Business Goa August 2012

VOL 4 ISSUE 2

“Inconsistency in the mining policy is a big hurdle for the business” 18

shivanand salgaocar President, GMOEA

15 AUGUST 2012

sacramental wines

Vinicola enjoys a 28 near monopoly

NILESH AMONKER’S cooldukaan.com

Flipping the Cart in Goa

12

This all new web portal promises to change the way e-retail is transacted in Goa

How Crescent Fragrances turned around an ailing business 26 GIM’s Samriddhi 2012 to focus on Innovations 41

Incubated at GITIC, Milind Prabhu’s Genora Infotech is a promising startup 20 www.businessgoa.net

News Views Articles Interviews Profiles Focus Analysis Opinions Events Features

An Exclusive Boutique Hotel

Panjim - Goa. Ph.: 6455548 www.panasianbowl.com

Contents

15 August 2012

28 Goan Brand

Vinicola, a product of Margao-based Costa’s, has a virtual monpoly in the sacramental wines category, nationwide

31 Professional Dossier Bangalore-based Goan professional Swapnil Valvatkar says that an architect is an artist of dreams and shares with us his works

12 Cover Story

32 Lady Power

18 Spotlight Goa

42 Bon Appétit

Dr Shivalli Rao from Chowgule College, Margao has been making her mark as one of the top librarians in the country

Nilesh Amonker hopes to be a game changer in the Goan e-retail space with Goa’s first e-commerce portal, cooldukaan.com

Raunaq Rao goes to his usual haunt in the quiet lanes of Fontainhas – for some fish, caju feni and a little bit of Panjim’s nostalgia – at Panjim Inn

President of GMOEA, Shivanand Salgaocar expresses himself on the newly announced draft Mining Policy

20 Starting Young

Milind Prabhu started Genora Infotech with a dream and perseverence that only a 22 year old can bring to the table

22 Enterprise

Elroy Pereira of Sparkle Creations has literally carved out a niche for himself with thermocol and what used to be a part time hobby

24 Interview of the Month Power Minister Milind Naik recently took the task to put the house of power in order. We spoke to him about his plan of action

26 Industry

How Crescent Fragrances, a flavours and fragrances factory set up in Cuncolim managed to turn the tide in its favour

33 Thinking Hat 33

39

04 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

Kailash Kattalay thinks that an intellectual person is a vagabond, and our system of education fosters restlessness

35 Legal Eagle 35

08 Corpo Scan 34 Campus 34 Book Shelf 34 BG Crossword 38 Guest Column 40 What’s Up Goa 44 Goa Buzz 46 Newsmakers 46 BG Quiz

COLUMNS

Raunaq Rao brings to focus The Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 1999

37 H R Mantra

Focus on praising people and helping them find better ways when things go wrong instead of reprimanding employees

39 Love for Business

Swapnil Kamat feels that a business professional has to be decisive, no matter what the consequence of that action be

EDITORIAL

hbhatkuly@gmail.com

Business is Marketing VOL 4 | ISSUE 2 | 15 August 2012 Editor & Publisher Harshvardhan Bhatkuly Co-Publisher & Group Head Urvija Bhatkuly Advisory Board Datta Damodar Naik Ralph de Sousa Rajiv D’Silva Swapnil Kamat Team Amol Ajgaonkar Annalise Gouveia Alisha Patel Lyndon Pinto Virali Govekar Valeny Fernandes Pritesh Naik Ashok Kolvekar Columnists in this issue Raunaq Rao Kailash Kattalay Blaise Costabir Swatee Rane Swapnil Kamat Editorial, Advertising & Administrative Office SAVOIR FAIRE MEDIA Business Goa 101/5, Rua Thomas Ribeiro Fontainhas- Mala Panaji, 403001 Goa India Tel.: 0832-2425514, 6456555 Email: mygoa.mag@gmail.com Business Goa is a monthly magazine dedicated to trade, commerce and business features and news.

Published on the 15th day of the month

Publisher & Printer: Harshvardhan Bhatkuly Printed At: Printek Printers, Bengaluru

Unsolicited material may not be returned.

The opinions expressed in Business Goa are not necessarily that of the publishers. While great care is being taken to ensure accuracy of information, the publishers are not responsible for omissions or incorrect information. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the permission of the publishers.

06 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

We have all been on the boat of ‘making new year resolutions’. The new year makes us want to live a healthy lifestyle, suddenly. We assume that with the change of a calendar, we will be changed persons as well. Come the new year, gyms and fitness clubs across the country will be filled with people sweating off the weight that they have gained during holidays. Yet, within a few weeks, many of those same people are on the way to office without a workout in sight. With one portion of a chicken tikka biryani, all the resolutions that were made will be melting like butter on a hot naan. The resolution once made with dedication, is no longer a priority.

Marketing your business would pretty much be comparable to this fitness conundrum. As soon as a new product is rolled out or new service offered, a business quickly plans a strategy to get the word out to consumers to increase sales and visibility to target audiences.

Spending merely a few weeks working to get your business or product noticed, building your brand, and expanding your network will most likely not offer you the same results as making a constant, consistent effort.

Think about the results that you get from exercising. A few weeks of dedication at the gym may result in a pair of pants one size smaller, but months later they aren’t going to fit if you haven’t maintained a consistent workout regimen. The same can be said for your business. You may feel good when business is busy and profits are up, but you must put yourself and your business at the forefront and keep marketing to consumers to stay visible. It takes commitment. It takes a plan.

And yes, it is a lot of hard work.

An easy way to commit to marketing your business year-round is by creating a marketing plan. If this is your businesses’ first attempt, consider consulting a professional or start small by creating a short-term marketing plan with smaller, attainable goals that can be reached in shorter time. Near the end of the short-term marketing plan, evaluate your goals and consider expanding to a long-term marketing plan with annual goals.

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As daunting and time-consuming as a marketing plan may seem, the following are a few simple activities that can be done every week to help increase your brand awareness in the community: Attend industry networking events. You will meet many people whom you can bounce off ideas with – because most people interested in networking at business events are go getters and people who want to make a positive change to their businesses.

Volunteer to lecture or speak at appropriate professional associations or community organization meetings. My experience tells me that the research one does to prepare a speech or a presentation, remains entrenched in your mind. The marketing fundamentals are locked safely in your grey box. Besides, you get to spread the word about your business.

Write editorial pieces based on recent news affecting your industry for your local magazine.

(You have my assurance that it will be published) Sponsor local events or charities. One caveat here is that if it is charity for charity’s sake; don’t let your marketing mind work out. But if you want to derive brand mileage out of sponsoring, then study whether the event or cause gels with the business that you are in.

While a plethora of practices can be considered for use, the invariable ingredient to a successful marketing formula is consistency and rhythm.

Allotting the time for habitual marketing will help to steadily build a company’s brand visibility.

Additionally, the regularity in practices will help to avoid making resolutions to get a business back in shape.

Let’s face it…resolutions are tricky to keep, especially if they involve going to a gym, but if it’s better marketing that you want, take the time and make the commitment to a solid marketing plan and adopt a proactive mentality. It could be as simple as turning on your computer once a week and researching opportunities online, with a plate of greasy chicken tikkas before you

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THIS MONTH, WE BRING YOU THE WORLD. DESSERTS OF THE WORLD : Prepare to give into temptations as we take you on the sweetest journey across the world. Enjoy the taste of traditional favorites like the Um Ali from Egypt or indulge in the Mexican Sour Cream Tart and the classic English Summer Berry Pudding. Experience the world on a platter !

1 to 31 August, during lunch and dinner at The Dining Room.

GOAN CULINARY DAY : Experience the rich food traditions from the former Portuguese colony, now a state of India - Goa. Enjoy the popular Ambaleachem sason, Patoleo, Choris-Panv, Sannas, Portuguese Egg Tart, Bebinca and a whole lot more. Indulge.

20 August, during dinner at The Dining Room and Chulha.

For reservations, kindly call 0832 301 1125.

+ 91 832 301 1234 GOA.GRAND.HYATT.COM SITUATED AT BAMBOLIM. NORTH GOA

HYATT name, design and related marks are trademarks of Hyatt Corporation. Š2012 Hyatt Corporation. All rights reserved.

ENTREPRENEUR’S NOTEPAD on 7 Sept

CORPO SCAN

will be held on September 7th at Vivanta by Taj, Panaji by the SPED Committee of Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry. DEEP

GSL records net profit of Rs 83 crore

Vineet Bakshi, MD of GSL addressing the AGM

Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) has recorded a net profit of Rs.83 crore and Value of Production (VoP) of Rs.676 crore. The company released these figures during its annual general meeting (AGM). The company declared a dividend of Rs.17.17 crore which is equal to 59 per cent of the paid up share capital.

During the year, GSL delivered the 2nd Sail Training Ship INS “Sudarshini” and the 2nd Damage Control Simulator “Avinash” to the Indian Navy and

also launched one 105M Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel. Besides, a 5 Ton Glass Reinforced Plastic Boat was delivered to Sardar Sarovar Nigam Limited, Gujarat.

GSL also received an export business order from the Royal Navy, Sultanate of Oman for training of personnel. In the face of stiff competition with private shipyards, the company also bagged an order for construction of Pontoons and Service barges from Indian Navy, 6 in numbers RIBS from Mazagon Dock Ltd.

GMA elects new Executive Committee

Goa Management Association elected a new Executive Committee for the year 2012-14.

The polling was completed by 30th July and elected representatives are classified under two categories namely, Individual Members and Institutional Members.

Those returned elected under the Individual Category are Dr. Pradeep Salgaocar (Shri Shri Institute of Management Studies), Sonya Angle (S S Dempo College), Debashish Patnaik (BITS Pilani, Goa Campus), Rajan Bhatikar (Management Consultant, formerly with L&T), Vivekanand Phaldesai (LIC) and D Kumar Pillai (CEO, Orion Mouldings).

The elected members under Institutional category are R

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15 AUGUST 2012

Krishnagopal (Sesa Goa), Ashank Desai (Mastek), Nitin M Kantak (Zuari Industries), K D Bhat (Phil Corporation), Manu Anand (Alpha Mindz) and Francisco Lume Pereira (Sociedade de Fomento).

KALRA, founder of makemytrip.com will be the keynote speaker. Call Gautam Verlekar on 9326102192 for details

DEEP KALRA

Dempo Shipbuilding acquires 74% stake in Modest Infrastructure Ltd. Gujarat Dempo Group has acquired majority stake of 74 per cent in Modest Infrastructure Ltd (MIL), a leading shipyard in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, through the group’s shipbuilding arm Dempo Shipbuilding & Engineering Pvt Ltd. Modest Infrastructure Ltd (MIL), the flagship company of Modest Group, is promoted by first generation entrepreneurs.

MIL is well known for the quality of their products and has client base all over the world. Apart from the existing Shipyard at Ramsar (Bhavnagar), MIL is in the process of developing a new shipyard at Ratanpar (about 20 kms from Bhavnagar) with capability of building and repairing ships up to 50000 dwt.

Dempo Shipbuilding and Engineering Pvt Ltd (DSEPL) have been engaged in shipbuilding and ship repairs for last 40 years. DSEPL currently builds and repairs inland and seagoing vessels of size up to 3,500 dwt.

The acquisition of MIL has been in line with the strategic vision of Dempo Group’s chairman Shrinivas Dempo to expand this niche business activity of the group beyond the shores of Goa to cater to both international and domestic markets with bigger and technologically advanced vessels to become one of the most prominent shipbuilding organizations in India.

Gujarat CM Narendra Modi along with Shrinivas Dempo

Commenting on the closure of the deal, Dempo said that considering future growth potential of shipbuilding and ship repairs in India, this is a positive development for Indian shipbuilding industry in general and for Dempo Group’s shipbuilding business vertical in particular.

He further added that excellent infrastructure created by MIL with expertise and knowledge in building good quality ships coupled with Dempo Group’s experience in shipbuilding and brand image can add considerable value to MIL to take the company on an accelerated growth trajectory to generate expected sales of about Rs.1,500 crore in next 5 to 7 years. Managing Director of MIL Mr Kishor Gambani expressed his happiness about the successful closure and hoped that this endeavour will help MIL to create much bigger footprint in the Indian shipbuilding industry.

