Pune Startup launches ‘CYMOUR’ - India's 1st Private Cycle Sharing Option

Adding a new leaf to the sharing economy, a Pune based startup, Renacle Cycling Private Limited has launched India’s first private cycle sharing option under the brand ‘CYMOUR’.

In recent times, many countries have encountered an explosion in public bike sharing model. Out of their love for cycling, the founders of CYMOUR has reimagined CYCLE’s position and its utility. “It is a delight to see our consumers defying traffic, addressing pollution and inspiring others as they ride for sustainability and health. We, at CYMOUR, believe that Cycling will no longer be believed to be a poor man’s vehicle.”- Rahul Arya, CEO of Renacle Cycling Private Limited.

CYMOUR serves and manages over 60 gated premises and has deployed around 300 cycles. These premises are interconnected on CYMOUR platform with easy pick and drop service at CYMOUR PODs, which are usually of one car parking size. These CYMOUR Pods are placed inside the premise and are exclusively made available for the consumers residing in them.



CYMOUR has seen over 40,000+ rides with 5,000+ active riders and 20,000+ downloads on 300 cycles in 15 months only. With huge consumer demands to deploy more cycles at more locations in Pune, CYMOUR plans to create a dense network of pods in Pune with 10,000 cycles, serving 2,000 curated locations and extend that further to top 50 cities of India in coming years.

[caption id="attachment_138727" align="aligncenter" width="691"] Aniket Mahashabde & Rahul Arya[/caption]

CYMOUR brings a unique proposition of providing premium cycles and electric cycles at user’s doorstep through subscription-based model. City can now spot cyclists, cycling for fun, fitness and commute and not worry about maintenance and service part. CYMOUR’s urban rider can choose cycles of their choice from single gear, multiple gear and electric cycles deployed in their own township and ride to his workplace, gym, or even participate in races. The subscription deal is easy on pockets, motivating consumers to ride and experience branded quality cycles which they can passionately flaunt about.

About CYMOUR:



CYMOUR is a brand, introduced by Renacle Cycling Private Limited, headquartered in Pune. The brand is known in cycling circles since 2011 and began its humble journey from being a cycling tours and events company. It has seen several evolutions over the years from planning 500+ cycling tours to retailing 2,000+ premium cycles and over 1,500+ doorstep cycle servicing. CYMOUR provides unparalleled quality cycling experience with easy its pick and drop, and maintenance services.

WTFL Announces 16 Finalists at Indian Startup Innovation Camp 2019

In association with IHCL and Tata Trusts, WTFL commits to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in the sector

Sixteen finalists  in travel, tourism and hospitality sector to reach the next level of evaluation; categories being culture, commerce, community and conservation respectively

Innovation Camp 2019 to give wings to the innovative startups and support them to adopt sustainable development approach

After attaining a successful stature at global level, World Tourism Forum Lucrene (WTFL) is making its debut in India this year with first-of-its-kind competition – Indian Startup Innovation Camp 2019. Over 200 startups focusing on culture, community, conservation and commerce in the field of travel, tourism and hospitality from the Indian subcontinent applied for the competition.

[caption id="attachment_138641" align="alignleft" width="300"] Martin Barth, President and CEO, World Tourism Forum[/caption]

After rigorous evaluation of these startups, WTFL today shortlisted 16 finalists for the final round of selection and the winners will be announced during the event finale on December 18th in Bengaluru. One winner under each category will take home USD 10,000 each along with a personalized two-year mentoring by industry experts.

The globally renowned platform that provides world’s leading tourism, travel and hospitality leaders along with innovators to meet and shape a more sustainable future. For the past 10 years, WTFL has given an exclusive ground to the budding businessmen by nurturing their innovations in this sector. With this platform, our country will brace up to revive Brand India with the help of 5 Ts: Tradition, Talent, Tourism, Trade and Technology.

While congratulating the top 16 finalists on reaching the finale round, Martin Barth, President and CEO, World Tourism Forum said, “We are overwhelmed to experience truly innovative and game changing ideas of 200 startups that participated. Also, we are happy that we choose India this year as it gave us an opportunity to come across intelligent minds. India has a niche product portfolio in travel and tourism sector and is expected to grow at a rate of 100% by 2028. We are sure to make a mark and create awareness around the on-going environmental issues and look forward to holding more such engaging events in India in the coming years.”

In 2017, Global Himalayan Expedition became the first Indian start-up to have won the prestigious WTFL competition. Here is the list of the finalists in four verticals - culture, community, conservation and commerce in the travel, tourism and hospitality industry -

1. Culture


2. Augtraveler, Delhi


3. NotOnMap, Chamba


4. Authenticook, Mumbai


5. WildTrails, Bangalore


6. Commerce


7. Cab Dost, Bangalore


8. Camp Monk, Bangalore


9. MeTrippling, Bangalore


10. Outsite VR, New Delhi


11. Community


12. F5 Escapes, Bangalore


13. Kaarwan, Thane


14. Planet Abled, Delhi


15. Rural Odyssey, Gurgaon


16. Conservation


17. Lootel, Indore


18. Eco-wrap, Jaipur


19. Padcare Labs, Pune


20. Quick Ride, Bangalore

About WTFL

The World Tourism Forum Lucerne is an exclusive platform where the world’s leading tourism, travel and hospitality companies meet to shape a more sustainable future for tourism. It provides decision-makers with in-depth insights into the core themes of the tourism industry and a unique global network. The World Tourism Forum Lucerne is the only platform to integrate start-ups, young executives and students into one program. Over the past ten years, it has evolved into a year-round network of leaders and innovators who are driving positive change in the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. This includes an influential network of leaders from the business, education, politics, finance and community sectors.

The focus area for the upcoming India camp is the positive social impact of travel, tourism and hospitality across the globe in the following categories:

• Conservation (Of nature and natural resources and assets including green infrastructure, water management, recycling, up cycling)


• Community (Rural, eco, ethnic and authentic tourism experiences in remote locations that lead to positive economic, environmental and social impact)


• Culture (Collaborative and inclusive preservation of tradition, local culture and skills including food, and culinary co-hosting and revival)


• Commerce (An open category for all tech enabled, disruptive, innovative, change making, groundbreaking ideas in the sector)

Indian Start-Up Innovation Camp 2019 is scheduled for December 18th at the Taj Bengaluru and is inspired by unique start-ups operating in the categories of Conservation, Community, Culture and Commerce. The event will give the attendees a chance to interact with the founders along with an opportunity to vote for their favorite winner!

MAAC Hosted One of its Largest 3D Animation VFX Seminar

MAAC (Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics), the dominant leader and a forerunner in high-end 3D animation & VFX training, recently organized one of its largest Media & Entertainment seminar at the prestigious Shanmukhananda Hall, Mumbai. The event witnessed an overwhelming response from over 2500 students & 100+ participants from the industry in Mumbai who came together under one roof to witness ‘MAAC Manifest’ – one of the largest 3D Animation & VFX seminar series to be conducted across the country. The first leg, having concluded in Mumbai.

Seasoned Industry professionals representing two of India’s leading studios volunteered to conduct ground breaking sessions on the use of Visual Effects in films & cinemas.

[caption id="attachment_138638" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Mr. Pravir Arora, Chief Marketing Officer, Aptech Ltd. at MAAC Manifest[/caption]

The audience was spellbound when Dalbir Singh - CG Supervisor from DNeg – India showcased the making of Academy Award winning film – First Man and also further went on to narrate his rich experience of working on other Hollywood VFX blockbuster films like Avengers Endgame, Men in Black, Venom, Deadpool 2, to name a few.

MAAC Manifest 2019

[tnm_video layout="mnmd-post-media-wide"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dN6zI5VEjI[/tnm_video]

Another leading studio yFX (a division of Yashraj Film Studios), represented by Deepal Dass – VFX Supervisor, mesmerized the students with an interesting session on Visual effects breakdown on Bollywood’s recent National award winning film “Uri”, while also showcasing the exciting work behind the making of Tiger Zinda Hai, Thugs of Hindostan and many more.

The massive crowd broke into a thunderous applause when both these speakers, in the course of their sessions, revealed that they are ex-students of MAAC who over a decade ago were part of a similar audience while studying at MAAC.

The high point of the event was the felicitation of about 100 alumni of MAAC, who are today working in India’s leading studios & production houses. These ex-students of MAAC were extremely thrilled to come back to their alma mater, and share their wonderful journey from being a student at MAAC to now being an industry professional.

Talking about MAAC Manifest, Mr. Pravir Arora – Chief Marketing Officer, Aptech Ltd., quoted, “The Media & Entertainment Industry which today is growing at a rapid rate, is no longer looked at as an unconventional career. Especially over the last 3 years, a career in Media & Entertainment is fast becoming mainstream with significant youth opting for the same. Some of our proud alumni, (100+) who shared the stage with us at MAAC Manifest event testify creating a glorious mark for themselves in this industry. We are truly honored to have their body of work presented to our current students, the young pursuers in this field. MAAC Manifest is aimed at giving our students, a much needed industry exposure, help them pick up the right skills and present a networking opportunity.”

Mr. Ram Warrier - Business Head, MAAC, delighted with the overwhelming turnout at the event, commented, “MAAC has always been at the forefront of providing industry based training for VFX, Animation and Multimedia with ‘opportunities for students’ as the core objective. Such initiatives have helped students build a strong understanding about the industry trends. Listening to the different views of the leading industry stalwarts offers our students an edgy advantage of understanding the subtle nuances of the work; also a holistic picture aids them to plan their careers better.”

