, Jan 2024
Delhivery announces deployment of OS1 for Akshaya Patra
Gurgaon, 25th Jan 2024: Delhivery Ld, India’s largest integrated supply chain services provider, has announced the operationalization of its OS1 stack with The Akshaya Patra Foundation, world’s largest NGO-run school feeding programme and the implementing arm of the PM POSHAN Abhiyaan. The foundation has piloted the deployment of DispatchOne application to execute and track meal distribution from its centralized kitchens to partner schools. DispatchOne is currently operational across five cities: Bhubaneswar, Puducherry, Kuppam, Nellore, and Puri. The nationwide rollout, powering nearly 2.1 million meals a day, is expected to be completed by mid-2024.
DispatchOne is Delhivery’s flagship last-mile delivery management solution on the OS1 platform. Available in India and the US, the self-service, SaaS solution enables enterprises and SMEs to seamlessly execute planned and on-demand distribution operations. Delhivery also plans to expand the OS1 product suite with an end-to-end Transportation Management System that will be available later this year.
With DispatchOne, Akshaya Patra will be able to maintain real-time tracking and visibility of the entire delivery process from central kitchens to partner schools and optimize resource allocation by delivering to multiple locations and reducing transit times through DispatchOne’s route optimization capabilities.
“Given our scale of operations across 72 cities and 24,000 schools, achieving operational efficiency on major focus areas. With DispatchOne’s advanced capabilities, we aim to deliver meals to children more effectively and with greater transparency”, said Saanil Bhaskaran, COO at The Akshaya Patra Foundation. “This shall further strengthen the cost reduction efforts and allow us to channel our resources towards serving more schools that require our support,” he added.
Kapil Bharti, CTO and Co-founder, Delhivery said, “At Delhivery, we believe cutting-edge technology must power solutions to complex supply chain and logistics challenges. OS1 allows us to bring our logistics technology expertise to support Akshaya Patra’s crucial mission of providing food to millions of school children daily. We are humbled to partner with the Foundation, as this has enabled us to deploy our technology towards creating positive social impact.”
25, Jan 2024
IDCA awarded the prestigious BRICS-CCI Annual Recognition Awards 2024
New Delhi. 25th January 2024. The BRICs Chamber of Commerce successfully hosted the BRICS-CCI annual Awards 2024 in New Delhi. The awards presented were for excellence, innovation, responsible business practices, community service & commitment to a sustainable future.
IDCA was conferred the prestigious BRICS CCI Community Excellence Award in this glittering ceremony. The award was received by Patron, Reena Jain Malhotra, CEO, Roma Balwani, Committee Member, Jyoti Jain, Secretary, Ajay Kumar, Indian Deaf Cricket Association.
Roma Balwani, CEO, IDCA said, “It was an honour for IDCA to be given the prestigious B.A,R.A. award for Community Excellence. It underscores the importance of mainstreaming disability sport and IDCA’s endeavour is to provide a platform for talented hearing-impaired Indian cricketers, both men & women to showcase their prowess in the game of cricket. We recently concluded a successful maiden women’s T-10 tournament which was held in early January 2024 which celebrated & signalled the focus on diversity & inclusion. ”
Patron, Reena Jain Malhotra commented, “We are privileged to receive this maiden BRICs BARA award which recognised the effort and hard work of teams across India of young hearing-impaired students who have a passion for cricket. Today, I am delighted to receive this award in recognition of our hearing-impaired President, Sumit Jain & his team’s immense contribution to encourage, transform the lives of many of these specially-abled Indian cricketers and give them the opportunity to play in national & international matches and be proud of their achievements.”
Executive Director, Co-founder of BRICS-CCI and Concept Founder B.A.R.A, Dr. Sushi Singh emphasized B.A.R.A’s alignment with Prime Minister Modi’s vision of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” (The World is One), embodying a commitment to unleash the power of the expanding BRICS bloc. Under the theme “Invest in our Planet,” the awards presented during the event recognised outstanding achievements in Academia, Business, Community, Media, and policymaking from various BRICS nations.
KJ Alphons, former Union Minister of State for Tourism and Guest of Honor, gave away the awards in the august presence of Chief Guest, Maharaja Dr. Karan Singh, former member of Rajya Sabha.
25, Jan 2024
Radio City Hits the Airwaves with a Roaring Beat: Reports 13% YoY growth in Revenue
Mumbai, January 25, 2024: Music Broadcast Limited (MBL), India’s 1st Private FM Radio Broadcaster, has reported its unaudited Financial Results for the Quarter ended December 31 st, 2023.
Key Highlights – Q3FY24:
- Q3FY24 Top line of Rs 60.4 Crores; 11% Growth YoY
- EBITDA* at Rs. 15.3 Crores; 5% Growth YoY
- EBIDTA Margin at 25.3%
Key Highlights – 9MFY24:
- 9MFY24 Top line of Rs 165.9 Crores; 13% Growth YoY
- EBITDA* at Rs. 40.1 Crores; 25% Growth YoY
- EBIDTA Margin at 24.2%
- Maintained a strong Position with 19% Volume Market Share
*Includes other income
Commenting on the results Mr. Shailesh Gupta, Director said:
“I am pleased to share that our revenues experienced an 11% growth in the Q3FY24 with EBITDA margins at 25.3%. Our focus continues towards the digital business which has a significant growth moving forward.At Radio City, we’ve executed a range of strategies to expand our positioning in the radio industry. According to Aircheck 15 Markets, in the third quarter, we successfully retained our market share at 19%. Additionally, our comprehensive omni-channel framework allows us to maximize the extensive reach of our networks, ensuring the delivery of optimal value to our clients.