GTDC launches white water rafting in Goa The Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar has said that white water river rafting is a perfect means of promoting tourism in rural areas adding that the profits can go a long way in betterment of people especially the locals.

Speaking after the formal inauguration of white water river rafting project at a function at Ustem in Valpoi, Parrikar said that the initiative of Goa Tourism Development Corporation will augment tourist flow into the state.

The Tourism Minister, Dilip Parulekar, GTDC chairman, Nilesh

Cabral, Valpoi MLA, Vishwajeet Rane, and other dignitaries were also present. The Tourism Minister, Parulekar said that the project besides benefiting locals will also serve as a income source for tourism stakeholders during the monsoon season which is a lean period for tourism activities.

He also claimed that the new BJP government has initiated other steps to boost tourism.

The local MLA, Vishwajeet Rane said that such adventure sport activities will attract high-class tourists to the state and generate

funds for respective panchayats.

He stressed on promoting the project on a larger scale. The GTDC chairman, Nilesh Cabral, in his welcome note, spoke on the concept of the project and highlighted on future plans of GTDC. Later, Manohar Parrikar, Vishwajeet Rane and Cabral along with other dignitaries visited the white water river rafting site and flagged off the first formal rafting.

The white water rafting which will continue till mid October is being conducted by Southern River Adventure Sports Pvt Ltd.

Gracias Saldanha, founder of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd, passed away in Mumbai. He was the chairman emeritus of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals since May 2011. Saldanha, who was of Goan origin, invested his pension to set up Glenmark in 1977 that is run by his son, Glenn since 2001

CORPO SCAN

RBS Candiaparcar completes new facility for BOSCH

The newly minted BOSCH facility

prestigious projects for Multinational majors like ColgatePalmolive, Nestle India, Syngenta India,Andrew Telecommunication, Siemens, Pliva, SESA Goa, Duraline, among others in Goa and Indian conglomerates like Godrej & Boyce, Crompton Greaves, Indoco Remedies, IFB Industries, Bank Of India etc.

A Goan construction firm for the last 48 years, this firm specializes in infrastructure, industrial, pharmaceuticals, educational, hospitality as also residential projects, delivering projects with stringent quality and safety standards within the specified time frame.

A New State-of-the-art facility spread over 33000 Sqm. was constructed for Bosch Ltd. India

by R.B.S. Candiaparcar, Engineers and Contractors, Ponda - Goa on 10th August 2012.

The project was inaugurated by Manohar Parrikar, in the presence of Industries Minister, Mahadev Naik and other IDC Officials.

Managing Director of Bosch

India, Viswanathan and President, Bosch Packaging Technology, Germany Friedbert Klefenz were present at the function. The project was completed in record time from ground breaking to commencement of production as was stated by Friedbert Klefenz.

This is another milestone for R.B.S. Candiaparcar after the successful completion of several

Agricultural Marketing Board enhances incentive amount

Union Shipping Minister Vasan reviews functioning of Ports in Goa

The Goa State Agricultural Marketing Board has enhanced the maximum incentive amount up to Rs 2000 and also has extended the Agricultural Produce Arrival Incentive scheme to the producer sellers of coconut, betelnut and cashew nut for the financial year 2012-13.

As such, producers who have not yet availed the incentives under the above scheme for the financial year 2011-12 may claim the same by approaching the concerned yard office on or before September 30, with relevant documents, at the old rates

The Union Minister of Shipping G K Vasan announced that the Shipping Ministry has taken upon itself a task of completing 42 projects amounting to Rs 15,000 crore.

The Minister was speaking at a review meeting of three Major Ports, held at MPT headquarters, Vasco. The meeting was attended

by Union Secretary Shipping R K Sinha, Joint Secretary Shipping Muruganandam, chairman of Mormugao Port Trust P Mara Pandiyan, chairman of Cochin Port Trust, Paul Antony, chairman, New Mangalore Port Trust Dr P Tamilvanan, besides other senior officers.

The Union Shipping Minister opined, “For expediting the implementation of projects, in the Ministry we have decided to have proper framework for review of all the projects. Joint Secretary (Ports) will review these projects once in a fortnight and Secretary (Shipping) will review once in a month; and at my level once in a quarter, so that any issue which can impede the progress of the project can be sorted out at the appropriate time thus ensuring that there is no delay in getting the approvals and commencement of the work. In this connection, we have kept the first review for three major ports in Goa.”

Vrundavan receives IAO certification Vrundavan Institute of Nursing Education (VINE) recently received international accreditation for its high standards of quality in learning, through an ongoing process of accreditation with IAO. The IAO certification is widely recognised and accepted as a worldwide mark of quality education. Other benefits of IAO are: international accreditation with regional recognition, international benchmark in education standards, international acceptability, endorsement of students’ credentials, international promotion, international professional recognition, job referrals and placements and opportunity for faculty exchange program. IAO operates in 45 countries

Sharayu Toyota delivers 4 Corolla Altis to HC Sharayu Toyota signed a contract for supply of four new Toyota Corolla Altis with the High Court of Bombay at Goa bench. These 4 cars were delivered by Sharayu Toyota Goa to the High Court - Goa bench.

These cars are specially to be used for the High Court judges stationed in Goa. The highly sophisticated and fuel-efficient car, has been designed by Toyota’s world famous QDR (Quality, Durability, Reliability). They incorporate the latest design and technology, and have high performance.

The Corolla Altis has also attracted strong interest from the elite, due to its competitive pricing.

Nestle India opens second manufacturing unit at Usgao Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar inaugurated a new manufacturing facility of Nestle India at Usgao.

The plant has been set up at a cost of Rs 700 crore.

Nestle’s global head for human resources, Jean Marc Duvoisin along with the chairman and managing director of Nestle India Antonio Helio Waszyk were also present for the function.

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In his brief address, Parrikar assured that his government will extend full support to industries in the state by creating a conducive environment. On a lighter note, he said, “It is one of the few industries where one gets a pleasant smell while walking through the processing units.” In his address, Duvoisin informed that the company has eight facilities in

the country with Goa being the only state with two facilities. He said Nestle has been carrying out operations in India for the last 100 years. He added that India remains an important place for Nestle as the company has deep roots here and the decision of the company to invest Rs 700 crore in their Goa unit is an indication of a happy and conducive environment

with an excellent cooperation from the government. Waszyk said the decision to invest in Goa was not difficult as there is a disciplined environment that supports productivity. He said that the decision to invest in its chocolate and confectionery business in India will strengthen their competitive advantage and create value for everyone.

COVER STORY

www.cooldukaan.com

E-commerce gets ‘cool’ in Goa

W

e live in times when just about every commodity is available on the click of a mouse. Be it books, electronic items, even grocery! And all that priced much competitively vis-a-vis your neighbourhood store. So it was just a matter of time that Goa would also have an online store that can be as good as the ones we log on to real time. As good with variety of products, system generation, navigability and one where online shopping is a pleasure.

Welcome Goa’s first online store, ‘CoolDukaan’ that went viral on the 10th of August, 2012.

The promoter of this venture is a ‘young veteran’ with over 16 years of business experience under his belt and having a fetish for Information Technology and Real Estate, Nilesh Amonker an alumni of Goa Engineering College and 12 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

the prestigious Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), Mumbai has always had a thing for tech ventures “Yes, I have burnt good money in creating internet ventures that fizzled out for want of the ‘x’ factor, but I can proudly say that each one of them was made with super technology and the quality of design and development is was matters in this sector of business,” says he. A case in point being ‘I Do It On Time’ (idiot.com), a website that would be a personal manager. Check the site and you would know that this is no handiwork of an amateur.

So why is he persisting with internet ventures? “There is a strong urge in me to create an internet enabled business, because no form of business has the potential to scale and replicate like the one you can do with net based businesses.”

Serious words these. But what

is the guarantee of success? an onlooker may ask. Nilesh shrugs off and says that success in its

At CoolDukaan, our greatest strength is that the backend processes are tightly managed to enable quick turnaround time in servicing an order and ensuring the best possible consumer experience

Judith Azavedo e D’Souza Head, Operations & Logistics, CoolDukaan

material form is always a byproduct of a business process.

And this attitude is what makes him an entrepreneur of a different mettle. It is therefore, no surprise that Nilesh is the brain and brawn behind Goa’s first ever online store.

However, he is quick to state “Actually, there are two more energetic professionals - Judith Azavedo e D’Souza and Remo Noronha, who have over a decade of experience in the IT industry with a special focus on design and development of e-commerce applications.” He also adds that the CoolDukaan team consists of several professionals including programmers, designers, management executives and other back-office staff. Putting a team before yourself is a quality few possess, Nilesh is one of them, setting him on the road to greater heights.

To Nilesh’s credit he has also

Nilesh Amonker hopes to be a game changer in the Goan e-retail space with Goa’s first e-commerce portal, cooldukaan.com

Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar launches CoolDukaan for Nilesh Amonker with Chairman of InfoTech Corporation Subhash Phaldessai and GCCI President Manguirish Pai Raikar

tasted success with many ventures – be that as a provider to the government for cyberage scheme or ACES, a training institute or the one time hugely successful computer academy, TULEC. And his real estate business has been consistently doing well. Nilesh has been there. Done that.

Prospects of an e-commerce store in Goa CoolDukaan promises that you can enjoy shopping for almost all your needs from the warm comforts of your home. And as it is a 24x7 service, timings of retail are a non-issue. With the equation of traveling removed, your shopping experience becomes more pleasurable.

But a question that looms large is – Will an online store work in Goa? Because there are varied limitations of people being unfamiliar with the internet shopping or finding it difficult to access the net? Nilesh confidently says, “Keeping this in mind, CoolDukaan offers three simple ways to place any order – using the shopping cart on the site, or over a phone call on 671 71 71 or by just sending an SMS to 88883

“We have adopted the latest technology to build CoolDukaan and our automated multichannel ordering system is fully optimised and secure - so shopping on CoolDukaan is indeed safer than driving to the store!”

remo noronha Head, Design & Development, CoolDukaan

22223 and we will take care of the rest.” Yes, as simple as that! In essence, CoolDukaan is a retailer that uses internet as its main platform of sale.

Always low prices, always.

This is not a rip-off from Walmart’s slogan, but a philosophy that CoolDukaan is built on. Not only is shopping now easier, it also comes with a promise of having

the cheapest possible rates.

How is this possible? Nilesh explains, “We operate on wafer thin margins as we do not have large overheads of maintaining an actual store or large inventories. Besides, we source all our products from the main distributors or large retailers. So the middle-men involved are bypassed and their margins are passed on to the customer – that’s you!”

Shopping made easy So what can we pick up with just the click of a mouse, an sms or a telephone call? “Just about anything,” says Nilesh, “Our store covers a wide range of products under different categories keeping in mind the need of different age groups. A particular product is available from different brands also which again helps you to take a decision for your purchase.”

Besides, there is an assurance that with CoolDukaan, gifting is going to be a delightful experience, “Just choose from our wide collection and we will even gift wrap it for you with your personal message and deliver it for you.”

Goodies Galore CoolDukaan is not just another retail store that creates a monopoly to put others down.

It is an online store with benefits for the entire shopping eco-system. Nilesh informs, “Everyone stands to benefit.

The consumers benefit as they get a variety of genuine products at lowest prices from the comfort of their home at any time of day or night and also to get the goods delivered to their doorstep at no extra cost.

The suppliers get a platform to showcase and sell all their products across the state of Goa at absolutely no cost to them and irrespective of their physical presence or location, the goods can be sold to customers of CoolDukaan across the state. Of course, the suppliers will have to bring in efficiency into their operations so as to be able to offer the goods at competitive prices.”

As for the State, “As all transactions on CoolDukaan are completely legal, the Government realises taxes on each and every transaction and these funds are then available to the State for deployment in 15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 13

COVER STORY

CoolDukaan is conceived, developed and operated entirely by Goans with a proven and credible track record and based within Goa

various infrastructure projects for the benefit of its citizens,” informs Nilesh.

distributors and resellers to showcase their products on the site at competitive prices. Thus it does not cannibalise on the sales of the local business community but instead enables them to increase their reach and allows them to compete for business with other large and national online stores or e-commerce sites. Besides, there is no centralised warehouse, nor do they follow a hub and spoke model for logistics as is normally adopted by the bigger nationwide e-commerce sites.