While regularly training students in various aspects of Media & Entertainment Industry viz 3D Animation, VFX, Gaming, Multimedia & Broadcast, MAAC believes that initiatives & platforms such as MAAC Manifest plays a far crucial role in not just skilling the youth, but also preparing them for a successful career in the Media & Entertainment Industry.

About MAAC

Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics (MAAC) is India’s leading educator in high-end 3D Animation and Visual Effects. Founded in 2001 & a major brand of Aptech Ltd., MAAC has trained lakhs of students across the country. It has over 140 centers with cutting-edge infrastructure in over 50 cities.

MAAC offers industry relevant Career courses on 3D Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Multimedia, Filmmaking, Broadcast, VR & AR. MAAC courses are thoughtfully designed to provide students thorough insights about the dynamics of the industry. It provides real-life training environment to students, backed by excellent faculty, world-class infrastructure, and the latest technical educational tools.

MAAC students are placed in all domains of Media & Entertainment industry in India & abroad. Striving with the concept of ‘Employment Driven Education’, MAAC students are placed in leading production houses and studios across the globe in companies like MPC, Prime Focus, DNEG, Amazon, Redchillies VFX, Accenture, DQ Entertainment, Green Gold Animation, Technicolor, NDTV, IBN7, NY VFXwaala and Cosmos Maya to name a few.

~ Newsvoir

Medtronic Introduces Mazor X Stealth Edition for Robotic-Assisted Spine Surgery in India

• First Patient in India Treated at Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, New Delhi


• Surgical Robotics Market in India is Predicted to Grow Remarkably


• Mazor X Stealth Edition™ Will Enable Doctors to Plan Their Surgery, Provide Assistance to Execute the Plan Precisely and Visualize the Progress in Real-Time

​India Medtronic Private Limited, wholly-owned subsidiary of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT), today announced the launch of the Mazor X Stealth Edition™ that offers a fully-integrated procedural solution for surgical planning, workflow, execution and confirmation of spine surgeries. Surgeons at Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, New Delhi, have successfully performed the first minimally invasive spine surgery in India using the Mazor X Stealth Edition™ Robotic-Assisted Spine Surgery System.

The global surgical robotics market has a vast potential, and it is expected to grow to US$9.3 billion by 2025 from US$4.9 billion back in 2016 with a CAGR of 11.4%1. In India, with a rapidly growing senior population, the spine surgery rate is expected to rise. The Surgical Robotics Market in India is predicted to witness a remarkable increase from US$129.9 million in 2016 to US$372.5 million in 2025, growing at a CAGR of 19.2%.1

"Minimally-invasive spinal procedures with their smaller incisions can pose a challenge to surgeons due to the limited view of the patient's anatomy. The combination of robotics and navigation provides an opportunity for not only procedural benefits but also the potential for clinical efficiency and improvement in patient outcomes,” said Dr. H.S. Chhabra, medical director, Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, New Delhi. “We can now perform the same spinal surgery with precision as planned along with the ability to confirm through navigation that the implant is going in the location as it was intended to.”

"We believe technology has the power to improve lives. That's why we are continually innovating novel products and procedural solutions in the area of minimally invasive therapies; to improve the quality of life for all patients. We are bringing a myriad of new technologies to India to improve access to the best treatment options for patients,” said Madan Krishnan, vice president and managing director, India Medtronic Pvt Ltd. “This year being the 40th year for Medtronic in India, we are happy to demonstrate our commitment to transforming healthcare in India with renewed vigour by launching the Mazor X Stealth Edition™ Robotic-assisted Spine Surgery System."

Co-developed between Medtronic and the recently acquired Mazor Robotics, the Mazor X Stealth Edition™ seamlessly incorporates Stealth™ software technology into the Mazor X robotic-assisted surgery platform. It is a revolutionary new technology that uses cutting-edge software to plan the surgical procedure, then uses a robotic arm to guide implants and instruments through the steps of the surgical process with precision, while simultaneously using real-time imaging feedback to ensure the plan is being carried out as desired. The Mazor X Stealth Edition™ operates on three principals: first, the surgeon can plan and visualize the surgery beforehand to study multiple levels and the entire process; second, the robotic guidance system will be an extension of the doctor during the process and is intended to enable execution with precision; and third, the doctor can visualize progress in real-time.
About Medtronic

Medtronic plc (www.medtronic.com), headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is among the world’s largest medical technology, services and solutions companies – alleviating pain, restoring health and extending life for millions of people around the world. Medtronic employs more than 90,000 people worldwide, serving physicians, hospitals and patients in more than 150 countries. The company is focused on collaborating with stakeholders around the world to take healthcare Further, Together.

Any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties such as those described in Medtronic's periodic reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.

References:
1 https://www.analyticsinsight.net/analytics-insight-estimates-indian-surgical-robotics-market-at-us129-million-by-2025/

~ BusinessWire India

UK India Business Council Launches Defence Vertical

The UK India Business Council have announced the establishment of an Aerospace and Defence Industry Group to promote UK-India collaboration, at a reception hosted by the British High Commissioner.

This initiative recognises that the UK-India relationship in aerospace and defence is at a critical turning point and is another demonstration of the close ties between Indian and UK industry. In 2019, a Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Technology Industrial Capability Cooperation was signed between UK and India which highlighted the UK Government’s approach towards enhancing cooperation with India, and the Defence vertical is an example of how this cooperation is being taken to a new level.

Speaking at the launch, Richard McCallum, Vice Chair UKIBC, said, “The Aerospace and Defence Industry Group will support and build on the huge opportunities for collaboration that exist between the defence industries of the UK and India. Collaboration will not only advance India’s defence acquisition process but also foster long-term technology and hardware transfers.”

Mr. McCallum added, “We support the Government of India’s Make in India initiative and believe the Aerospace and Defence Industry Group can contribute to India’s continued emphasis on defence modernisation and sophisticated military capabilities, which will be a win-win for both the UK and India.”

The reception for the launch in New Delhi was hosted by the British High Commissioner, Sir Dominic Asquith KCMG and was attended by Sir Stephen Lovegrove, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, UK.

"The ‘Make in India’ initiative is a great clarion call for the manufacturing sector and we believe the Aerospace and Defence Industry Group can contribute significantly towards building an ecosystem for defence manufacturing in the country. Together, we can build on India’s vision of indigenisation and defence modernisation with sophisticated military capabilities and advanced technologies, which will be a win-win for both countries,” said the Chairman of the ADIG group, Mr. Kishore Jayaraman, President, Rolls Royce India and South Asia.

The Aerospace and Defence Industry Group has been formed following suggestions of the Defence and Security Organisation (DSO) and with the support of UK Defence Solutions Centre (UK DSC), ADS Group Ltd, the Department for International Trade (DIT), and industry.

The core members of the group include Rolls-Royce, BAE systems, Thales UK, MBDA, Leonardo, TVS Logistics, PEXA, Pattonair and Cranfield University.

Silicon Valley-based Fintech Startup Vested gets Funded by IP Ventures

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) registered investment advisor, Vested has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Inflection Point (IP) Ventures. Founded in 2018 by Viram Shah, Darwin Arifin, Eric Huynh and Yinghan Lin, Vested is aimed at facilitating sustainable wealth formation by allowing local investors to go international. With a paperless Know-Your-Customer (KYC) process, fractional investing, streamlined fund transfers, commission-free investing, and advisory via pre-build portfolios, they have built a product compatible for Indian investors.

According to Vested, the funds raised via IP Ventures will be utilized in expanding the team and launching new products. Till now they have opened more than 7,000 brokerage accounts for investors all across India.

The founders of Vested come from four different countries and diverse career backgrounds. While Viram Shah is originally from India and has three-plus years of experience in investment banking at JP Morgan in India, Darwin Arifin is originally from Indonesia and has three-plus years of involvement in leading process development and project management at Sandia National Labs and Intel. Eric Huynh is originally from the US and has eight-plus years of practice in product and design. Yinghan Lin is originally from Singapore and has previously worked at Google.

“We are excited to be partnering with IPV via this fund-raise. Their network of CXOs is invaluable. It has already helped us acquire new customers as well as get connected to important business partners” says Viram Shah, CEO, Vested.

Vested offers pre-built portfolios called Vests that allow investors to invest beyond the FAANGs of the world. The fractional proficiency of the company allows investors to start investing as little as $1 in their favorite global companies. Vested has so far established partnerships with Indian banks to simplify the fund transfer process under the central bank’s LRS.

Speaking on his investment in the company, IP Ventures investor Dhaval Radia says “There is a huge market that is ready to be unlocked for Indian investors wanting to invest in US stocks, seamlessly, at their finger-tips. The platform provided by Vested is extremely simple and gets the job done. I expect a ton of sustainable growth for a platform like this, as the investors get more savvy and comfortable with investing in US.” 

“The thing that attracted me at first about Vested is the simplicity of its application. It shows the clarity of thought and customer-centricity, in all that they do. Then when I got to know the diversity and depth in the team behind it, I was convinced that it has all the right indicators for becoming a huge success,” Mr. Radia adds.

The investment advisor firm has bagged a prize of $20,000 at the UC Berkeley’s Launch Accelerator for its accomplishments. Whittling an international investing product localized for Indian investors, it has outstretched funds from investors across India, US, China, and Singapore.

With the partnership with the Broker-Dealer in the US, Vested has become as the only company to offer zero-commission US stock investing to Indian investors.

Over the past 5 years, $1.8 billion has been invested in international markets. This number is set to proliferate substantively as awareness about international investing increases and cost-effective and easy to use solutions become available to Indian investors.