About the growth in the advertising sector, the real estate industry experienced a notable 17% year-on-year increase in spending. The pharmaceutical industry expanded by 15%, while the auto industry demonstrated an impressive growth of 26% compared to the previous year. On the finance side, the industry experienced a 9% growth. Meanwhile, on the Jewellery front, we witnessed a massive growth of 44%, and government advertising also saw a good growth of 22% YoY.
In Q3FY24, our digital business witnessed a growth of 27% Y-o-Y. We are aligning ourselves with the ever-changing
media landscape, one that is indifferent to specific platforms, with a central focus on digital for content creation, distribution, consumption, and engagement. To ensure a smooth experience across diverse platforms, we are strengthening our capabilities to stand at the forefront of the digital technology revolution. This involves delivering top-tier entertainment that resonates with the evolving preferences and needs of our audience.Radio City remains a preferred choice for both longstanding and recently acquired clients in the field of radio advertising. For Q3FY24, out of the overall client base utilizing the radio platform, 39% have selected Radio City for their advertising campaigns. Additionally, among the newly acquired clients in the radio domain, 31% have specifically chosen to feature their advertisements on Radio City.
We take pride in deriving 31% of our income from a variety of offerings, that includes, proactive proposals, digital initiatives, sponsorships, and special events.”
25, Jan 2024
Producer Amit Agarwal & National Award Filmmaker Goutam Ghose win hearts at the screening of Raahgir
Pune, 25 January 2024: Producer Amit Agarwal, under his banner Adarsh Telemedia, who has initiated and backed films like M S Dhoni – The Untold Story and produced Simran starring Kangana Ranaut is now ready with his latest production Raahgir – The Wayfarers which is Directed by National Award-winning filmmaker Goutam Ghose. The film stars Adil Hussain, Tillotama Shome, Neeraj Kabi and Omkardas Manikpuri. The film screening was held at Pune International Film Festival.
Raahgir – The Wayfarers is an emotional portrayal of encounters between poverty-stricken strangers that, in order to find new economic opportunities, have to traverse the vast country of India by foot. The film tells a tale of human empathy in times of crisis and revolves around 3 characters and the relationship they make with each other through a journey in search of their livelihoods. Raahgir – The Wayfarers has been filmed in the state of Jharkhand. It was extensively shot in Ranchi and Netarhat.
Speaking to the media, Amit Agarwal, Producer of Raahgir – The Wayfarers said, “We are happy with such an overwhelming response at Pune International Film Festival. I think these festivals provide a great open space for filmmakers and film lovers. Not only did the audience enjoy ‘Raahgir’, they also asked relevant questions related to the film, which shows their engagement with the film was genuine. We are planning to take the film to various film festivals before its theatrical release in India.”
On this occasion, Goutam Ghose, Director of Raahgir – The Wayfarers said, “The movie deals with a story of India’s impoverished people who live in the forests and can hardly make ends meet. They have limited dreams and desires. Their biggest concern is trying to gather the day’s food. The film celebrates the fact that despite the daily struggle for survival, the elements of humanity are still alive in these people. The film showcases how Indian reality differs in the cities and in a poor tribal village. It’s a beautiful story of humanity that is still alive among the poorest of the poor. It is a celebration of empathy, humanity despite a struggle for survival.”
‘Raahgir: The Wayfarers’ was earlier screened at several film festivals – including Busan International Film Festival, MAMI – Mumbai Film Festival, Shanghai International Film Festival, CinemAsia Film Festival (Amsterdam), KIFF – Kolkata International Film Festival, IFFK – International Film Festival of Kerala.
25, Jan 2024
Pre-budget quote from Mr. Mazhar Syed, Director, AsmitA India Realty
Pre-Budget Quote:
2023 witnessed a significant surge in property sales across various realty segments, making it an exceptional year after the COVID-19 slump for us. And the sector enters 2024 with high expectations, looking forward to the Union Budget with renewed hope to keep the momentum high. The industry looks to the Finance Ministry with optimism, particularly in response to the plea for a hike in the tax slab to Rs. 5 lakhs per annum for interest rate deduction under section 24(b) of the Act, up from the current Rs. 2 lakhs for home buyers.
With metro city property prices reaching unprecedented levels, industry stakeholders call for a revision in the credit link subsidy scheme. Advocating for an increase in the cap from Rs. 45 lakh to Rs. 1 crore for metro city homebuyers, this move will aim to make affordable housing more accessible. Furthermore, the proposal for an expansion of the SWAMIH Fund is on the table, aiming to ensure the timely completion of stressed projects. Developers believe this will not only assist their endeavors but also strengthen homebuyer confidence.
25, Jan 2024
Indore: Where the Beat Drops and Good Times Pop
SOCIAL is here to turn things up with musical frenzy! You did really read correctly! Prepare to boogie to intense
sounds this January and get crafty with leaves.
The upcoming long weekend has much more madness in store! With Siddharth Diwaedi’s Live Jam – Live music
so good, that will keep you on your feet. Bollywood and Hip Hop beats by DJ Shubh that will unleash
your inner energy. Prepare to smash the dance floor! ️
But, wait there’s more! Fuel your party spirit with 1+1 on LLIITs, and try your luck at #drnks Loot L0 from 12
PM to 7 PM,
So, what are you waiting for? Mark your calendars, gather in large numbers, and grab your dancing shoes!
Date: 25th January, 27th January and 28th January 2024
Venue: Ring Road SOCIAL, Indore
Time: 8:00 PM onwards