Instead, orders are placed back

First among equals In a world where it is imperative to be different to stand out, Nilesh and his team have ensured that CoolDukaan is a cut above the other online stores or e-commerce sites in the country. How has he done that? CoolDukaan does not negotiate with manufacturers directly and nor does it carry any inventory or stock any goods. Instead it allows local

Nilesh Amonker Founder, CEO of cooldukaan.com

CoolDukaan Contest (To celebrate the launch of the site, CoolDukaan will be running a contest on Facebook, from August 10, 2012 with some really cool prizes like an iPad, a HP Mini Netbook, an iPod Touch and many other prizes. To participate you have log on to the CoolDukaan page and ‘Like’ it on Faceboook

to back with local distributors/ resellers thus ensuring that there are no inventory carrying costs or heavy logistics costs thereby offering better prices from lower overheads.

Local sourcing of products also means faster turnaround times, agility in terms of quicker deliveries and ability to deliver low value orders as well. The local sourcing also ensures that the business remains within the state and instead of local

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concept elsewhere is not as difficult as in a brick and mortar economy model. Geography does not deter or determine your business plans. Besides, if you see the list of the weathy people, especially the first generation ones, in the last decade or so, it isn’t surprising to see that most fortunes have been created on the internet.

Having said that, it is no

at www.facebook.com/ CoolDukaan and then ‘Invite’ friends to ‘Like’ the page.

The persons with the highest number of friends ‘liking’ the CoolDukaan page shall be declared winners. The contest ends on September 7, 2012.

Participation is completely free.) businesses getting adversely affected from loss of sales to large national e-commerce sites. CoolDukaan gives an opportunity to local business to build efficiency into their businesses and compete with these large national online stores.

So it’s time to get clicking on that mouse, and be a part of history in the making with Goa’s first online shopping store. Be a cool shopper at CoolDukaan!

“Innovation is not a business tool on the internet, it is a survival tool” cakewalk to create and sustain an internet venture, otherwise every other website would have been raking in the millions.

This isn’t your first online venture. What draws you to internet based businesses?

To be frank, I have lost more money than I have made on internet businesses. But this is not an ego trip. There is great sense in creating an e-venture – albeit, if you get the formula right. Net based businesses have the greatest potential for scalability and replicating the

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What are the challenges in the internet business space?

As I mentioned, along with the advantages of scalability and replicability, the internet is the fastest moving business where business concepts, marketing techniques and the idea of ‘what sells’ changes constantly and at a pace which no other business encounters.

So innovating is not a business tool on the internet, it is more of a survival tool.

What are the Unique selling propositions of CoolDukaan?

CoolDukaan is the first and only online store based out of Goa! As you can enjoy shopping for almost all your needs from your home you can eliminate the hassles of actually driving through traffic or hunting for parking. Which personally for me is a factor on where I choose to shop. I know of instances where many businesses have fallen on hard times, because securing parking for the customer is an issue. The problem on the parking front is only going to get worse in Goa unless, arrested by civic

Local sourcing of products also means faster turnaround time, agility in terms of quicker deliveries and ability to deliver low value orders as well

COVER STORY authorities.

Besides, you don’t have to visit multiple stores and nor do you need to bother about timings. Just log on to CoolDukaan.com and add the contents of your shopping list to the cart and get the goods delivered straight to your doorstep.

And yes, you don’t need to divulge any credit card details either. You merely pay cash on delivery!

It’s simple. It’s 24 X 7 and it’s cheaper than at any store!

Besides, you save on any incidental expenses. Shopping trips usually entail other expenses like commuting, impulse purchases, salesmen’s upselling pitches, eating and drinking, tips etc. On CoolDukaan, you shop at your own pace and time with no pressures whatsoever and save money on the incidental expenditure.

What makes your website different from other e-commerce sites?

CoolDukaan’s user-friendly interface

Our technological edge. For example, we have developed an ‘Instant comparison with other brands’ feature. CoolDukaan allows you to compare features and specifications for any product with different brands that are available. Knowledge is power, in that sense Don’t you think it is a disadvantage to be a local player instead of a pan-national one for e-commerce?

Quite the contrary. Being local allows your buyers the comfort of putting a face to the business. The trust and security that is associated with the face means a lot to a Goan shopper.

Besides, local sourcing of

www.businessgoa.net

“CoolDukaan allows you to compare features and specifications for any product with different brands that are available.

Knowledge is power, indeed” products also means faster turnaround times, agility in terms of quicker deliveries and ability to deliver low value orders as well. And in the unlikely event of any issues arising from any transaction, you can be assured of complete resolution of the issue to your satisfaction, a factor that is never there with any other online retailer.

You said that the Government would benefit from your venture. How? Besides paying local taxes, for a Government that has proclaimed ‘zero tolerance to corruption’, CoolDukaan would also serve as a barometer

to cross-check prices of products that the Government departments procure from their suppliers and evaluate if the prices are reasonable or not.

The comparisons will be online and transparent, as well.

You must be a proud Goan, because every component of the site is developed here...

CoolDukaan is conceived, developed and operated entirely by Goans with a proven and credible track record and based within Goa and the focus of operations is also Goa specific. Yes, it’s a proud offering

mascot of cooldukaan.com

Billy is cute, energetic and always on the move

CoolDukaan’s mascot?

People prefer talking or interacting with a face rather than with something abstract like a logo. The mascot, Billy is poised to connect with people and develop a relationship with them and put life into the online shopping concept.

CoolDukaan wants Billy to take the experience beyond just adding items to a cart exercise.

The website is also using Billy for branding and are in the 16 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

process of designing interesting merchandise with Billy as the central figure in the theme. The Billy theme mugs are already available and have become an instant hit.

Why did CoolDukaan choose a monkey as their mascot?

A monkey offers a cute and playful personality – always full of energy and enthusiasm, curious by nature and upto something or the other, often

exploring uncharted territory and trying out different things.

It is an intelligent animal that is alert and sensitive to what is happening around it and at the same time it is very social and protective. It enjoys collaboration and prefers to work in groups rather than in isolation and is always a delight to watch a monkey at work!

“This reflects quite well the basic philosophy behind CoolDukaan. We are a team

of very youthful and energetic young professionals working together as a team and delving into a new untried concept in Goa. Needless to say we are alert and sensitive to what’s happening around us and our aim is to make shopping on CoolDukaan a delightful experience to our customers and put a smile on their face.”, sums up Nilesh

O T P U GET KH A L 3 S R t n e m y o l p m e t ge s r e h t o p l e h To income n origin to start a o G f o th u o y l a g loc > Encouragin ities generating activ na Scheme ja o Y r a g j o R s ' r e t f Minis Part of the Chie >

eurs n e r p e r t n E l a to Loc l a t i p a C e r a cheme Sh S d e y o l p m E and Self For application forms and more information: www.goaditc.gov.in OR Contact: Mrs. Bertha Gracias, Mr. Satish Gaonkar OR Mr. Tushar Sawant AT 0832 2222241

The Facilitation Counter, First Floor, Udyog Bhavan, Panaji, Goa.

GOVERNMENT OF GOA

Directorate of Industries, Trade & Commerce PARTNERING INDUSTRIAL GROWTH

SPOTLIGHT GOA

The Goa Mineral Ore Exporter’s Association (GMOEA) was established on June 12 1963, with its registered office at Panaji Goa. The Association was formed to promote, support, protect, maintain and increase the export trade of Mineral Ores in Goa.

“Inconsistency in mining policy is a big hurdle for the business” SHIVANAND SALGAOCAR President, GMOEA

Shivanand Salgaocar

What does the industry feel about the Draft New Mining Policy, especially with regard to the cap on exports?

At the outset we welcome the draft mineral policy of the Goa Government, since it lays down the broad framework for the development of the Mineral Industry in Goa, and dispels the uncertainties which have confronted us in the recent past. The proposed regulatory mechanism is very progressive and ensures that the mineral trade is monitored and transparency is maintained.

There is no export cap in the Policy, but an adhoc limit of 45m tons has been placed on the amount of ore that can be transported on public roads.

Such a cap is essential since the mining industry has to co18 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

exist with the local community.

This is based on the current assessment of the load bearing capacity of roads and is subject to review.

Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad, has been entrusted with a study of the environmental load bearing capacity of the mining industry in Goa by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India, which is expected to be completed within a year. In addition, the State Government also proposes to set up its own expert panel to determine the optimum level of fresh mining. The moratorium till then would now pose a major setback since the current EC limits seem adequate, given the existing infrastructure.

There is constant flip-flop on mining legislation policies in the Country. Comment I don’t think there is any other industry facing such a challenge anywhere else in the world. This is one of the biggest hurdles facing the mining industry all over the country, the effects of which are already evident in terms of shortage of coal for the power stations and even import of high grade iron ore for steel making despite domestic mineral resources. The policy changes are frequent and the decisions are sporadic, with rules of the game changing after the game has begun. There should be some stability in the policy and rules to encourage any further investments in the mining industry in the country.

What does GMOEA feel about the Government levies on Mining Industry?

The financial burden imposed by the Central and State Government is really staggering. The recent increase in the Stamp Duty is the highest in the country, at Rs. 20 Cr per million of EC (Environment Clearance) limit. The State Government, in addition to the royalty, which is also the highest in the country, collects a barge tax as well as a transportation cess on a per ton basis. Coming to Central Levies, Goan ores, being low grade in nature have no domestic market and have necessarily to be exported, but have been saddled with a 30% export duty. The prices have collapsed from US $140 per DMT FOB when the duty

was first imposed, to US $ 80 DMT for Fe 58%, but we are still saddled with the Export Duty. Moreover, the prices for lower grade ores have fallen even further to around $60 for Fe 50%.

In addition, draft MMRD Act under discussion in Parliament requires payment to the District Mineral Foundation of an amount equivalent to royalty paid. An additional 2.5% Customs Duty and a cess of 10% of royalty will have to be paid to the Central Government.

Royalty rates have increased every three years by the Central Government.

I understand that there is a proposal to increase the royalty on iron ore from the current 10% to 15% ad valorem. All these will have a cascading cost impact on the mining industry and threaten its very survival.

What is your view on the Draft Mineral policy’s mandate of payment of 3% of net profit for CSR activities and also a host of other financial obligations ?

This will be in addition to the current CSR activities which some of the older mining companies have been practicing for the last 50 years, helping build as well as run schools, colleges, hospitals, health care centres for the mining community as well as the people of Goa. The mining industry has built the first four lane bridge at Usgaon and helped in widening a number of roads in the mining areas.

In addition, the Policy imposes various other obligations which all have financial implications

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STARTING YOUNG

Goa IT Innovation Centre (GITIC) is based in Verna at the GCCI building. This faciity was launched as an incubation centre that would hand-hold and mentor technology startups like Genora. For details, email Ashton Souza, Director, GITIC > ashtonsouza@gmail.com

MILIND PRABHU

GENORA INFOTECH

Incubated for success The 22 year old entrepreneur tells LYNDON PINTO about his amazing journey from student to CEO of an IT company

Milind Prabhu

Company name: Genora Infotech Date of establishment: 26th September 2011 Educational Qualifications: B.E. Graduate Initial investment: 40 k Current turnover: 3 lakh monthly Business philosophy: reach out to every Goan and through the use of technology make their life simpler.

Y

oung in years but advanced in business is putting mildly what 22 year old Milind Prabhu, Managing Director and CEO of Genora Infotech has accomplished. While still in college this encouraging entrepreneur had his own company and client base. Since then there has been constant forward movement.

A very humble Milind says “Back when I was in college I joined a marketing company and gained a significant amount of experience, especially with regard to ‘people management’, making sales and marketing strategies, learning about the industry and accepting rejection.

While I was in third year at college, I started getting contracts to develop and service websites.

I created a team consisting of college friends and we used to service websites for companies and charge around Rs 7000 while other companies charged 1415k. We could charge a low rate as we had tiny overheads. Clients liked our business approach and this has worked well in our favour. Managing clients and exams was a challenge but not only did we manage, we also had a lot of fun. We became a complete company operating 20 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

from the campus itself,” he adds.