EdTech Startup GreyAtom Raises $1.2 Mn in Funding led by Montane Ventures; Launches New Tech Courses

Ed-tech company GreyAtom, founded in 2017 by Shweta Doshi, Mitul Thakkar and Mayuresh Shilotri, has raised a pre-series A round of $1.2 million. Montane Ventures has led this round along with participation from GreyAtom’s existing investor Pravega Ventures. Ritesh Arora, Co-founder & CEO BrowserStack also participated in this round in his personal capacity. GreyAtom enables aspiring learners to pivot careers in emerging technologies like Machine Learning, AI , Data Science and Full stack engineering through an end to end rigorous learning and career prep process.

Talking about the fundraise, Mitul Thakkar, Co-founder and CEO, GreyAtom said “Educational institutes haven’t been able to modify their curriculum so as to impart relevant skill sets to students. GreyAtom bridges the gap between learners and the industry by bringing them together on the learning platform Glabs that provides hands on coding experience, mentorship and access to a huge peer community. We plan to utilise the funds by diversifying our product line up to include courses for front end engineering, back end engineering, automation QA as well as expansion across India. The newer programs will be launched with an "Income Share Agreement" where there is no upfront payment to be made by the learners, only when they get a job ,they share a fixed percentage of their income with GreyAtom. This enables us to create a great amount of trust between us and the learners.”

"We are extremely excited to invest and join GreyAtom’s journey. The founder’s interest in education and their learning product Glabs impressed us the most", said Josh Bornstein, partner at Montane Ventures. Josh added, "GreyAtom's tech-first approach to skill learners beyond theory by focusing on application and practice enables the company to scale a business that's typically dependent on instructors or online videos."

GreyAtom’s goal is to become the go to credible alternative higher Education System in India and has taken a tech driven approach to learning. The learning platform, GLabs orchestrates the end to end learner experience - this is where people code up, follow a structured learning path and get an instant assessment of their performance. The right mix of a highly blended learning approach - online learning on the platform and offline interactions with mentors and peer community is what is driving outcomes for the learners.Learner engagement and gamification are elements that have been built into Glabs. Glabs also determines the employability index of a learner and matches a learner with the right job.

As per market research reports, Indian engineers fare poorly compared to their global counterparts in terms of their engineering skills and employability. Industry experts have said that 80%-90% Indian engineers are unfit to be hired across leading IT companies. This is despite the fact that over 15 lakh engineers graduate every year(AICTE data). The demand for professionals across the emerging tech spectrum has exploded over the last few years. However due to a lack of skills companies are unable to hire the requisite amount of professionals.

With the new Income share agreement model, GreyAtom is on a quest to transform the career trajectories for deserving and hardworking learners in the emerging tech space.They have seen an overwhelming response to their front end engineering program in Income share model.Since its launch in September 2019, more than 4700 folks have applied to do the program. The current acceptance rate is at 4.8%.

So far, GreyAtom has enabled more than 35,000 learners to reskill/upskill their tech knowledge. In the last 2 years, 87% of learners who were looking for a career pivot have been able to do so.

About the Founding Team

The founding team has a solid background in the tech space for over 15 years. Prior to GreyAtom, Mitul co-founded Customer360, that was acquired by Interactive Intelligence (NASDAQ- ININ). His strengths lie in being able to take an idea from concept to reality. Shweta has led large engagements in top tier technology companies in India and globally. After experiencing the challenges of hiring the right people firsthand, elevating the level of education in technology is at the core of her mission. Currently at GreyAtom, she spearheads building learning programs that are relevant to the industry and is growing an expert network of global mentors and strategic partners that lead to the final outcomes for learners.Co-founder of Customer360 prior to GreyAtom, Mayuresh drives the marketing strategy of GreyAtom with an expert hand. An alumnus of IIT Madras, Mayuresh’s strength lies in using off-the-cuff thinking to create rewarding and rich learning experiences.

Belgium-based Blockchain Tech Leader SettleMint Launches Operations in India

One of the fastest-growing blockchain technology giants, Belgium-based SettleMint, announced the launch of its India operations at a ceremony hosted at the private residence of Ambassador of Belgium on Tuesday evening. To be headquartered out of New Delhi, SettleMint’s latest footprint in India is the fifth after Belgium, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore.

Speaking at the occasion Mr. Matthew Van Niekerk, CEO, SettleMint, said, “We are delighted to begin our journey in India, which is currently a hotbed of blockchain technology activity. Keeping in line with the incredible adoptation pace of blockchain technology world over, India as well stands to benefit from blockchain as a key technology to realize Honourable Prime Minister’s vision of becoming a $5 trillion economy.”

Highlighting SettleMint’s dramatic journey, Mr. Van Niekerk, added, “We have reached delivering a solution rather than hype in the blockchain lifecycle. SettleMint drastically reduces the complexity of blockchain technology, making it easy and fast for organization to turn a business concept into a working blockchain application from 12-18 months to at most a few weeks.”

According to Blockchain Report 2019 by NASSCOM, the adoption of blockchain technology in India is experiencing rapid growth and investments in blockchain-based projects have touched over $20 billion across various industries. The report further states that many Indian state governments such as those of Telangana, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra are supporting blockchain startups and projects and organizing conferences and hackathons on the topic.

Detailing the SettleMint advantage, Mr. Shazad Fatmi, CEO, SettleMint India, said, “We are  one of the simplest and fastest blockchain solution provider in the world. Our core technology accelerates the path to leveraging the benefits of blockchain technology: whether those enterprises are looking to improve efficiency, to extend their current products to a new client segment or to completely reinvent an existing business model.”

“SettleMint encapsulates years of R&D on the technical, operational & organisational aspects of Blockchain technology & packages this in fully documented APIs, micro-services, browser components and templates that strips away complexity, providing developers with the building blocks required to build full stack applications,” Mr. Fatmi elaborated.

SettleMint has undertaken the development of 35+ fully functioning Blockchain applications and researched more than 500 known use cases. The patented technology ‘Mint’ covers 85% of the use cases for Blockchain technologies and radically reduces the time to market for users. Using Mint, integrating blockchain technologies into an application can take as little as 3 hours. This product addresses the single biggest inhibitor to adoption, which is developer capabilities

Carrefour Belgium, Islamic Development Bank, 2019 Indonesia Elections are some of the marquee clients under their belt.

“With various industries looking to adopt the technology in India, our focus would initially be on Banking and Finance, followed by industries such as Healthcare, Retail, Logistics, Insurance, Micro Finance Institutes (MFIs) and Government Services,” Mr. Van Niekerk further added.

As per data from the World Intellectual Property Organization, India stands sixth on the list of patents and trends in the blockchain space, with a total of 67 patents approval in 2018. After demonetization there has been a huge shift from transacting in physical currency to digital payments through platforms such as Paytm, GooglePay, PhonePe, etc.

“With the large scale successful adoption of digital payments, India is now keen on moving towards adopting blockchain. Blockchain technology is emerging as one of the key innovations that will define the future of digital transactions in India and transform the FinTech landscape,” Mr. Van Niekerk added.

“In banking we see blockchain opportunities in remittances, KYC, assets tokenization. In insurance inherent inefficiencies in the claim management system of the Insurance Industry lead to losses of about INR 100 billion per year. Implementing blockchain for claim management is the ultimate solution to mitigate these issues,” elaborated Mr. Fatmi.

For government entities, currently, 40+ Blockchain initiatives are being executed by the public sector in India, with 92% in pilot/POC phase and 8% projects in the production phase. Most applied use cases are land registry, securing digital certificates on blockchain and governance.

IIT Gold Medalist Awarded Karmaveer Chakra by iCONGO United Nations

Rahul Adhikari, Founder of International Changemaker Olympiad & an IIT Gold-Medalist, was conferred with the prestigious Karmaveer Chakra Award and REX Karmaveer Global Fellowship at the REX CONCLiVE here in Noida on November 27 for his contributions in the education sector, and now joins the family of past awardees like Dr. Verghese Kurien (Father of White Revolution), Actor Anupam Kher (for his social work) and Mark Parkinson (renowned education change champion).

The Karmaveer Chakra Award is a National People's Award for Citizen Social Action and a global civilian honours instituted by the International Confederation of NGO (iCONGO) in partnership with the United Nations. It is given to those people across the globe who show relentless courage by walking the path less trodden and initiating a wave of change in society. The award is a tribute to the Honorable Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, 11th President of India, who had offered to be the ambassador for the awards. All the awardees are dubbed Noble Laureates.

Rahul received this award for his innovative work in the education sector to help children in schools grow up as Changemakers. Rahul founded the "International Changemaker Olympiad' (ICO) (www.ico-official.org) in 2017, which provides a platform for children in schools to launch social initiatives and solve a real-world problem in their home, school, or community, thereby making a positive difference in the world, while also developing the critical 21st-century skills of empathy, teamwork, creative problem-solving, and a Changemaker mindset while doing the same. More than 20,000 school students have participated in ICO from 20+ cities till date and launched initiatives to solve problems as varied as rehabilitating over 200 injured animals on the streets, reducing usage of 12,000 plastic straws in juice shops monthly, establishing mental health clubs in 15 schools, and saving 1 million+ litres of water by installing flow reducing devices in taps in 120 houses.

After receiving the award, Mr. Rahul shared, "It's a privilege to receive this award and great to know that others are recognising our work and the impact we have created for children in schools. There is still a long way and we will keep going to achieve our vision of every child a Changemaker."

Eitu Vij Chopra, Co-founder & Chief Curator of these awards said, "Our simple mantra is - 'I Change to Change the World' and all awardees exemplify this quality. We are very excited to have Rahul in the family and recognise his tremendous work.”

The awardees for this year represent 10+ countries from across the globe and were finalised after a rigorous selection process. These awards seek to celebrate and inspire individual citizen social responsibility, justice and action, and are held every year on the day the Indian Constitutional Pledge was signed.

Over 20 Million Users in India Log on to 11.11 UC Shopping Festival

Over 20 Million Indians logged on to UC Browser to take part in the recently concluded 11.11 UC Shopping Festival, part of Alibaba’s 11.11 Global Shopping Festival. The 11.11 UC Shopping Festival, jointly presented by UC Browser, Paytm Mall, Paytm First, Lazada and AliExpress simultaneously ran across 5 key markets of India, Indonesia, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam. The partnership brought forth exclusive deals, huge discounts and multiple offers across different categories. Delivering on its commitment of a localisation plan, the festival was available in 14 popular languages - English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, Punjabi, Bahasa, Thai, Vietnamese and Russian.

[caption id="attachment_138522" align="aligncenter" width="243"] India-Trends-Report[/caption]

Offering a comprehensive and enriching shopping experience, UC launched a slew of in-app activities. About 15 million Indian users took part in various in-app interactive activities on the UC Browser platform, including Treasure Hunt, “Invite Friends, Win free prize”, and Lucky Stars. UC distributed cashback and gifts of value in excess of Rs. 200 million, a jump of over 15x from the gifts and coupons distributed last year. Over 25 lakh Indian users took part in the popular Lucky Stars Game with over 700,000 users winning free prizes. UC also launched a “Mol, Tol” Challenge which became increasingly popular with the users during the course of the festival. The videos around the challenge generated over 10 million impressions.

With its commitment to create a comprehensive content ecosystem across multiple categories, UC Browser generated over 40 million-page views for content related to the Shopping Festival. More than 3000 pieces of GIFs and memes were generated during the shopping period and more than 70,000 articles were created on UC’s highly popular Shopping Channel, helping users understand various products and deals to make informed purchase choices.

“We are delighted at the overwhelming response to yet another edition of UC 11.11 Shopping Fest. The strong user participation has exceeded all our expectations and we are thrilled to announce that UC Browser generated over 1 billion viewable impressions for shopping fest-related content with over 700 million coming from Indian market alone,” said Mr. Huaiyuan Yang, Vice President, UC Web Global Business.

UC Browser is the world’s No.1 third-party mobile browser and a content platform from Alibaba Innovation Initiatives Business Group. UC Browser has clocked in over 1.1 billion user downloads worldwide (excluding China) with half of its global installs from India.

UC, a business within Alibaba Innovation Initiatives Business Group, is a leading provider of mobile internet software and services. The international product portfolio of UC includes content distribution platform UC Browser, UC Browser Turbo, UC Browser Mini, and UC Ads for mobile marketing. UC Browser is the No. 1 third-party mobile browser in the world, as per StatCounter. It has reached 430 million Monthly Active Users globally.

Yokogawa Releases SensPlus Note, an OpreX Operation and Maintenance Improvement Solution for the Digitization of Field Data Using Mobile Devices

Yokogawa Electric Corporation and MetaMoJi Corporation announce that they have jointly developed SensPlus Note, a low cost and easy to implement solution for the digitization of plant data on mobile devices. SensPlus Note, a solution in Yokogawa’s OpreXTM Operation and Maintenance Improvement family, improves the efficiency and quality of maintenance work and the precision of post-maintenance analyses by enabling data from plant field work to be used more efficiently. This solution will be released in all markets worldwide on January 31.

Development Background

A wide variety of equipment and devices from different manufacturers are used in plants. Each has a specific set of maintenance procedures and check items, and this work is performed as set out in manuals, check lists, and other documentation. While it would improve efficiency and help to ensure that this work is done correctly if field maintenance data could be shared and analyzed in real time, this is not possible in plants where such data is written down on paper documents. To address this need, Yokogawa and MetaMoJi have jointly developed the SensPlus Note solution for the digitization of field maintenance data on mobile devices. This solution draws on Yokogawa’splant operations know-how and MetaMoJi’sproven expertise in developing business applications for mobile devices.

Features

The SensPlus Note solution consists of a data input application and a cloud platform. Data input using this application is digitized and uploaded to a cloud server, where it can be analyzed using other software. The mobile application is based on MetaMoJi’s GEMBA Note, which is an advanced digital notebook that was developed to support maintenance at construction and manufacturing sites.

1. Digitization and real-time sharing of information, with intuitive operation

With the SensPlus Note solution, text input using a pen or keyboard, videos, still images, and audio recordings can all be easily entered on the same form and linked to a device management ledger. This saves time and provides all the information in one place that is needed to know precisely what is happening in the field.  Once such information is input into GEMBA Note, it can be shared with other personnel, drastically speeding up loop checks* and other tasks that require multiple operators to coordinate their efforts.

2. Ability to install additional server applications for statistical analysis and other operations

With SensPlus Note, data is uploaded to a cloud server, where it can be viewed and managed using a web portal. With its ability to store data collected over long periods of time, this platform is ideal for both preventive and predictive maintenance. Applications for the statistical analysis offield and plant operational data and other operations can be added to the platform as needed to assist in identifying failure causes and improving work procedures. 

Yokogawa will continue in its efforts to expand the lineup of applications that can be used with the SensPlus Note solution.

Major Target Markets 

Manufacturers

Applications

• Communication between central control rooms and plant personnel, and between personnel at different plants


• Communication between field personnel and third parties, such as the help deskof a plant equipment manufacturer


• The analysis of stored data to improve maintenance and manufacturing operations.

*Such tests check the communications link between devices by generating a test signal and verifying that is received.

About OpreX

OpreX is the comprehensive brand for Yokogawa's industrial automation (IA) and control business. The OpreX name stands for excellence in the technologies and solutions that Yokogawa cultivates through the co-creation of value with its customers, and encompasses the entire range of Yokogawa's IA products, services, and solutions. This brand comprises the following five categories: OpreX Transformation, OpreX Control, OpreX Measurement, OpreX Execution, and OpreX Lifecycle. SensPlus Note is an OpreX Operation and Maintenance Improvement family solution in the OpreX Lifecycle category. For its development of products, services, and solutions in this category,Yokogawa tapped its extensive experience in working closely with customers to optimize operations and maintenance over the entire plant lifecycle.

With this brand, Yokogawa will deliver integrated solutions that address specific needs and support its customers in their efforts to transform and grow their businesses.

About MetaMoJi Corporation

MetaMoJi is a premier application developer offering an advanced suite of products designed to be used by consumers, business and education.

MetaMoJi is committed to producing applications that help people perform tasks more efficiently, allow organizations to improve their processes and deliver a consistent user experience across multiple mobile devices and platforms. Recent awards include a winning place at the 2015 International Business Awards, two Envisioneering awards at CES 2014, and Tabby and Appy awards.

About Yokogawa

Founded in 1915, Yokogawa engages in broad-ranging activities in the areas of measurement, control, and information. The industrial automation business provides vital products, services, and solutions to a diverse range of process industries including oil, chemicals, natural gas, power, iron and steel, and pulp and paper. With the life innovation business, the company aims to radically improve productivity across the pharmaceutical and food industry value chains. The test & measurement, aviation, and other businesses continue to provide essential instruments and equipment with industry-leading precision and reliability. Yokogawa co-innovates with its customers through a global network of 113 companies spanning 60 countries, generating US$3.6 billion in sales in FY2018.

mastertrust Introduces the mastermobile Trader App for Traders

mastertrust introduces mastermobile trader app, a serious trader’s secret weapon to ensure that traders are able to capitalize on all trading and investment opportunities. Built on native technology, this app is very fast and light as well as easy to use and has all the features traders need to trade successfully. 

This app caters to both active day traders and passive traders. Traders using mastermobile get the real-time data of individual contracts and market indices with the ability to trade across segments like Equities, F&O, Currency, and Commodities. Normal buy/sell, cover, and AMO orders can be made using the application too. Furthermore, order histories, trades, and position reports can be generated in an easy way to understand formats. Traders who use mastermobile can view their stock holdings and accounts over a simple interface designed for user experience enhancements. They needn't have security concerns because the app is protected behind two layers of impenetrable security. 

Search for stocks and instruments is simplified by a search bar where recommendations appear as names of stocks and instruments are typed. The search bar only needs 2 letters to make recommendations, making the stock search 10x easier. The customizable multi-marketwatch views help users to see metrics such as market depth, open charts, and buy and sell orders when they hover over an instrument on their watch lists. The app is made available during the day and light theme and is thoughtfully designed to enable the traders find all information related to an instrument in one place facilitating a simplified trading experience. 

More than just a trading app, mastermobile equips powerful tools including a variety of charting tools to be leveraged for technical analysis so that users can make informed trading experience. Relevant news about any company from every website is automatically shared and alerts arrive when price conditions for stocks are met. Traders get to make market orders, limit orders, SL and SLM orders, cover orders, aftermarket orders, and bracket orders along with the instant status updates after order placements. For the novice traders, the app is empowered with powerful Scanners, to help users find instruments that have been performing or underperforming.There are two layers of security in the application that is login password and two factor authentication.