For Milind though, the end user was the most important. If the customer wasn’t receiving the required services it was failure on his part. He says “I stopped my earlier business even though I was making good money but the end user was not receiving the required benefits. I thus decided to start afresh.”

Once he completed his graduation, he received various job offers. There were jobs that gave him the freedom to learn their processes and then implement changes in them.

But he rejected them all. Why? “Because I wanted to work on my own and have my own business,” he says.

As his parents are in service, his family was unable to invest the required Rs 5-10 lakhs for his startup. “I only needed to start, I was not worried about business as I already had built up a client base with my college-venture.”

After being bogged down with these problems from June 2011, he approached Sanjeev Nadkarni, Vice President at NE Technology and sought advice.

“He introduced me to Goa IT Innovation Center, an initiative by the Govt of Goa, GCCI and Directorate of Industries. They had a super infrastructure that suited by needs to start my IT business. They also solved my biggest hurdle – investment. All I had to do was pay Rs.12000 per ‘seat’ and by seat they meant I had to employ one person and pay a security deposit and Rs.4000 as rent.”

“I also approached a friend who was an engineer but worked as an accountant and told him that if he put his trust in me and agreed to enter into a business partnership, they could scale great heights, to which he agreed and Genora Infotech was born.” Having experienced

mentors like Sanjeev Nadkarni and Manguirish Pai Raikar, have helped Milind make a number of important and mature decisions.

After starting a little less than a year ago, Genora Infotech now has a team of twelve members.

Milind filled with a sense of pride says “I am so happy with our progress. Most IT companies don’t pay too well but we are not like that.”

Genora Infotech specializes in android and iphone application development.

They also

fiasco which resulted in a loss of one year for a few students -- for not having requisite minimum attendance. Five colleges have already enrolled and we are in discussions with more.”

“We will also be launching three android based applications -- an anti theft software followed by a version for iphones too.

With this app, if you lose your phone, we can track your GPS location and even identify what number is using your phone and from where. This can help in

Our product ‘College Nanny’ captures the attendance of students and sends out a report to the parents, by sms

finding phones, even if GPS is off, this app forcibly turns on GPS. There are also a couple more being launched this month. An app called ‘news express’ will be launched in the near future too, but I can’t disclose more details about it yet.”

At Genora, the mission statement of their business is to make the common man happy. It gives them immense satisfaction to be able to reach out and give every Goan a better technological tomorrow.

“I want to reach out to people and bring a smile on their faces and then make money. People like Manguirish Pai Raikar and Nigel Cabral have motivated me to do better business.”

Future plans? “I see myself diversifying into more businesses. For now however I will keep it simple and see where the future takes me”

undertake website development and servicing but they maintain a floor of Rs 25000 and only take on cms and ems websites.

Milind , however, says that their forte is application software.

“We were featured in the papers for our product ‘College Nanny’ which captures the attendance of students and sends a report to the parents, using the medium of sms. As a parent, you will get an sms at the end of the month with a full subject-wise report. The reason for this was the recent MES

ENTERPRISE

Elroy had to make a space shuttle that had to come down from a tree to the wedding venue and it was full of glass and looked almost life like

SPARKLE CREATIONS

Carving out a niche

Elroy Pereira takes LYNDON PINTO through how his hobby turned into a profession

Some of Elroy’s thermocol art

Elroy was hired

by Kingfisher in 2009 and was flown to 6 airports over two days and was asked to give them a ‘Christmassy’ feel

T

urning your hobby into a profession not only guarantees job satisfaction, it also allows you to use your creativity to its greatest potential.

This is exactly what thermocol artist Elroy Pereira does at Sparkle Creations. An endeavour that started way back in 1993 in 22 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

an extension of a house in the village of Vaddem, Soccorro has today become a mainstay and priority in the life of Elroy.

“When my sister was getting married in 1993, not too many people did thermocol work as an art. There used to be only David House in Margao who were expensive as they used ceramics. Thermocol is cheap and a wide range of people can afford it. I took the mantle upon my shoulders and made all the required décor for the wedding and at the wedding itself I got five clients,” laughs Elroy and goes on to add that “In 1996, IFB came out with its first microwave oven in Goa, at that time window display was also on the rise. I was contacted

by Sanjay Bhandari, who asked me to create a monsoon themed décor for the launch. I had to make around 200 mushrooms along with some other items, I was in my twelfth standard at the time and in the science stream but I did it and that was my first commercial stint and since then, people started recognizing my work. And with this break, my business grew.”

In 2001, Elroy moved to Hyderabad. One day, as he was sitting with friends, someone mentioned that they wanted to host a Halloween theme party but did not have any décor. Elroy volunteered and said that he would do it and asked them to try him out. “They gave me a gig on a Saturday prior to the party date and they loved the décor so much that twice a month I used to do all the theme décor for them at a place called Outswinger.”

While at Hyderabad and then Bangalore he was busy with his corporate life from Monday to Friday, but very religiously dedicated his weekends to his art. Once he shifted back to Goa

Elroy Pereira

in 2009, he was coaxed into getting back into the décor line by his wife Suzie, who he says has brought about a major change in his working pattern. Up until 2011 his work was known as Elroy’s thermocol work but now the firm goes by the name Sparkle Creations.

Some of his most memorable commercial works of art are the Banyan Tours carnival floats in 1995, the back drop for Remo’s Silver Jubilee celebration at Tito’s, the Government of Goa Stall at the Campal ground in 1998, the backdrop for the President’s visit to Goa at the NIO in November 2009 and almost every New Year’s and Christmas Ball at the Emerald Lawns. He has also made dinner displays at Hotel Mandovi and most starred hotels across Goa. While at Hyderabad, he decorated the Taj Banjara for a Goan Night theme party.

One of his other elaborate accomplishments was when he was hired by Kingfisher in 2009 and was flown to 6 airports over a two day period and was asked to give them a ‘Christmassy’ feel. Besides all these accomplishments, Elroy still feels that his most successful

job so far was when he was put in charge of the décor for the fifth anniversary of Radio Midday in Goa. “Since I started my business, every wedding has become a new challenge and a more demanding endeavour. In 1997, I had to make a space shuttle that had to come down from a tree to the wedding venue and it was full of glass and looked almost life like. At another instance, one client wanted real shells so I had to go to the beach and collect them at 5.30 in the morning. I haven’t really had any difficulties as such but there are some clients who are very difficult to please,” says Elroy.

As for the future, he says, “I want to have my own team, as of now it is just a friend of mine and my in-laws who help me but I want to make it a proper company, make it very professional, have a ‘proper’ workshop. Today, I work from home. But I want a team of 3-4 people who are responsible and will deliver targets whenever required. Skillful labour is a problem, thermocol can’t be cut overnight, and it takes years of practice. I have cut my hands, sometimes even my legs. I won’t forget the first time I held a blade, I cut my index finger. It is difficult to cut shapes, squares are easier than cutting round shapes. You need the skill to cut because you are handling an instrument which can cut yourself. By the year end I am also planning on getting a machine from Coimbatore, it is only used for cutting thermocol in different shapes and sizes. It will make my work a lot easier.

With this machine I wouldn’t need to use knives, which will be a lot safer. I don’t dispose off my thermocol. I do not burn it.

I use every piece of it till its life is completely over and once it reaches that stage I shred it and use it for Christmas as snow and other requirements. This is my hobby. There is nothing more pleasurable than making your living from your hobby,” beams Elroy

INTERVIEW OF THE MONTH

The Electricity Department was created as a Govt. Department in the year 1963.

The Department is the only licensee in the state of Goa for transmission and distribution of Electrical Energy. The Department does not have its own generation

“The 220 KV substation coming up at Cuncolim will boost the power capacity of the State”

milind naik Power Minister

cent. All efforts would be made to ensure adequate availability of power for the State.

Milind Naik

You’ve recently been quoted in the press saying that the power department is in a complete mess and that you are now attempting to put it in order. Describe the mess and what measures have you already taken to restore order?

The power department, which is also facing a huge shortfall of line staff, billing clerks and meter readers has been put into difficulty by the requisitioning of a large number of its meter readers, billing clerks and others being reallocated for election related duties, BLO duty and other such types of duties by the Collectors, Dy. Collectors and Mamlatdars. This has resulted in a huge backlog wherein bills could not be issued for even months and more. In consultation 24 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

with CM Manohar Parrikar, it was decided not to allow the Electricity Department staff to be requisitioned for such duties. It was also decided to fill on priority some of the essential vacancies that are lying vacant for some time.

The department has got about 1700 posts of line staff which are lying vacant and need to be filled up on priority to improve the quality of service to the public.

It is proposed to lay stress on filling these posts within the next three years. The Department has been facing a shortfall in the availability of power mainly due to the fact that the Central Sector Korba Generating Station from which Goa gets around 260 MWs power was running at a very low plant load factor of 60-70 per

What are some of the future measures you plan to undertake?

An allocation of 200 MW has been decided by the Secretary (Power), Ministry of Power, Government of India, from the Ultra Mega Project of Chhattisgarh Surguja Power Ltd. (erstwhile Akaltara) in Chhattisgarh. For meeting the additional peak hour power requirement, power is obtained to some extent from the U.I (unscheduled interchanges) pool depending upon permissible grid frequency and also from unrequisitioned stations of the grid.

The Government has also obtained an allocation of the Gare Pelma, Sector III Coal Block at Chhattisgarh from the Government of India. This coal block has a generating capacity of 1800 MW. An agreement has been entered into by GIDC with a developer who would provide minimum power of 15 per cent i.e. around 270 MW. The State also has the first right of refusal for another 10 per cent power i.e. around 180 MW. The power plant has been scheduled to come up within a year as per GIDC Future power allocation from the central Sector stations to the extent of 63 MW have also been tied up.

Since the start of the monsoons, the state has been plagued by constant power failures that despite the various electricity departments claiming that maintenance work have been taken care of well in time. What, according to you, is the problem and what’s the best solution?

Normally, with the onset of the monsoons, some of the

insulators of the overhead transmission lines develop fine hairline cracks through which water seeps in, causing tripping of the lines. This occurs due to changes in temperatures with the onset of monsoons. Such hairline cracks are difficult to detect even after climbing individual poles and therefore the outage time in such case would be longer. Also, trees falling over the overhead lines is also a frequent cause of breakdown during the monsoon period.

The power department is plagued by numerous problems including shortage of manpower, litigations, disputes, etc.

Comment on this and what remedial measures are being undertaken.

As already stated, all efforts are being made to fill up the vacant posts in the department and also where necessary new posts would be created. As regards litigations, the Power Department has been successful both in the Supreme Court as well as High Court to get many cases in its favour.

These constant power cuts also adversely affect a host of other services, most importantly water supply. Load shedding is become another nagging problem. What measures are being taken to reduce the power deficit?

Unlike other States where there is load shedding for all sectors including the domestic sector, in Goa there is no such load shedding/power cuts except during evening peak hours for three and half hours for some bulk consumers on rotation basis. Measures are being taken to ensure adequate availability of power. As regards water supply, there are no load sheddings or power cuts done. They would only get affected in case of

and purchases power from the Central Sector Power Stations of the National Thermal Power Corporation as per the allocation made by the Central Government. The Total allocation of power from the NTPC is 332 Mw. Besides this, the department also purchases power of 16 Mw from Reliance Industries Ltd., Sancoale breakdowns and when it is not possible to arrange alternate supply to them. Such cases are very limited.

Verna Industries Association recently went on record saying that unless the power and water woes are not resolved effectively, it will be difficult to attract big ticket investors into the state. As a result of erratic power supply, industrial units are often forced to buy power from private power plants or use generators. Small scale industrial units, however, have to suffer from loss of man hours when there is no electricity supply thus affecting their rate and upping the cost of production. How can this situation effectively be dealt with?

As compared to other States, the power failures in Goa are much less and there are only limited power failures and no load

shedding. One of the 40 MVA power transformer at Verna had failed causing problem in the Industrial Estate. Arrangement have already been made to shift immediately another 40 MVA transformer from elsewhere, and also for installing a new 40 MVA transformer at Verna.