Speaking about the launch of the mastermobile app, Mr. Jashan Arora, Director (Master Capital Services Ltd.), says “With the ease of punching trades through mobile app, investors are switching to mobile phone transactions. The Indian equity markets are also maturing and the success in mature markets demands significant speed and cutting-edge technology. This makes mastermobile essential for serious traders. With mastermobile, traders need not base decisions on word of mouth or intuition but rather on the output produced by technical tools, analysis, recommendations, relevant news, and alerts. Using this app, we expect the users to take informed decisions and truly grow the size of their portfolios".     


About Master Trust 

mastertrust is one of India's leading diversified financial services conglomerates providing a broad range of financial products and services to individuals and corporate. mastertrust group has been enabling the investors to make the most of the exciting investing opportunities in the Indian market. Strongly focused on value investing and nurturing a healthy investment culture over 30+ years in the market, we have garnered 2.5 Lakh customers and are 800 people strong organization.

Senior Execs from Mu Sigma, Flipkart Joins Digital and Analytics Firm Incedo

Incedo, a New Jersey headquartered, Digital and Analytics company, is pleased to announce strategic appointments of industry leaders, Krishna Rupanagunta, as the President and the Chief Customer Success Officer and Paresh Huria as the Executive Vice President and Chief Delivery Officer. These leaders have enviable track-records of leading customer impact and delivery organizations for some of the most prominent digital native companies globally. They will play a key role in helping Incedo’s customers realize the business potential from Digital Transformation initiatives.

Krishna was a member of the global leadership team at Mu Sigma, one of the world’s largest pure-play Big Data and Analytics firms. He is an acknowledged thought leader in Big Data and AI technologies and brings along over 25 years of exceptional experience in building and leading teams across client advisory, product management, and delivery in decision sciences and advanced analytics. In his role as President and the Chief Customer Success Officer, he will be responsible for developing Incedo’s Solutions & Platform capabilities and further raising the impact delivered to clients. He joins Incedo from Cisco, where he was Head of Advanced Analytics and Data Science.

Paresh joins Incedo from Flipkart, where he built and led a pan India team to transform and turn around the operations with improvement in all metrics such as scale, reach, cost, and customer experience. Paresh was also instrumental in setting up and building an end to end planning function at Flipkart, responsible for ensuring seamless execution and synchronization as the company went through the hyper-growth stage. In his role as Executive Vice President and Chief Delivery Officer, Paresh’s will be responsible for leading the global delivery organization and for continually raising the bar on quality, efficiencies, and client satisfaction. He has over 17+ years of experience in procurement, planning, finance & control, strategy, and operations across firms such as Hindustan Lever, PepsiCo, and Boston Consulting Group.

“We are fortunate to have Krishna and Paresh join us, to strengthen our focus towards customer success and help our customers realize the true potential and business value from Digital Transformation and Data Science investments. Krishna, a pioneer in Digital and Data Science, will bring tremendous value to our clients.” said Nitin Seth, CEO, Incedo Inc. He further added, “Paresh’s strong industry and consulting expertise, coupled with his experience in transforming delivery for large digital native organizations, will be instrumental in constantly enhancing Incedo’s delivery capabilities, given our sharp growth trajectory.”

About Incedo

Incedo is a new age Digital & Analytics firm that helps clients achieve a sustainable advantage in their business by bridging the gap between business and technology. We are Headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey. Our 1900-strong workforce represents world-class talent at the intersection of problem-solving, user-centered design, and deep domain expertise. We have been recognized by INC5000 and CRN as the fastest-growing company in the US consistently from the last four years. Our client base includes multiple Fortune 500 companies in the Financial Services, Life Sciences & Healthcare, and Telecom verticals.

Indian Investment Industry Poised for Growth; Competition Set to Intensify

CFA Institute, the global association of investment management professionals, is enthusiastic about prospects for the investment industry in India. “The Indian investment industry is going to see a lot of growth in the coming years, and companies in the ecosystem will have to compete hard to get their share of this growth,” said Margaret Franklin, CFA, President and CEO, CFA Institute during a recent visit to India.

Margaret Franklin, CFA, President & CEO, CFA Institute speaking at CFA Charter Felicitation Ceremony in Mumbai

Marg Franklin, the first female President and CEO of CFA Institute, who assumed her role in September 2019, flagged off ‘Jan Nivesh Abhiyaan’, a 15-day Cyclothon organised by CFA Society India to promote financial literacy across India, and to highlight the importance of educating investors about financial products.

In a statement, Marg Franklin said, “I believe the investment industry must meet the needs of our end customers. The industry has rightly been criticized for mis-selling and putting short-term profits ahead of customers’ interests. We need to pay more attention to professional competence and ethical behavior. If we do this in every market in which we operate, we will gain investors’ trust and contribute to their long-term financial well-being, as well as to fair and transparent markets.”

“The fundamental concerns of investors everywhere are the same, whether they are in emerging markets or developed markets. They want to make sure that their savings are being taken care of properly. They want to provide for their old age, their children’s education and for emergencies. Ideally, the industry’s concerns should be the same as the investors’ concerns,” she added.

Speaking about ‘Jan Nivesh Abhiyaan’, Rajendra Kalur, Director, CFA Society India, said, “One of the key reasons for embarking on the mission is the growing realization that despite the rise in GDP and the high individual savings rate the level of financial literacy in India is amongst the lowest in the world. This creates a great degree of dissonance as the nation embarks on an ambitious plan to become a $5 trillion economy. As the economy grows larger, it also becomes more complex and hence the urgent need to not only increase penetration of banking and other financial products but also raise financial awareness levels. While SEBI has mandated that a certain portion of the fund TER be allocated for investor education, there also exists a need for greater financial education among segments who are currently not Mutual Fund investors or are out of the pale of regulated products, since a lot of the financial mistakes occur in this segment.”

About CFA Institute

CFA Institute is the global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for professional excellence and credentials. The organization is a champion of ethical behavior in investment markets and a respected source of knowledge in the global financial community. Our aim is to create an environment where investors’ interests come first, markets function at their best, and economies grow. There are more than 168,000 CFA® charterholders worldwide in 164 markets. CFA Institute has 10 offices worldwide and there are 158 member societies.

For more information, please visit www.cfainstitute.org or follow us on Twitter at @CFAInstitute and on Facebook.com/CFAInstitute.

Logistics Industry Veteran Beat Simon and Former APL Logistics Strategy Lead Albert Ng join Zephyr Peacock Backed 20Cube

Zephyr Peacock backed technology-driven logistics provider, 20Cube, has announced the appointment of Mr. Beat Simon, an industry veteran as Executive Chairman and Mr. Albert Ng, Former APL Logistics strategy lead as Head of Strategy and Implementation. With these appointments, the new age Digital Logistics company providing services in Freight Forwarding, Custom Clearance and Warehousing is moving a step closer to its vision of re-imagining Global Trade which has been traditionally driven by a mix of large organised players but also a huge unorganised sector.

“I have huge admiration for everything 20Cube has achieved to date, and I am even more excited about what we can achieve together in the future. With a strong team and an offering that can really make difference to customers, 20Cube has an important role to play in the digital transformation of the logistics industry. I look forward to helping the 20Cube team deliver its full potential,” said Beat Simon, Executive Chairman, 20Cube.

“This is an exciting time for 20Cube. We have built a solid foundation as a pioneer in new-age logistics and now, with some of the industry’s finest joining our team, we are even better positioned to truly enable the industry to evolve for the future,” said Mahesh Niruttan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), 20Cube. “With Beat and Albert’s formidable track record, strategic insights and deep industry knowledge, we will continue our journey to make trade easy by using our logistics experience to harness new technology.”

“We are thrilled to see how 20Cube has transformed over the past few years and has become a leader in digital logistics. The company has revolutionized digital logistics and has acquired multiple marquee clients through their prowess. 20Cube is disrupting the global digital logistics industry and we are excited to partner with them in their journey,” said Abhijeet Kudva, Managing Director, Zephyr Peacock India.

Albert Ng, Head of Strategy and Implementation, 20Cub

[caption id="attachment_138510" align="alignleft" width="200"] Albert Ng, Head of Strategy and Implementation, 20Cube[/caption]

“I am honoured to join 20Cube’s mission to digitally transform logistics, and I am looking forward to working with the experienced and motivated team,” said Albert Ng, Head of Strategy and Implementation, 20Cube. “The logistics industry has long suffered from significant inefficiencies and by helping the customers access technological advantages, 20Cube is driving an industry change that brings immense value to businesses.”

Beat Simon has led major profit organisations across multiple cultures and geographies. He has developed and implemented successful business strategies with Danzas (now part of DHL), Panalpina, Agility and APL Logistics, specialising in meeting the expectations of diverse stakeholder groups. As Executive Chairman of 20Cube, Beat Simon will lead the Board and provide the CEO with support and guidance around key strategic issues.

Albert Ng has over twenty years of experience growing and operating businesses in the transportation, logistics and travel sector. He started his career in consultancy at McKinsey & Company and as Global Head of Strategy and Marketing at APL Logistics Albert was instrumental in the company’s successful strategic transformation. His experience will build on 20Cube’s solid foundation as a pioneer in new-age logistics, through fresh strategic initiatives, new franchise models and potential M&A transactions.

About 20Cube

20Cube is a technology-driven logistics provider that is focused on transforming the industry through innovation. Founded in 2012 by logistics industry stalwarts, Mahesh Niruttan and Seetharaman Anand, 20Cube is present in 12 countries, 43 locations and transports over 35,000 containers and 6,000 tons of air freight per annum. 20Cube’s vision is to make trade easy by enabling the industry to evolve for the future by helping customers access today’s technological advantages and be best placed to benefit from the advances of tomorrow. www.20cube.com.

Wynk Music is now India’s #1 music app by Daily Active Users

Wynk Music, the OTT music streaming app from Airtel, continues to see a surge in its popularity amongst smartphone users in India.

Airtel today said that, based on Oct 2019 data from App Annie, Wynk Music is now the #1 music streaming app in India in terms of Daily Active Users. The performance metric underlines the massive user preference for Wynk Music when it comes to consuming music on smartphone.

Says Adarsh Nair, Chief Product Officer, Bharti Airtel: “The team is focused on building the most personalised music experience for our customers. Wynk’s deep catalogue of songs combined with a holistic understanding of our customer’s preferences allows us to build an incredible product. And Airtel users get a free subscription to millions of songs in Wynk through the Thanks program.”

Regional music emerging as the next powerhouse

While Bollywood and International music continue to be the biggest categories on Wynk Music, it is Indian regional music that is witnessing the fastest growth. Overall, there has been 75% surge in number of users streaming regional music.

With increasing smartphone adoption in Tier 2 and 3 towns and rural areas, the demand for regional language songs and local artists is seeing massive surge. More and more users in these markets are getting online for entertainment and discovering music on apps vs pirated music loaded on their devices.

Wynk offers music in 14 Indian languages and regional songs now account for 26% of the overall 3 billion plus monthly streams on the app. Songs in Oriya, Gujarati, Assamese, Marathi, Telugu and Bhojpuri have seen 150%+ growth and are also popular outside the home states as well. Interestingly, Bhojpuri music is also seeing strong uptake amongst urban youth in metros like Delhi.

“Regional content is clearly the new HERO as more users come online and look for content that is relevant to them. We aim to invest disproportionately for further expanding our regional content library and work with local artists to bring them to the online world of music.” added Adarsh Nair.

The Wynk Music journey:

1. · Sept 2014: Launched in India; crosses 1 lakh downloads in 4 days


2. Feb 2015: Crosses 5 million app downloads


3. June 2015: Launches Data Save Mode


4. Nov 2015: Crosses 12 million installs


5. Jan 2016: Introduces MP3 Player Function- Plays Local MP3 files


6. Mar 2017: Crosses 50 million installs


7. Jan 2018: Crosses 75 million installs


8. Dec 2018: Voted India’s most entertaining app on Playstore


9. Jan 2019: Crosses 100 million installs

Graphic India launches Tiktok Motion Comics and Garners Over 20 Mn Views In India

Graphic India, India’s leading character entertainment creator for original superheroes and TikTok, the world’s leading short video platform, launched short-form comic book - 18 Days: The Mahabharata, and Graphic’s female super-heroine series, DEVI on TikTok. The graphic books garnered a phenomenal 20 million views in 30 days on the platform.   

The 18 Days: The Mahabharata series is based on 18 Days graphic novels created by legendary comic book writer Grant Morrison with featuring art by Graphic India’s EVP Creative, Jeevan J Kang. Reinventing the epic Mahabharata, the series on the platform is developed with a  visually appealing storyline in a powerful format that has never been explored before on mobile devices. 



“TikTok is one of the most innovative and engaging platforms globally and we are thrilled to be working with them to redefine the comic book experience for millions of Indians across the country,” commented, Sharad Devarajan, Co-Founder and CEO of Graphic India. “Graphic India will soon be reaching over 50 million views a month of our digital comics and characters in India through partners like TikTok, bringing these great stories to everyone with a mobile phone and sparking a new creative revolution in comic book storytelling for a generation.”

Karan Grover, Senior Director, Entertainment and Partnerships, Asia and MENA, ByteDance said, “At TikTok we have successfully partnered with various brands to present consumers with diverse content that is compelling and engaging. Our partnership with Graphic India is to reinforce our commitment on creating novel and unique experiences in a new engaging format. We are glad that the users have enjoyed these unique stories and we look forward to bringing more such innovative content on our platform. “

Graphic India is now expanding their Motion Comics and Audio Comics offering on TikTok to include new languages beyond English and Hindi. Graphic India will also be launching new comics including; BAAHUBALI: RISE OF THE KALAKEYA: An original short form “Audio Comic” series based on the acclaimed ‘Baahubali’ films which will be available in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and English; as well as Motion Comics based on Stan Lee’s CHAKRA THE INVINCIBLE, the original Indian superhero character created by the legendary Spider-Man and The Avengers co-creator and Graphic India founder, Sharad Devarajan.

For more visit Graphic India’s TikTok “Gods and Legends” page: https://www.tiktok.com/@godsandlegends 

ABOUT GRAPHIC INDIA

GRAPHIC INDIA is one of India’s leading character entertainment companies focused on creating superheroes, comics and stories through mobile and digital platforms.  Led by media entrepreneur Sharad Devarajan, Graphic India is owned by U.S. comic book Company, Liquid Comics, CA Media LP, the Asian investment arm of The Chernin Group, LLC (TCG) and Start Media LLC. The company’s partners and investors bring together decades of experience in building businesses in character entertainment, media and India. Graphic believes that India is home to some of the most creative talent in the world, with more than 600 million people under the age of 25 and more than 850 million mobile phone users in the country. The Company’s mission is to create enduring stories and heroes that foster the imaginations and fuel the inspirations of a new globalized generation of youth in both India and around the world.

Likee Launches a New App Function ‘FaceFace’; Collaborates with Telugu Movie Raja Varu-Rani Garu

Likee, the pioneering global short video creation platform from Singapore based BIGO Technology has joined hands with the upcoming Telugu movie Raja Varu - Rani Garu which is releasing on Nov 29. The platform also announced launch of exciting new app function, FaceFace which utilizes Likee’s mature AI technology.

As part of the film collaboration, an exclusive preview of the movie was organized for Likee users on Nov 23. The preview was attended by actor and the actress of the movie: Kiran Abbavaram and Rahasya Gorak who engaged with 30 Likee’s influencers. The event witnessed lead Star casts of the Telugu movie enjoying and having great fun posing for pictures.

The FaceFace function combines the contours of the user's face with the popular video content, allowing users to transform themselves into a character in the video. Users can recreate any movie/ video scenes with just one-click shots and become part of that scene. The new function allows users to make entertaining content and maximize engagement among their family and followers on Likee.

With the help of FaceFace feature, users can now create content utilizing existing library of videos already available on the app. Users can click the “More” icon in the upper right corner of the video material preview page to upload the material template through the “Upload Material” portal. Likee technical team will review and check the video material thoroughly and approve only suitable and acceptable templates for publishing.

Likee is available in different Indian languages like Hindi, Tamil, Marathi, Telugu, Gujarati, Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam and Punjabi. In 2019, Likee had also won the Guinness World Record for creating the 'Largest online video album of people waving a flag in India' during its 'No matter where I am, #IAMINDIAN' campaign. The campaign saw more than 1 lac Indians participating in celebrating India's 73rd Independence Day.

Likee is a prominent global short video creation platform, with cutting-edge special effects video shooting and editing tools. Created by BIGO Technology Pte. Ltd., Likee was initially released in July 2017 and is now one of the world's most popular apps. Likee is aimed to make it easy for everyone to create amazing videos and record memorable moments. We hope that everyone could explore valuable and interesting discoveries, as well as enjoy a wider world.

Founded in Singapore in the year 2014, BIGO is one of the fastest-growing Internet companies worldwide. Focusing on technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, BIGO is one of the major companies globally in the field of development and publishing of apps. BIGO owns Bigo Live - a leading global live streaming app, Likee - a global short video creation platform, imo - a global video communication app, and other social apps.

According to the YY Reports Third Quarter 2019, the Monthly Active Users (MAU) of Likee exceeded 100.2 million, which increased by 413.4% year over year. The MAU of imo’s embedded Likee service reached 50.2 million.

~ NewsVoir

L&T Technology Services Recognized as a ‘Leader’ Among IoT Services Providers in Zinnov Zones 2019

L&T Technology Services (NSE: LTTS), a leading global pure play engineering services company, has been recognized among the top service providers in innovation and capability for Internet of Things (IoT) Technology and Services in the Zinnov Zones IoT Services Rating for 2019. Zinnov has also positioned LTTS as ‘Leader’ across 7 other unique expertise areas.

L&T Technology Services (NSE: LTTS), a leading global pure play engineering services company, has been recognized among the top service providers in innovation and capability for Internet of Things (IoT) Technology and Services in the Zinnov Zones IoT Services Rating for 2019. Zinnov has also positioned LTTS as ‘Leader’ across 7 other unique expertise areas.

The areas of expertise for which LTTS has been ranked as Leader include IoT Engineering, Industry 4.0, Connected Worker, Connected Logistics, Connected Assets, Energy and Utilities and Telecom.

Over 3,800 engineers from LTTS’ IoT engineering and managed services provide application and services platform that caters to asset management, energy management, digital factory, smart homes, connected products, connected transportation and smart healthcare.

LTTS’ IoT platform allows holistic end-to-end integration of the best products and solutions that assist in product engineering, sensor engineering, narrow band IoT framework for communication IPs, Edge analytics at sensor level, system integration and managed services. The platform also supports services such as advisory & consulting, cyber security, integrated analytics, gateways and controllers and end-to-end application development involving mobility applications, image processing and data analytics. These services have grown 48% year-over-year.

Zinnov rated LTTS’ advanced capabilities in offering IoT services to a global clientele of over 150 clients across its five verticals, with its offerings having been deployed in 1,067 projects across the globe.