What are the various measures being undertaken to upgrade the power supply infrastructure?

The 220 KV substation is under construction at Cuncolim which would augment the capacity all over Goa. Similarly, it has been proposed to provide a new 220 KV substation at Verna for which land acquisition is in process.

The transmission infrastructure would be adequately augmented as and when necessary. With funds coming from the Electricity Duty Fund, the Government is also augmenting the capacity of the major substations, providing new substations where necessary and providing 33 KV underground ring mains between major substations.

What new and additional facilities is the power department providing to ground staff like linesmen who often risk their lives while climbing poles and transformers to locate power failure fault?

The line staff have been provided with all safety equipments including safety belts, helmets and necessary tools and plant.

Suitable training have also been imparted to the new staff for adopting adequate safety measures.

The CM recently hiked power tariffs, a move that hasn’t gone down all that well with consumers. Any chance of a roll back?

The Power sector comes under the Regulatory Reforms and is bound to file its annual revenue requirement and tariff Petition before the appropriate Commission annually. It will be the appropriate Commission which will decide the final tariff to such category of consumers after taking into consideration the consumer interest.

Will you invite private power suppliers -- Tata for instance, Reliance, already being present, to set shop here and thus ease the burden on the state?

Reliance Energys Limited has proposed expansion of its existing unit from 48 MW to 100 MW 15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 25

Better management of creditors’ outstanding, improving credit terms of existing vendors as also developing new vendors offering better quality products and better credit terms – all helped the company become financially strong

INDUSTRY

Crescent Fragrances Pvt. Ltd

Smells Good

Sameer Keny, Chief Operating Officer of Crescent Fragrances Pvt. Ltd. opens up to ALISHA PATEL about the journey, struggles and future of the factory Sameer with father, Sudhakar Keny

4 years of delay in getting the project started proved very costly for the company as the entire market scenario had changed between the conception and implementation of the project

T

he fragrance and flavour industry worldwide is a 22000 Million USD business. Of these, Givaudan, Fermenich, IFF, Symrise and Takasago effectively account for nearly 65 per cent of the world’s trade. In India, the industry is relatively smaller but still churns out approximately 300 Million US dollars. The top companies that have a substantial presence in the Indian market, along with competition from Indian flavours and fragrance houses are S.H. Kelkar & Co, Aarav Fragrances, 26 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

Khatri Perfumers, Oriental Flavours & Fragrances, Ultra International, Sachee Fragrances and Goldfield Fragrances.

Flavours comprise 45% of the market while fragrances total 55%. However fragrances are also used in Agarbatti (Incense sticks) and Paan Masala / Zarda industries where figures are typically not disclosed and wherein many companies prefer to directly buy aromas and blend their own fragrances. Hence the F&F industry sales may not completely reflect these figures and estimates range to 10% higher. The Indian F&F industry has only two players in Goa, one of them being Crescent Fragrances Pvt Ltd in Cuncolim.

Sudhakar Y Keny, an M.Sc. in Organic Chemistry and thirty five years of experience worked with some of the biggest names in the business, including Industrial Perfumes Ltd., a sister concern of Tata Oil Mills Co. (TOMCO) Ltd. With the takeover of the company by Hindustan Lever, Sudhakar Keny decided to start manufacturing fragrances and flavours on his own in 1998.

Emotions played a major role in the set up and functioning of the new venture, as he decided to set

shop in Cuncolim which was at that time a developing industrial estate, as well as his home town.

“The idea behind this was also to provide employment to the villagers of Cuncolim, which is still being done” explains his son Sameer Keny who is the active business head of the firm, today.

However things have not always been as rosy as they are now, informs Sameer. The company faced numerous problems right from the time of its inception. The cost of the project substantially exceeded the budgeted project costs, which resulted in delaying the commissioning of the factory.

The company was incorporated in January 1994 but commenced commercial production only in February 1998. This gestation period of 4 years proved very costly for the company as the entire market scenario had changed between the conception and implementation of the project. They also faced problems with loans that they had secured at exorbitant interest rates. The factory was on the verge of being repossessed by EDC as they had defaulted on installments and other payments.

No proper systems were in place at Crescent Fragrances Pvt. Ltd. Adding to their woes was also a shortage of qualified personnel that they required. Within a year and a half of starting production, the company had become a “sick unit” and was on the verge of being shut down.

Though they faced numerous problems, Sameer proudly reveals that they did not turn to anybody to pick them up. They ‘picked’ themselves up through numerous meetings with top EDC officials including the then chairman, PFX D’Lima, where they presented their business plans and future projections.

“He appreciated our sincerity

and confidence, and so our Loan Restructuring proposal was put to the board of EDC for approval” says Sameer. Speedy recovery of debtors, reducing overdue outstanding payments beyond 180 days as well as bad debts to near zero. Better management of creditors’ outstanding, improving credit terms of existing vendors as also developing new vendors offering better quality products and better credit terms -- all helped the company become financially strong.

The factory today is booming, with the total installed capacity of the units being one hundred and twenty tons. In 1999, the company was manufacturing about ten products, and due to flexibility in the plant and machinery, over the last thirteen years, they have added nearly one hundred new products to their range, which include fragrances and flavours for agarbattis, perfumes of all types including deodorants, roll on perfumes, hanky perfumes, and flavours. They also supply fragrances to zarda and paan masala manufacturers. Sameer further elaborates on the work that they do at the factory, “Fragrances are a blend of different ingredients.

That includes essential oils which we extract from the plant source, for example citronella oil would be extracted from citronella grass.

We also extract other individual ingredients which we need from these oils.” He goes on to explain how they also manufacture aromas, by taking aroma chemicals and synchronizing them to get aromas. Their USP he says is in providing natural products, as a majority of their customers prefer natural

products, and not many players in the field stick to manufacturing natural fragrances and aromas.

Being an executive committee member of the Goa State Industries Association for the last eight years, Sameer tries to support MSME units in the state, and give them the guidance and support that they need to grow. Apart from this he laments that everyone has to fend for themselves and support from the government too is limited and scarred by red-tapism and unending formalities. “As an entrepreneur today, I have found that over forty per cent of my time is wasted in taking care of government formalities,” rues Sameer.

Competition is Crescent Fragrance Pvt Ltd’s biggest challenge. “Dirty competition to be more specific,” informs Sameer. Ever increasing costs of raw materials, and the market’s failure to accept an increase in prices has resulted in, their competitors maintaining low rates by providing sub-standard products to the markets, claims he. This according to Sameer is

where they get badly hit. While Crescent Fragrances Pvt Ltd increases its prices, they maintain the exceptional quality of their products, which the market often wrongly sees as overcharging. It is then that Sameer himself has to go to his clients and explain how his product exceeds the quality of that of his competitors.

“We believe in ethics. We have suffered a lot because of our reluctance to compromise on what we believe in, but under no circumstances do we give in to the pressure to carry out business in black,” he proudly states.

Having said and done everything he can to get Crescent Fragrances Pvt Ltd placed firmly on the flavours and fragrances Map, Sameer feels it is time to take things to the next level. “We have recently entered the essential oils market and hope that we can continue manufacturing them. Till date we have not entered the export market, but we are looking to tap this market as well. That is our future” he sums up confidently

The Voice of Business in Goa

www.businessgoa.net 15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 27

GOAN BRAND

Vinicola enjoys monopoly over the manufacture of sacramental wine as well as sweet, red wine, otherwise known as Port wine in Goa

vinicola

by costa’s

Message in a bottle I

Keeping in mind that grapes are a seasonal fruit, Dr Ivo has developed a unique method of making wine out of dry grapes

28 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

n the 1980s, when the Archdiocese of Goa, was looking for someone to supply them with sacramental wine, Dr. Fr. Martin approached good friend Ivo Costa Azaredo, owner of Vinicola Wines for the same.

Dr. Ivo accepted the offer, and has since then been supplying wine to the Archdiocese. In the years to follow, he was approached by the Archdiocese of Bombay to make wine for them, too. Slowly Vinicola’s reputation grew and today they are the suppliers of sacramental wine all over the country with the exception of the Archdiocese of Bangalore and Kerala. They were also suppliers of sacramental wine to the Divine Retreat Centre in Potta. However their products are not limited to sacramental wine. Vinicola also manufactures world class dry, demisec and sweet wines.

Explaining more about how Vinicola Wines forayed into the industry, Dr. Ivo Costa Azaredo says, “In 1962 there was a gentleman by the name of Dr Carmo Noronha who was a part of the excise department, who introduced the system of brewing spirits using modern distilleries. Employing a piece of land containing 1500 coconut trees handed down to me by my ancestors, I began making coconut fenny. However this was short lived as we lost the property to the government.

With the money I received as compensation, I started Vinicola in 1970.” Dr Ivo goes on to explain how they also experimented with manufacturing cashew fenny as well as Indian Made Foreign Liquor before finally zoning in on wine.

World class products need world class raw materials. Hence the grapes which go into making Vinicola Wines are sourced from some of the best vineyards in

Dr. Ivo and Raul Costa take ALISHA PATEL through the history of Vinicola Wines and what makes it the preferred wine for any occasion

Bangalore. Keeping in mind that grapes are a seasonal fruit, Dr Ivo has developed a unique method of making wine out of dry grapes. “It is because of this method that I am able to manufacture wine throughout the year and as a result I can sell my product at a reasonable rate.”

Says Dr. Ivo. Vinicola today is one of the only companies in Goa that manufactures wine, and has over the years gained reputation for being a world class product sold at affordable rates, which

up a Vinicola bottle.” Delving into their competition, Dr. Ivo and Raul tell us that Vinicola enjoys monopoly over the manufacture of sacramental wine as well as sweet, red wine, otherwise known as Port wine in Goa. Our sacramental wine has also reached other parts of Asia, as well. Having a well known and trusted brand is the secret to our success Though there are other players in this market, feedback shows that Vinicola makes a perfect bottle of Port wine.

Competition does not bother

according to his grandson, Raul Costa is their Unique Selling Point. He furthers goes on to add that some of their best selling products include Vinicola Port Wine, Vinicola’s Sacramental Wine, Adega de Velha (White Wine) Demi Sec, Sec, Granjo, Vinicola’s Fizz Vinho, Verde Port No.5, Maduro Port No.5 Vinart and Muscatel.

Branding to any modern distillery is important, but being an alcohol brand, they aren’t allowed to advertise, laments Raul, however, Dr. Ivo is quick to add that “The name sells for itself, and hence we do not need to advertise much. Our customers know that they are getting the best when they pick

me, I still sell my product, in fact figures show that we sell over and above what our competitors sell,” explains Dr. Ivo. Being in the business for over forty years, Vinicola has come a long way, and though Dr. Ivo has handed over operations of Vinicola Wines to Raul, he reveals that he does not wish to have a huge manufacturing unit, and hopes that the business grows steadily, as it always has.

Raul though, has other plans.

“I want to increase production capacities, invest in our own vineyards and widen our market reach are on my cards for now,” he says. For now, the Costas are raising a toast to the strength of their brand

professional dossier

At Collage, Swapnil dedicates himself to the design of high performance, energy efficient and self sustaining architecture on par with international standards

swapnil valvatkar, architect

“An architect is an artist of dreams”

Architect Swapnil Valvatkar talks about what drives him to keep performing and improving

Some of Swapnil’s work

Swapnil Valvatkar

W

hen a burning desire to achieve is met by the opportunity to perform, great things happens and this is exactly, if I may say, the story of my life. To me architecture is a visual art, where the buildings speak for themselves. I believe a great architect is not made solely by way of his skills and abilities but is made up more by a cultured and enriched heart.

We as architects, not only sketch and design structures, we draw people’s life as the structure shapes the way people live.

I was born and brought up in Goa but due to professional reasons I had to move to Bangalore, which I did once I completed my B. Arch at the Goa College of Architecture. I entered the field of architecture as it is a very creative field and being a creative person it looked like the best line for me. Again, here passion played an important part in this decision, making it one of the best decisions I have made in my early life.

While I was in college, Charles Correa was a big inspiration to me. Over the years, I also looked up to architect Sanjay Mohe as an inspiration.

My first job was at CNT in Bangalore. But as time went on I

wanted to start my own venture, so along with my partners Arun Kumar TD and Advitha Suvarna, I started Collage Architecture Studio in 2009. Slowly and steadily the company grew. Due to our vast experience in the field and the knowledge that we had, we were able to get on the right track and build a good base.

Back in 2009 when we started, it was just one architect on board but today, the firm engages 11 architects. Our projects too have gone on from small projects to larger scale projects and I am sure in the future even larger projects will be possible.

At Collage we dedicate ourselves to the design of high performance, energy efficient and self sustaining architecture on par with international standards. We strive to create designs and structures that aid society, increase usage of modern technology and inspire those around to improve the world.

We have successfully executed IT Parks, R&D centers, corporate interiors and even international schools. Some of the works that we have completed include the RBI Corporate Office in Bangalore, Symphony Life Science Studio in Hyderabad, Micromatic Machine Tools Pvt Ltd in Bangalore, Pai Kane Showroom in Goa and many more. Personally, the

most memorable project so far has been the Hindustan Unilever Research Center in Bangalore it was our first project after Collage was started and by far one of the most memorable and if I may add the corner stone to our success.

Some of our ongoing projects include the Aurobindo R&D Unit3 in Hyderabad, the Pai Kane Corporate Office in Goa, the Cricket House in Bangalore and numerous others. We have had projects almost all over India, right from Jamnagar and Mumbai to Bangalore and Hyderabad.

The journey so far has been pretty incredible. There have been a few hurdles, but far more successes than failures. Like life

itself, every profession has its ups and downs but we at Collage believe in learning from the downs and using the ups to climb higher.

My motivating force has so far been my passion that drives me to excel. You also need to keep in mind that an architect is an artist of dreams as he creates structures that people dream about.

As for the future I want to build an excellent profile.

To any young and upcoming architect I say to you – follow your heart, do everything you do with passion because it is passion that can drive you forward As told to LYNDON PINTO

Pai Kane Showroom

15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 31

She is the first librarian in Goa to earn a doctoral distinction, she is also the first librarian in Goa to receive the prestigious ‘Commonwealth Professional Fellowship Award’ by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission, United Kingdom for the year 2011

LADY POWER

DR. shivalli rao

There is a person for every book the best libraries in the world across Europe, including the British Library, Kings College Library, University of Cambridge etc. “Apart from visits to the libraries, I attended a lot of conferences, training sessions and workshops.”, explains Dr. Shivalli about her trip.

Libraries abroad are worlds apart from libraries in Goa, finds Dr. Shivalli, who goes on to explain, how she found them to be not just places where one can lend and borrow books. They are resource centers, they host exhibitions, lectures, information literacy programmes, have self service photocopiers and other world class features including online databases and digital

Dr. M.P Shivalli Rao, is taking the Parvatibai Chowgule College of Arts and Science library to new heights, finds ALISHA PATEL

Shivalli Rao

H

onest, Hardworking, Loving, and a woman who yearns for a better future is how Dr M. P Shivalli Rao chooses to describe herself. A librarian at the Parvatibai Chowgule College of Arts and Science, Dr. Shivalli has dedicated over twenty five years of her professional life towards creating a learning centre and an academic hub for the institution. Not only is she the first librarian in Goa to earn a doctoral distinction, she is also the first librarian in the state of Goa to receive the prestigious ‘Commonwealth Professional Fellowship Award’ by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission, United Kingdom for the year 2011.

Her journey with the Parvatibai Chowgule College of Arts and Science began in 1985, soon after completing her M.A in Economics and Masters in Library and Information Science, at the request of the then Principal Shirgaonkar. Though she initially wanted to join the IAS, fate took its course and she has been with 32 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

the college ever since. When she first joined the college, the library wasn’t as glamorous as it is today.

She worked tirelessly along with the college management to develop the library to create a fully fledged facility which would benefit both students and teachers. Being very eager to continue studying, Dr. Shivalli completed her PhD in Library and Information Science with a thesis on ‘The extracurricular reading habits of working women teachers in Goa’.

Her efforts to promote reading among women in the state and develop the library culture among Goans was rewarded with the ‘Commonwealth Professional Fellowship Award’, which is regarded as the most coveted fellowships by educationists in Commonwealth countries. “I was very fortunate to be the only Goan Librarian to have received this award.” says Dr. Shivalli.

As a part of the fellowship, Dr. Shivalli got a once in a lifetime opportunity to visit some of

She worked tirelessly along with the college management to develop the library to create a fully fledged facility which would benefit both students and teachers resources. They also have in house bookstores and cafeterias.

“Libraries abroad are very user friendly” states Dr. Shivalli Bringing a lot back to the table, Dr. Shivalli explains how the fellowship has enhanced her competence to design, deliver and sustain information literacy, an area which is yet to develop in India. Umaji Chowgule, Trustee of Chowgule Education Society has lent full support to Dr. Shivalli and has always encouraged her to implement change and bring about advanced technological

development, and under the leadership of Principal, Dr. R.V Gaonkar she hopes to make the Chowgule College library one of the most efficient information service providers in the country.

Opening up about some of her plans, she reveals that she not only wants to improve the infrastructure of the library, she wants to allow open access to the library, including 24x7 service and online databases.

An interesting idea she plans to introduce to the library is E-Shelves to create mini libraries for users.

As a woman, with two young daughters, Dr. Shivalli balances out her professional life and personal space very well, also generously devoting time to the South Goa Animal Welfare Trust, where she feeds and looks after a large number of animals. “When at work I am only a librarian; once home I am only a mother,” she states with the confidence of a well accomplished lady. It comes as no surprise that her hobbies include reading, but interestingly, Dr. Shivalli is also a plant lover.

As passionate as Dr. Shivalli is about the future of the Chowgule College library, she also has a lot of valuable suggestions to offer the government to encourage women in particular to take up reading. Central libraries she feels should offer crèche or child care services, which will allow women to leave their children at these centers while they avail of reading materials. Instead of having just two central libraries, the state should set up reading zones at prominent places across the state. Revealing her own plans for the future, Dr. Shivalli states that she is currently pursuing an MBA degree in hospitality management and using what she calls as the backbone of knowledge she has gained over the years, she wishes to join the hospitality industry and provide the best services to the industry, using information sciences

THINKING HAT

“The intellect is vagabond, and our system of education fosters restlessness. Our minds travel when our bodies are forced to stay at home. We imitate; and what is imitation but the travelling of the mind?” ralph waldo emerson

Collective Commons

Technology has democratized our life so much that it is easy to get the lifestyle that we desire now

Kailash Kattalay The Columnist is a tech guru and academician interested in organisational grooming

D

issatisfied with the present, we distract ourselves with various imitations of a life that we know is possible, but somehow find ourselves not living that life as we know we can. The list of the distractions is long. The point is that many of us are not satisfied with the way things are happening in our lives, and for good reason. But instead of solving the problems, we often distract ourselves with trivial pursuits, immerse ourselves in our work, or we find various ways to self-medicate in order to ease the pain of not having the pieces of our lives arranged in a way that makes us truly happy.

Or, if we’re angry enough to actually break our routines and take action, we usually protest (or lobby) to those “in power”, hoping for change instead of making that change happen ourselves.

At this moment, we have the power and the opportunity to

rebuild our lives, our societies, and our world. Never before have we had the ability to communicate and collaborate in an organized fashion, with most of humankind together, and all at the same time if we so choose. Never before have we had the ability to communicate and collaborate en masse thanks to Social Networking sites like Facebook, Twitter & Google +.

Another new and powerful capability that has only become possible recently, is crowd sourcing. For those having never heard of crowd sourcing, it is the ability to open up a situation to be tended to by a large group of people. As examples, crowd sourcing can be used to solve a problem, collect information, or to fund a project, and many other possibilities exist.

Never before have we been able to do this as a group of common citizens coming together until just recently.

Crowd sourcing allows for small amounts of effort by individuals to add up to large amounts of benefit related to the task at hand.

Anyone who uses the Internet for research has probably come across the information made available via Wikipedia. This is a great example of crowd sourcing the creation of a repository of reference information, and one that is freely available to all people.

Just as with the increase in communication capabilities for all of us, we must develop the skill of discerning good information from the not so good, the same is true with the information contained within Wikipedia itself.

As a resource tool, Wikipedia has become invaluable for many, and it is partly because it is self governing by peer-topeer moderation. As errant or

malicious information is added to the Wikipedia repository, it becomes obvious to others who are also maintaining the information, and corrections are made accordingly.

The key here is that we have a self-sustaining information system created and maintained by people co-operating together from various locations around the globe, crowd sourcing knowledge, which then further empowers the crowd.

What Does Collective Action Mean?

In order to understand the power of collective action we should make sure that we understand what is meant by the term “collective” as to how it relates to the actions we might take. For most people, there is likely a logical and intuitive understanding of what the term ‘collective’ means, but let us be sure that we have a clear understanding of the term.

According to Webster’s online: • denoting a number of persons or things considered as one group or whole.

• marked by a similarity among or with the members of a group.

• of, relating to, or being a group of individuals.

The power of humanity’s conscious collective actions will create multiples of return.

Meaning, that for every one measure of energy or effort we put in, we will get back some factor greater than one. For

instance, if you give me one apple and I give you two back, then the effort or measure you put in came back to you as more than you gave.

Many of us are familiar with the saying “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”. This is loosely known as emergence, where complex systems arise out of a multiplicity of simple interactions. It is a fascinating and observable fact that is present in both non-living and living systems in nature. Our collective human whole is much greater than the sum of it’s parts, and the potential of our collective cooperation, combined with the ever accelerating pace of technological advances that we are making, makes it highly likely to be sufficient enough to deal with all of the challenges humanity currently faces.

Right now, we as ‘common people’ of modern society have all of the tools we need to collectively become a player within the current ‘game’, or within the current systems of capitalism and democracy. It is so much easier now to design a better way of life.

We can certainly break the game and start over, too. Yet, is that really what is best for all?

Might we not be causing more harm than gain?

15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 33

CAMPUS GOA

BOOK SHELF

Saraswat Vidyalaya’s

Odyssey on 27th September

www.twitter.com/businessgoa

David Oates’

A Guide to Entrepreneurship A Guide to Entrepreneurship is a practical guide, packed with examples and case studies, demonstrating how (and how not) to make a small business work. The book will help readers decide whether this is a course they want to pursue, what skills and disciplines they will need to make a go of it, and what obstacles they will need to overcome along the way.

Odyssey, last year

Saraswat Vidyalaya’s Sridora Caculo College of Commerce and Management Studies has scheduled its 9th edition of its annual Management fest, ‘Odyssey’ from the 27th to the 29th of September 2012 at ESG Campal. Odyssey as the name suggests has been a journey which commenced in the year 2004 and has grown from strength to strength with every subsequent year since then and today is without doubt the biggest management fest held in the state.

Odyssey invites students from different parts of the country to test their management skills against the best talents in the country. The rounds are judged by some of the most reputed people from the corporate sector.

The event includes competitions in, Marketing Management, Human Resource Management, Finance Management, Business Quiz, Team Work and the Best Manager. One college will be crowned the winners of Odyssey A dance competition at Odyssey

2012 on the 29th of September 2012.

The past Odysseys have incorporated various business based themes and have attracted talents from some of the best colleges in India like Symbiosis College Pune, Christ’s College Bangalore, KLE Belgaum, MATs Raipur, SDM College Bangalore etc.

This year the event is set to get bigger and better with over 12 colleges from India participating. The theme for this year’s Odyssey is celebrating the spirit of being a champion.

The event is entirely organized by the Third year students of BBA and is a part of their learning in event management. There are various teams which are involved in organizing this complex event.