Mr. Shashidhara Dongre, Global Head, Smart Products and Services at L&T Technology Services commented: “LTTS’ positioning as a ‘Leader’ in Zinnov Zones for IoT Technology Services for the third time in succession, is a reaffirmation of LTTS’ technological capabilities and expertise across the spectrum of IoT services. This important industry recognition inspires us to further push the digital transformation envelope for our customers. With our proprietary IoT platforms and solutions we enable enterprises to tap newer revenue streams by creating the next generation of smart products and services.”

Mr. Sidhant Rastogi, Partner & Practice Head, Zinnov said: “LTTS has been rated ‘Leader’ in the Zinnov Zones IoT Services Rating 2019. The company has witnessed high growth in the last couple of years. Its investments towards building horizontal platform capabilities (UBIQWeise and AiKno™) and vertical specific IoT solutions (i-BEMS, mCARE, WAGES, etc.) and new wins across multiple areas such as connected assets, autonomous vehicles, and industry 4.0 led engagements have helped fortify its positioning. LTTS’ deep-rooted domain capabilities and expertise in the space of industrial automation has helped build connected factories for its global clientele. Its framework-driven approach to identify use-cases and enhance RoI from client investments has helped LTTS take industry 4.0 initiatives and establish a successful track record across multiple geographies.”
About L&T Technology Services Ltd

L&T Technology Services Limited (LTTS) is a listed subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro Limited focused on Engineering and R&D (ER&D) services. We offer consultancy, design, development and testing services across the product and process development life cycle. Our customer base includes 69 Fortune 500 companies and 51 of the world’s top ER&D companies, across industrial products, medical devices, transportation, telecom & hi-tech, and the process industries. Headquartered in India, we have over 16,700 employees spread across 17 global design centers, 28 global sales offices and 49 innovation labs as of September 30, 2019.

~ Business Wire India

New Delhi Based AARK World Acquires Flyrobe to Build India’s largest Fashion Rental Service

• The fashion rental business will be managed and operated under the brand name ‘Flyrobe’


• The business is slated to hit profitability within the next 12 months


• The company now has five physical brand stores and plans to launch 15 owned and franchise stores in the next 12 months nationwide


• The business acquisition is aimed at accelerating growth and International expansions to Dubai, London and the US


• TRYROBE: A ‘virtual trial’ feature to be integrated on the Flyrobe apps in the next quarter, a first of its kind user experience in the ethnic fashion space


• The company plans to scale the market place model (Customer to Customer renting) post witnessing great success

Delhi based startup AARK World Pvt. Ltd that owns and operates Rent It Bae (premium fashion rental service) has acquired the business of Flyrobe, India’s first fashion rental startup. The company has merged the two businesses and is now operating under the brand name Flyrobe.

The deal between the two is a part-cash and part-stock. The new combined business is now valued at 60 crores. The deal is aimed at accelerating growth and expansion. The company plans to expand its footprint in India and overseas to Dubai, London and the US through a franchise model.

To support this acquisition, AARK World Pvt. Ltd. has raised an investment round from its existing investor GEMS Partners, a micro VC fund based in Delhi and is poised to go for a larger Series A. Flyrobe’s previous investor STRIVE (formerly known as GREE Ventures) also remains invested in the new company.

AARK World owned Flyrobe will have Aanchal Saini as the CEO, joining her on the management board are - Ricky Gujral (COO), Karan Gujral (CTO) and Pranay Surana (CSO).

Announcing the acquisition, Aanchal Saini, Co-founder & CEO Rent It Bae and now CEO, Flyrobe said, “We are the first in India offering a wide range of ethnic wear on rent. The aim is to expand our footprints to National as well as International markets alongside exploring new business propositions. With our ongoing growth, we are slated to hit the 100 crore mark in the next two years.”

“We are also launching virtual walls at all Flyrobe stores. Within months the trial feature as Augmented Reality will be available on the mobile app. This virtual experience is called ‘Tryrobe’. We believe that this first of its kind differentiator will be a major boost for our online business” Aanchal added.

Aditya Gupta, Managing Director, GEMS Partners said, “We are delighted to be part of the Flyrobe journey, our belief is that the fashion rental business is one of India’s fastest growing business segments. With a capable team at the realm GEMS is confident that this business will grow not only domestically but internationally”.

Nikhil Kapur, Partner, STRIVE (formerly GREE Ventures) said, “We are excited to see two strong companies in this sector combining their strengths to crack this tough category in India and build an asset light O2O platform for fashion rentals.”

Earlier this year, Rent It Bae had launched India’s first AI-enabled fashion rental store with the introduction of a virtual trial room. Virtual trial rooms are equipped with virtual walls that make it possible for users to try different outfits without having to wear them. The company further plans to integrate virtual trial experience at all the brand stores and Flyrobe’s apps (both ioS and android) by next quarter. This technology will be the first of its kind in the ethnic fashion space.

Flyrobe has previously indicated that it has facilitated the largest marketplace for customer to customer renting (inventory curated from individual closets) that has worked extremely well. More than 1800 curators are onboard with Flyrobe and about 3500 curator applications under review.

The company plans to incorporate an omnichannel strategy to grow the business as consumer demand for a multichannel shopping experience continues to mount. Flyrobe services to more than 1 Mn customers in 30+ cities through its website, apps and stores. The company plans to open 15 owned and franchise stores in the next 12 months both at tier 1 and tier 2 cities.

Tata Trust’s CInI Scales Up Partnership With CropIn To Impact 40,000 Tribal Households in Jharkhand

The Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CInI), an Initiative of Tata Trusts, has scaled up its programme on Lakhpati Kisan with technology integration in partnership with agri-tech pioneer CropIn to improve the livelihoods of 40,000+ tribal households across its focused states in Central Indian Tribal Belt. The partnership was announced at an event conducted by CInI in Ranchi. This partnership comes as part of CInI’s ‘Mission 2020: Lakhpati Kisan – Smart Villages’ program, which aims to bring over 1 lakh households out of poverty by improving their livelihood and overall quality of life  in an irreversible and sustainable manner.

Nearly 85% of India’s agricultural sector comprises of small and marginal farmers, most of whom face challenges such as high production costs, low access to credit, and poor market linkages. Community Institutions such as Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) are a great way for these farmers to come together to overcome these issues and have economies of scale. FPOs provide a great opportunity for diverting a part of development funds into implementing technology projects for small and marginal farmers to meet their aspirations in the agriculture sector. 

The partnership with CInI is being implemented through community institutions that are led entirely by women farmers. These tribal women farmers are responsible for timely and effective monitoring of the farmlands along with providing regular guidance to the farmers. The program not only looks at poverty alleviation but also focuses strongly on women empowerment. 

The CInI’s program has witnessed great success since its launch in 2015 and has impacted the lives of over 100,000 households, bringing them in the ambit of institutional structures for driving change. They now want to strengthen their impact and efficacy by leveraging the advanced technologies in the field of agriculture to address the specific constraints faced by the tribal population in the region. CInI also believes in the merits of livestock development for which they are looking to initiate better animal husbandry practices. For taking the program to the next level with the help of a cutting-edge technology solution, CropIn will play an important role in achieving CInI’s vision of changing human lives for the better. 

The partnership announcement event held in Ranchi witnessed a community interaction that focused on the "Role of technology in enhancing smallholder farmers’ income”.

The gathering was attended by invitees from various like-minded organizations. Speaking on the occasion, Ganesh Neelam, Executive Director of CInI said, “Achieving aspirations of tribal communities through the focused Lakhpati Kisan programme has been the focus at CInI. For us, innovative technologies and approaches are core for achieving the outcomes of these communities. The partnership with a well-known technology partner such as CropIn is very unique and important for us to meet the audacious goals of our programme. We proactively look for this partnership to be taken at scale for larger benefits of small and marginal farmers.

The first phase of this partnership started in 2018, during which CInI leveraged CropIn’s SmartFarm to improve the livelihood of 4,300+ farmers across the Gorabanda and Dhalbhumgarh regions in Jharkhand. Looking at the outcomes and impact generated by this pilot, CropIn and CInI have decided to set a bigger goal of scaling up to reach more than 40,000 households. 

SmartFarm uses cutting-edge technologies like real-time satellite-based plot monitoring to intervene at every stage of the crop lifecycle. The solution helps build accurate farmer and produce profiles through proper channelization and digitization of data. It also actively engages farmers by sending them farm best practices advisories — not only for agriculture but also for livestock like pigs and goats. SmartFarm also helps monitor the field team that consists exclusively of women tribal farmers. The field staff engage with the farmers on a day-to-day basis and gather critical farm data using SmartFarm’s easy-to-use modules. SmartFarm helps conduct yield analysis, allowing CInI to measure the impact of the interventions and improve outcomes going forward.

"Through our partnership with CInI, we aim to promote technology in the larger space especially in the tribal areas. Additionally, we are also providing our solution for the livestock sector. The uniqueness of this program is that it is managed by women-led FPOs thereby emphasizing our focus on women empowerment. We are incredibly excited about this partnership and look forward to creating a positive impact in the lives of farmers." Jitesh Shah, CRO of CropIn Technology added.

About Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CInI)

Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CInI) is a nodal agency of the Tata Trusts, working on transforming the lives of tribal households in the Central India tribal belt. The organization works with various civil society organizations, agriculture and other knowledge institutions, state agencies to establish sustainable development models for tribal communities. 

In 2015, CInI launched a highly ambitious “Lakhpati Kisan – Smart Villages” program to work with over 100,000 families and make them lakhpati irreversibly and sustainably through agriculture and allied livelihood prototypes embedded with technology innovations led by community institutions and micro enterprises.

About CropIn

CropIn is a leading AI and Data-led agri-tech​ organization that provides SaaS solutions to agribusinesses globally. CropIn’s unique suite of products enables various stakeholders in the agri-ecosystem to adopt and drive digital strategy across their operations. 

Using cutting-edge technology like big data analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and remote sensing, CropIn creates an interconnected network of all these stakeholders at different levels of the agriculture ecosystem, enabling clients to analyze and interpret data to derive real-time actionable insights on standing crop. Businesses can thus leverage technology to effectively drive their initiatives around Digitization, Predictability, Compliance, Sustainability and Traceability. 

With the vision to ‘maximize per acre value’ and the mission to ‘make every farm traceable’, CropIn adds value to agri-businesses by increasing efficiency, scaling productivity, and strengthening sustainability across the board. Thus far, CropIn has digitized over 5.5 million acres of farmland and enriched the lives of nearly 2.1 million farmers, while gathering data on 380+ crops and 3,600+ crop varieties in 46+ countries across 6 continents.

Kirana Retail Chain GULLY NETWORK Raises INR 5 Cr from Orios Venture Partners

Gully Network Retail, India's first tech-enabled chain of small-format kirana stores, announced the closure of its seed round of INR 5 crore from Orios Venture Partners, India’s leading seed-stage venture capital fund. Having started in August 2019, Gully Network brings a unique tech-enabled platform that transforms a small-format business into an omnichannel modern store making the store’s experience as well as business model more competitive.

Gully Network has been founded by Ajay Nain and Prateek Chaturvedi, alumni of IIT Madras and IIM Ahmedabad, with a vision of organizing the unorganized offline retail stores which comprise nearly 95% of the grocery retail category today, despite the presence of large format stores like MORE, Spencer’s and Big Bazaar as well as online grocery brands that have come up in the past few years largely in the metros.



Small format Kirana stores number close to 15million in the country and suffer from issues of uniformly modern customer experience, lack of data-based reordering, static margins, rising costs of wages and rent and being offline, are unable to take advantage of discoverability on online delivery players by consumers preferring that channel. Under Gully Network, these stores will be able to address all these issues and thus, behave like a large and modern chain of stores. Gully Network currently operates in Bengaluru and has 25 stores in its chain and aims to have one store in every one kilometre radius across the country.

Commenting on the fund-raise, Ajay Nain, Founder, Gully Network Retail said, “In the last few years, the Indian grocery retail ecosystem has witnessed new solutions, such as B2B supply, POS, and Finance. However, there is none to solve 360-degree pain points of retailers and their hyperlocal consumers. Retailers still waste hours comparing prices on B2B apps and following up with traditional distributors. On top of this, they have to manage day to day operations and handle customers. We take care of Sales, Margins, Finance, Inventory, Merchandise and Additional Income for the retailers in our network. We ensure an increase in net income of retailers with no day to day hassles while enabling them, through technology, to behave like modern format stores end to end.”

“We are excited to partner in this journey with Anup Jain from Orios Venture Partners who brings in vast expertise and in-depth knowledge of the retail and FMCG sector. We look forward to a fruitful association here,” added Ajay Nain, Founder, Gully Network Retail.

Commenting on the fundraise, Anup Jain, Managing Partner at Orios Venture Partners said, “ Indian grocery retail market is approx 70% of total retail market in India today- a staggering $500+ Bn p.a.. However, we have seen little transformation on ground in the 15 million small format kirana stores which comprise over 90% of this market even today. We are excited to invest in the strong team @Gully Network Retail which has the potential to lead this transformation through technology and form the largest chain of modern format small stores in India”

About Gully Network Retail:

Gully Network Retail, India's first tech-enabled chain of small format omnichannel stores. Founded in August 2019, the company provides a unique tech-enabled platform that takes care of the entire value chain for retailers and helps them generate additional income while modernising their store end to end. They offer the best of both worlds to their consumers; attractive everyday prices and a seamless shopping experience of online platforms and the readiness of offline neighbourhood stores.

Launched in 2013, Orios Venture Partners is one of India’s leading seed-stage Venture Capital funds which primarily invests in India-focused consumer tech and non-tech startups and businesses. Each investment is backed with continuous support in strategy, operations, marketing and fundraising to help them breakout cost-effectively and build loyal customers. Notable portfolio companies include Pharmeasy,GoMechanic, Country Delight, Beato, Moneyonclick amongst others.

Power of DNA - Delhi Police and AIIMS Join the First Ever Awareness Drive

~ #DNAFightsRape – Save the Evidence
~ Common person, a ‘first line responder’ in criminal investigation!

A pathbreaking initiative combining forces with the Delhi Police and AIIMS to deter the incidence of rape was announced on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The awareness drive has been launched to highlight the role of common people and the application of DNA forensics in expediting India’s criminal justice system in sexual offense and rape cases.

At the Launch of the drive Nishtha Satyam, Deputy Country Representative, UN Women India, said, “DNA is your unique identity that is present in every part of your body. In your nails, blood, skin, sweat and even in your spit. It’s impossible that in a rape case a rapist does not leave his DNA behind. We need to save the evidence and demand for DNA testing. We must generate awareness about this topic, because DNA is the biggest weapon against this brutal crime.”

One of the biggest challenges a rape survivor faces, is in proving the offense while relying on ocular evidence in court, when in reality, most often there are no eyewitnesses in such a case. The campaign brings to the fore the cruciality of collecting and preserving offender DNA, i.e. bodily fluids or skin or nails or hair from the scene of the crime and from the survivor, as it is the most conclusive evidence that can lead to a conviction. Thereby eliminating the reliance on ocular evidence. But DNA evidence must not be washed off, it must be saved.

[caption id="attachment_138425" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Panellists at the launch of the citizen awareness drive on the role DNA can play in deterring sexual assault and rape - (Left to Right) - Swati Sharma, RJ 93.5 Red FM, Nishtha Satyam, Deputy Country Representative, UN Women India, Pinky Anand, Additional Solicitor General, Govt. Of India, Suman Nalwa, DCP, Delhi Police, Vivek Sood, Sr. Advocate, Keshav Kumar, Director, ACB, Govt. Of Gujarat, Tim Schellberg, Founder & President, Gordon Thomas Honeywell[/caption]

Dr. Pinky Anand, Additional Solicitor General India, added to this, “Considering the importance of DNA evidence that is conclusive, the Government too, has introduced the DNA bill. The matter still lies with the standing committee for discussion. We are also looking to make a national offender database with the help of which a serial rapist can be identified and brought to justice quickly. Over the last two years, owing to the increased awareness levels on this subject, DNA crime testing has doubled. We must take care of two things, preserve the evidence in a rape case. And second, demand for DNA testing. And if we can do this, we will be able to make this city, this country, a safe place for our women and children.”

According to experts, equipping people with better knowledge on preserving DNA evidence can make the path to justice delivery relatively easier for rape survivors. The power of DNA is bound to put the fear of law in the minds of the perpetrator.

Suman Nalwa, DCP, Delhi Police, further highlighted, “Should this untoward incident happen with you, you are bound to be afraid, uncertain and insecure because we never think that we are vulnerable but sometimes bad things do happen. However, don’t feel ashamed. You haven’t committed the crime, the rapist is the criminal, and he’s the one to be put to shame. As a victim, as a first responder, as a concerned citizen, it is our responsibility to know more about DNA evidence and how to safely preserve the evidence to help the investigation so that the rapist is caught and can never ever commit this crime.”

Dr Sudhir K Gupta, Head, Department of Forensic Medicine, AIIMS, New Delhi said, “We are presently working on establishing the first of its kind one-stop sexual assault examination, care, and research centre. There is a dire need for educating and training first-line responders across the country on proper collection & handling of DNA samples while at the same time creating dedicated infrastructure to attend to rape survivors. The lack of proper facilities at hospitals has a direct correlation with the quality of DNA evidence collected from rape survivors. The results for the vaginal swabs and semen samples can be analysed quickly to help catch the culprit but currently, 80-90% of samples do not yield viable results because they are not collected and stored properly.”

The occasion also saw Suman Nalwa, DCP, Delhi Police who is also the Principal, Delhi Police Training School release the cover of a training manual being specially designed for police investigators. “I congratulate Ogilvy for taking on the responsibility of creating an abridged, illustrative forensic DNA field training manual based on the Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines on the use of biological evidence in crime scene investigation. This simplified manual will facilitate ease of reference for our investigators and serve as a ready reckoner for everyone in the force,” she said while unveiling the cover.

As per GTH-GA, Forensic DNA has emerged as the most reliable crime-fighting technology the world over. Many countries are effectively using forensic labs and protocols to collect, test and compare DNA at crime scenes with that of suspects with promising results. Where law machinery world over is increasingly relying on DNA forensics to solve crime, the pace in India has been slow. Lack of scientific methods in investigations and absence of a proper policy framework in the country continue to hamper justice.
About GTH-GA

Gordon Thomas Honeywell Governmental Affairs is a globally recognised public affairs consultancy firm that has expertise with forensic DNA database policy, legislative, and law. For nearly twenty years, consultants at GTH-GA have consulted in over 50 countries and states on legislation and policies to establish or expand criminal offender DNA databases. GTH-GA collaborates closely with governmental officials, crime labs, police and the DNA industry. GTH-GA operates the DNAResource.com website that has been used as the world’s primary source for DNA database policy and legislative information since 2000.

~ BusinessWire India