The teams include: a Marketing team, HR team, Round formulation team, Creative team and Logistics team. Each team coordinates with each other to make this event possible

Areas covered include: Avoiding the pitfalls of the “single-skill” entrepreneur Raising capital and managing cash Getting the market right Investing in new technology Publisher: Jaico Getting to grips with red tape Publishing Managing growth House

CROSSWORD 34 1

2

3

QUIZZARE

4

5 6

7

8

9 10

11

12

13

Across 1 – Christine ______, the current MD of the International Monetary Fund (7) 5 – Popular brand of international SIM cards (6) 7 – Watch company famous for its Eco Drive line of watches (7) 10 – Brand of Motorola mobile phones (4) 11 – The London Interbank Offered Rate is better known as _____ (5) 13 – A line of Android devices, this word also means “connection” (5) 14 – The central agency which conducts the Civil Services entrance examinations (1,1,1,1)

14

Down 2 – A famous Italian brand in highfashion apparel and accessories (6) 3 – The “Let’s go” car from Maruti Suzuki (4) 4 – The company which produces the Mercedes-Benz brand of cars (7) 6 – _______ Educational Series, famous for their GRE and other test preparation material (7) 7 – A leading glass-cleaner brand from Reckitt Benckiser (5) 8 – A diet soft drink from the Coca Cola Company (3) 9 – The person who started the slogan “Bye-Bye Bangalore, Hello Hyderabad” (surname only) (5) 12 – Return on Sales, in short (1,1,1)

answers to crossword 33 Across 1. GREECE 5 GPS 6 ARSENAL 7 ECHO 8 LODHA 9 MARS 12 DRAIN 13 L’OREAL 14 FLOOD Down 1 GLAXO 2 ESSILOR 3 CANADA 4 ASAHI 5 GLEANER 9 MARS 10 SSE 11 BIRO 12 DLF

34 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

LEGAL EAGLE

The Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 1999 were published under the notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Environment and Forests on 25.09.2000

Garbage Menace Goa’s local bodies have thrown caution to the winds even when the Courts have demanded a pro-active approach to the garbage issue

D Raunaq Rao The Columnist is a practicing advocate and takes keen interest in public affairs and socio-legal issues

The Order dated 11.08.2010 still continues to operate. While some Municipalities and Panchayats express total helplessness, others exuberate sheer lethargy completely innocuous about the cascading effect it has had on the economy.

estruction is the innate trait of a human being which is inextricably linked with its DNA. As man climbed the economical pyramid, he has, at the same pace distanced himself from the Earth, leaving behind him a trail of devastation in the name of progress, development and economic growth. This perhaps is the reason why humans qualify to be the most selfish of the species, for we only derive benefit out of our ecosystem, but give nothing back in return.

Development of any kind has to be sustainable. And by sustainability what one means to say is the sense of ‘peaceful co-existence’. Environmentalists and public-spirited persons of this country have time and again approached the Writ Courts seeking restoration of this lost feeling, to re-instil that diminished sense; And the Writ Courts have never disappointed such persons.

Many of us would feel enraged when Goa would be loosely referred to as an ‘overgrown village.’ However, it did not take much time for that rage to become realisation. The absence of a functional garbage disposal system has tormented every soul in the State. Yet there is very little effort from the Government and even lesser initiative from the people to bring in this missing functionality.

The Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 1999 were published under the notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Environment and Forests on 25.09.2000, filling in the vacuum that existed on account of absence of an effective set of rules in dealing

with garbage. The rules contemplate segregation of garbage into organic, inorganic, recyclables and hazardous wastes and then goes on to prescribe methods and standards for either recycling or disposal of each of such segregated wastes.

The non-compliance of these rules and its earlier orders, the Hon’ble High Court of Bombay at Goa taking suo moto notice of this issue registered the Suo Moto Writ Petition No. 2 of 2007 wherein it issued several continuing mandamus in order to monitor the progress and ensure the compliance of the rules.

However little or no compliance has been achieved. Be it lack of political will or lack of public spirit, consequently the result is for all to see and endure its stench.

Whilst municipalities and village panchayats continue to struggle for land fill sites, segregation spaces and land to set up composting units little or no heed has paid to see if and alternate system could be developed. One that would be a personalised garbage disposal system at the micro level. World over, household recycling of waste is given encouragement.

That way the exchequer saves on investing huge sums of public funds in acquiring lands and setting up of faculties in every town, city or village. Tersely said, increased public participation is seen as to the only solution to nip the problem in its bud.

However such innovations are difficult to penetrate into the parochial mindsets. Given the case of Goa, the scenario is grim and permissions to operate personal facilities are hard to get. It was the little David that slew the mighty Goliath, we

need to remind ourselves of that.

Instead what we ended up with were municipalities and village panchayats in non-compliance of the rules, faced with the possible contempt notices.

What has been most shocking is the role of the Government -- highly causal and indifferent.

Five years have elapsed since the taking of suo moto notice of the issue, and yet there seems to be no solution at hand. Despite being vested with the powers to supersede under the Panchayat Raj Act and to assume unto itself functions of a Panchayat, the Government has shown little interest. Besides allocation of funds there has been no intervention or prevailing upon, by the Government.

The proverbial ‘last straw’ came in form of the Order dated 11.08.2010, whereby the Hon’ble High Court of Bombay directed that none of the erring Municipalities and Panchayats would grant any new construction licenses without ensuring compliance to the rules and directions issued for waste management.

We are now in 2012, and the Order dated 11.08.2010 still continues to operate. Whilst some Municipalities and Panchayats express total helplessness, others exuberate sheer lethargy completely innocuous about the cascading effect it has had on the economy. With no new constructions coming up, the pressure on the existing infrastructure has increased exponentially with the real estate prices sky rocketing. Similarly, no new constructions means loss of livelihood for all those engaged in the construction industry

15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 35

reluctant entrepreneur

The Companies Act of 1956 sets down rules for the establishment of both public and private companies. The most commonly used corporate form is the limited company. A company is formed by registering the Memorandum and Articles of Association with the State Registrar of Companies

A Company or a Group?

R Blaise Costabir The Coumnist is a first-generation entrepreneur whose company manufactures water tanks

There is one bigger benefit. The consolidation will change the way the bank sees the Company, since all sales assets and liabilities are clubbed under one entity, a much stronger picture will emerge.

36 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

ecently, a friend of mine wanted some advice on merging his “partnership” firm with a “pvt ltd” company he owned. Apparently he owned half a dozen firms doing complimentary businesses except one. (He manufactured corrugated boxes in two factories, so two companies, the printing on the boxes was done by another, general printing was another company and he was also into construction through a separate entity). They all came under the ASHLEY GROUP of companies, but on paper none were connected apart from having the same or majority owner.

This situation reminded me of my thesis while at the Asian Institute of Management. In the 90’s a lot of company formation policy was guided by the subsidy policy or central excise rules in force. The company that employed me was no different.

We had at least 6 companies, all in place to ensure that the turnover did not cross the magical figure of “X” lacs which would mean paying central excise. We even started a new factory and had claimed subsidy by ensuring the ownership would not attract the clubbing provisions.

My studies at AIM (Asian Institute of Management) straddled the cusp of the changing economic scenario of India.

When I left India in 1990, it was a controlled economy or license raj, when I got back it was lassie faire, actually almost. While the Government policy changed and rules became less draconian, one would have expected industry to respond much faster. Yet twenty years after the policy changes the same mind set exists or is handed down, small is beautiful.

Since I was sponsored, my thesis “Strategy For XYZ”

The writer feels that having one company incorporated instead of multiple individual entities are better for consolidating a business’ operations and also helps in creating a good impression with your bankers

focused on the changing economic scenario and the major recommendation,related to this was that the Company should consolidate all the little companies into one large entity. The down side of this recommendation was the fact that the excise benefit would be lost. The benefits far outweighed the cons.

Imagine the costs saved. No need to pay the CA for six balance sheets, just one. Similarly you pay your consultant just once for filing your various returns. The

When we set up a new factory in Pune, we were either advised to set up a green field project or asked why we were setting up a division under the existing Goa unit. My recommendation to consolidate 20 years ago under the liberalisation policy which is more liberal today still holds good. The added advantage we got was the fact that our potential customers already connected us to the existing brand – we did not have to restart like a new entity.

It was with this background I advised Ashley of the ASHLEY

interaction with the bank reduces to 1/6, this saves time and the frustration of having funds in one account and a requirement in another. Administration, in terms of payroll, accounting and sales will reduce along stationary costs. The storage space required for six types of vouchers, bills etc. will obviously be cut.

There is one bigger benefit.

The consolidation will change the way the bank sees the Company, since all sales assets and liabilities are clubbed under one entity, a much stronger picture will emerge. The bank will be able to lend working capital much more easily. Rather than see 6 companies of less than Rs 50 lacs, it is looking at possibly Rs 2.5 crores. In the 90’s it was a radical recommendation for sure.

Today it would be like common sense, yet uncommon.

group to consolidate under a single company and portray a larger single entity which has multiple benefits and one which is not a slave to archaic government policy. Go ahead try it, you have nothing to lose but a few companies

Suggested Reading: Any book on strategy by Michael Porter. Michael Porter is the author of 18 books and numerous articles including Competitive Strategy, Competitive Advantage, Competitive Advantage of Nations, and On Competition.

HR MANTRAS

www.twitter.com/businessgoa

Focus on praising people and helping them find better ways, when things go wrong.

Praise regularly.

Reprimand rarely.

A One of the key tasks of a team leader is to seek out examples of excellent performance and then praise team members for it

njali tells a story about her manager, Ravi, when a customer complained about a lack of response from the hotel in Colva where they worked.

The customer had sent a fax from Dubai seeking confirmation of a reservation. Anjali was about to end her shift and found that the computer system freezing up on her. So she left the fax to be dealt with by a colleague about to come on shift. Five days later there was a second fax from the customer stating: “Given your failure to respond to my previous fax, I have made a reservation elsewhere and no longer require the one I thought I had made with your hotel.”

When Ravi saw this he simply drew an unhappy face on the customer’s fax, signed the drawing, and passed it back to Anjali (along with a copy of his response to the customer).

“We knew we had made a major mistake and lost vital business and customer goodwill during difficult times,” explained Anjali, “but Ravi did not say a word. He just drew this miserable face and passed it back to us. We

knew we had let him down and had upset him.”

It was a rare reprimand and one given with the lightest of touches. When people make mistakes there is no need to bear heavily down on them as some bosses do with their storming, shouting, witchhunts, and severe warnings. These bosses create a culture of intimidation and fear in which mistakes are never made for the simple reason that frontline people never make decisions – they leave them to the bosses.

Too much reprimanding leads to defenses being erected and failure not being admitted.

People become hard because they see their bosses as hard.

This is counter-productive.

Managers who do the business, prefer to focus on praising people, while still accepting that they occasionally make mistakes. The time to reprimand someone is not when a mistake has been made, but when they don’t learn any lessons from that mistake.

Raj Sulakhe is the admin head at a multinational based in Goa. When a mistake is made he

always asks his team, “What did I do wrong?” He never blames the team or its individual members.

Instead, he looks at himself and asks, “What could I have done better to avoid the team making this mistake?”

One of the key tasks of a team leader is to seek out examples of excellent performance and then praise team members for it. Most people welcome praise provided that it is sincere, genuine, and reflects some significant aspect of their work. Nobody likes false praise or bosses who use superficial praise as a cheap motivational device.

Nevertheless, it is not difficult to seek out opportunities to give genuine praise and this is what the best team leaders do.

In addition to seeking out good performance, they also identify the characteristics they like about people and praise them for these.

A kind word of praise for the good things someone has done is far better than continually reprimanding them for the things that they have not done

15 AUGUST 2012

Business Goa 37

GUEST COLUMN

“In a free enterprise, the community is not just another stakeholder, but is, in fact, the very purpose of its existence” jamsetji tata

How to be a socially responsible corporate Swatee Rane The Writer is a Company Secretary and a practicing Chartered Accountant

J

amsetji Tata had once commented, “In a free enterprise, the community is not just another stakeholder, but is, in fact, the very purpose of its existence.”

To the layman, CSR includes the social and community initiatives of the corporates, however the meaning of CSR is not limited to only this, it is definitely much more. Only by making generous donations, an ‘unscrupulous’ corporate cannot be said to be socially responsible. It is the noble initiatives of the corporates which are directed in making it a good citizen that determine whether it is socially responsible or not. A corporate’s healthy and transparent governance practices, ethical conduct of business, effective conservation of scarce resources and efficient management of waste, tell us whether the corporate is a ‘good citizen’!

CSR gained ground in the 1990s when the German generic pharmaceutical company, Betapharm decided to implement CSR. However this concept was first introduced in 1953 by William J. Bowen, in his publication “Social Responsibilities of the Businessman”. In recent years, CSR has become a fundamental business practice. Companies have now explored that the impact of their activities on the economic, social and environmental sector directly affect their relationships with investors, employees and customers.

In India, traditionally businesses have been socially 38 Business Goa

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Indulging in corporate social responsibility does not end at giving donations and sponsorships, it mandates you to be a “good citizen” responsible, and some of the business houses have made laudable efforts on this front.

Prominent Business houses such as Tata, Wipro, Infosys, ITC, have led the way in making ‘Social Responsibility’ an intrinsic part of their business plans.

These companies have been deeply involved in praise-worthy social development initiatives for the public.

Jamshedpur, one of the major city in Jharkhand which is also known as Tata Nagar was carved out from a jungle a century ago. And Tata’s CSR activities in Jamshedpur have done amazing social work for the betterment of health and education facilities in this city.

Wipro’s “Applying Thought in School” initiative has engaged schools, educators, social organisations to bring about educational reform in the country.

And the “Eco Eye” program incorporates better ecological balance in each and every project that Wipro undertakes.

Infosys bagged the prestigious CSR award for Project Genesis at the 8th National Outsourcing Association Awards in London. The project aims at improving the employability of students from Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns in India through focused training programs which includes two modules: “Language Enhancement” and “Analytical skills”. The “Language Enhancement” part improves written and spoken communication capabilities, and “Analytical skills” improves the aptitude capabilities of the students.

ITC won TERI Corporate award for social responsibility for its exemplary initiatives in implementing integrated watershed development programmes.

The much appreciated “e-Chaupal” program of ITC, enables small and marginalised farmers in rural India, to access updated information of market prices and weather conditions, helping them to be competitive by enhancing their farm productivity and commanding better prices for their farm products. Under “Social and Farm Forestry Program”, ITC procures wood pulp for its paper and paperboards business from renewable plantations cultivated by tribals and farmers on their private waste lands.

In spite of having such life size successful examples, CSR in India is still in a very nascent stage.

CSR activities lose their relevance, when they are not focused and are directionless.

Without a well-defined strategy, CSR cannot become an effective tool for contributing to the social and economic development.

Here is a Quick Test for Indian companies to check out their Social Responsibility Quotient: 1) Does the company care for all it’s stakeholders?

A company’s stakeholders include shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers, project affected people, society at large etc. And the company is responsible to all these stakeholders. Does the company actively engage with all its stakeholders, keep them informed of inherent risks and tries to mitigate their risks so as to provide for their welfare and well-being?

2) Is the company functioning ethically?

A company can be said to be responsible socially when it does not engage in any abusive, unfair, corrupt and anti-competitive

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business practices. So, the test shall be to determine whether the corporate governance practices of the company are based on ethics, transparency and accountability?

3) Does the company respect it’s Workers’ Rights and provide for their welfare?

The workplace that is provided to the employees must be safe, hygienic and humane, which upholds the dignity of the employees. Employees should have access to training and development of necessary skills for career advancement, on an equal and non-discriminatory basis. Whether the company encourages freedom of association, has an effective grievance redressal system, ensures that it does not employ child or forced labour and provides and maintains for equality of opportunities ?

4) Does the company have Respect for Human Rights?

Companies should respect human rights for all. Whether the company avoids human rights abuses by it or by any third party, indicates how responsible it is to the society.

5) Does the company Respect the Environment?

Companies should manage natural resources in a sustainable manner , adopt cleaner production methods, and promote efficient use of energy and employ environment friendly techniques. Does the company respond pro-actively to the challenges of climate change and does it take all measures to prevent pollution? Does the Company take effective steps to manage, reduce and recycle waste?

6) Does the company indulge in Activities for Social and Inclusive Development?

Companies should undertake activities for economic and social development of communities, in the vicinity of their operations and further in other geographical areas. Does the company indulge in activities which include education, skill building for livelihood of people, health, cultural and social welfare etc., for the less privileged?

Your goal should be to involve the fewest number of people while still considering the quality of the decision along with the support that people will give it. Ask: “Do we have enough people to make a good choice?

Will others have to be involved to gain their commitment?”

LOVE FOR BUSINESS

The Decisions that we make The columnist feels that a business professional has to be decisive, no matter what the consequence of that action be

T Swapnil Kamat The Columnist is a corporate trainer and manages his own consultancy www.workbetterindia.com

Some decisions work in your favour, some don’t.

We as business professionals are always hoping that we get more decisions right than wrong

he reasons why a business or a professional succeeds or fails are based on the decisions taken.

And not on how smart or stupid the people are. Business requires decisions to be taken at all times. Some work in your favour, some don’t. We as business professionals are always hoping that we get more decisions right than wrong and the ones we get wrong don’t end up sinking our businesses and careers.

A few thoughts: 1. Every decision taken by a person (whether on marriage or a business deal) seems like it’s the right one at that time. With time, we figure out whether the decision worked well or not. This is true – both for really big decisions (like starting a new business, acquiring a new company) and the small ones (transacting with a certain new client, hiring a new person). No one ever makes a decision expecting it to be wrong. In hindsight, we are able to analyze our decisions much better. Often, we look stupid. But the key is to learn from decisions that have gone right and even more from those that went wrong.

2. No two decisions are ever the same. It’s difficult to apply the same yardstick or learning from one decision on to the next one. For instance, if one new client transaction has gone wrong, it’s silly to say we will stop working with new clients.

Instead, study what specifically went wrong and take more informed decisions in the future.

3. Don’t celebrate or curse yourself too much when it comes to your decisions. In business, the outcome also often depends upon a lot of external factors that are out of your control.

4. Don’t be scared to take decisions. I personally hate inaction. Whether you are an entrepreneur, boss, subordinate or a CEO, you will not make much progress if you are indecisive and sit on issues indefinitely.

5. Calculate the downside of your decisions. It is difficult to have a formulaic calculation for each of your decisions. But make sure you research and analyze in detail and estimate the damage it will have on your bank account.

6. You never really know whether the decision you

have made is the right one. I was a marketing professional at a Fortune 50 company, then decided to turn travel entrepreneur and finally found my calling in the Executive Education space. Who knows whether the decisions I have taken are the right ones? There will never be a perfect answer to that question. So don’t look for one. Concentrate on what you believe is the right thing to do at that time.

As a business person, you will never get all your decisions right. It’s impossible. But some people rue, cry, crib about a few bad decisions and go into a shell they never come out of. Like a person failing at a business venture and then never trying again. On the other hand, there are people who fail, get beaten black and blue in business and yet decide to boldly take new decisions – hoping that this time they would be right.

Decide which of the two you want to become. That’s a decision only you can make

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Business Goa 39

WHAT’S UP GOA

Tata Crucible Corporate Quiz on Sept 13th Tata Crucible, considered to be India’s toughest business quiz, will be held on 13 September at NIO’s Cardium Hall. This is the fifth year that

the quiz will be held in the state. Participation is free for a two-member team from the same organisation. For details > www.tatacrucible.com

Goa Marriott Resort’s Special Offer The Marriott has tempting offers across their facilities for this month and the next. Check them out.

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his August and September, the place to be at is the Goa Marriott Resort & Spa! There’s loads on offer for you and your family, be it soothing therapies at the celebrated Quan Spa, great food and beverage at its award-winning restaurants or a memorable stay at the beautiful waterfront property.

For the rains which can be harsh on your skin, indulge in the specially designed spa session Revive – a set of treatments which include a sensual Milk Bath for the feet, an exfoliating Orange Green Tea scrub and a revitalizing Aroma Fusion Massage for a complete revival of your senses. For a more holistic experience, avail of the Spa Retreat package and enjoy an intimate stay for two in the bargain – there’s nothing like a bit of indulgence for you and your significant other to rekindle the spark.

Weekends are a sizzling affair at the hotel! The entertainment quotient gets turned up with intense Jazz Fridays and pulsating Saturday Party Nites in AZ.U.R – while Sunday offers you a chance to unwind with a choice of TWO brunches. Choose between the usual high-wired Sunday Live Brunch at WFTB or if you prefer a quieter affair, the Oriental Sunday Brunch at Wan Hao, the newest entrant on the scene!

Or enquire about the many special food festivals that are always happening at one of the restaurants – like Incredible India which showcases the culinary diversity of the nation through 12 days of buffet extravaganzas painstakingly crafted by its team of dedicated chefs..

And if you would like to experience all of the above, still get some quality time with your family and yet get a bit of work done, check in on the weekend with the high-value Absolute Escapade package – with all meals included and complimentary internet when you 40 Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

Spend quiet weekends

Party nights at AZ. U. R

Revive at Quan Spa

Sunday brunch at Wan Hao

sign up for Marriott Rewards, the value-packed loyalty program of Marriott International.

Or you could opt for the You Play, We Pay offer available across all Marriott properties, where guests can book up to three nights stay at any of the Marriott properties in India and earn a maximum credit of Rs.3000. You can choose to spend this on a series of exciting facilities such as room upgrades, scrumptious meals at any restaurant, cocktails at the bar, surfing the web with high speed Internet in the hotel premises, unwinding at the spa with soothing massage treatments and other in room facilities like mini bar, phone calls made from the hotel room, room service and laundry facilities.

For details regarding any or

all of the above, please call 0832246 3333

The Voice of Business in Goa

CII programme on recent changes relevant and useful for all in service tax Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Goa will organise a one day programme on August 24 covering the recent changes introduced in the context of the Negative List.

This is to appraise participants with the latest negative list regime in Service Tax from July 1, 2012 which has completely transformed the taxation of services in India, and having a widespread impact on the industry. The programme is designed and would be found

those working in the areas of finance, accounts, taxation and executives in other key functional areas who have service tax issues. The programme would cover Negative List: concept and background, definition of service and what it means now, exemptions and their relevance, place of provision of services rules, cenvat credit and related issues in the context of negative list, procedural and compliance issues

Samriddhi 2011 brought a new insight into the rural markets of India. There has been a growing emphasis on the need and importance of the empowerment of rural India over the last couple of years, due to which the economy has been showing remarkable growth.

Innovate @ Samriddhi 2012 The three-day conclave at Goa Institute of Management will bring experts on innovation to our state

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he annual national business conference hosted by the Goa Institute of Management, Samriddhi, aims to provide a platform to participants from organizations all over the country, to come together to discuss issues of social, political and economic relevance, and find viable and sustainable solutions to these for holistic development.

This year, Samriddhi will celebrate ‘Innovation’ in each of these fields. Dr. Manmohan Singh declared 2010-20 the decade of innovation and this year Samriddhi will try and uncover the business and the madness behind innovation.

Samriddhi 2012 is a three day long event which kicks off with a business conference. This conference will host dignitaries from diverse fields with speakers like ad-guru Alyque Padamsee.

The esteemed panellists also include Kumar Ankit, Cofounder and Executive Director at Green Leaf Energy Private Limited, an entrepreneur who is working towards exploring renewable sources of energy and medicinal plants, Stephen Remedios Former Head,

SOME OF THE SPEAKERS @ SAMRIDDHI

Stephen Remedios Innovation in garnering consumer insights

S L Ganapathi Kumar Ankit Innovation in logistics Innovation in ensuring sustainable development

Customer Marketing, HUL, and S L Ganapathi (GE), an alumni of IIM-Ahmedabad, who has been in the shipping and transportation industry for over three decades and is a well known expert in Supply Chain Management.

Samriddhi, on the second day opens up to events being conducted on campus which sees participation from business schools like the IIMs, NITIE, XIMB, FMS, KJ Somaiya, Welingkar, among others.

The competitions include ‘Nivesh’ which is an online mock trading game that will explore the trading skills of the

17,18,19 August participants by tracking prices on the real-time market, ‘PosInnovo’ is a marketing event based on positioning strategies and includes quizzes, silent ad making and strategy formulation.

‘Chitravali’ is a photography event, the theme of which is ‘Jugaad -- Creative Innovation in Business’. This gives participants a chance to showcase creative innovative ways through photographs. ‘Roopantar’ is a video-making in a live business situation and ‘HR Veda’ is an article writing competition

Global Goan Day at The Grand Hyatt, Goa 7:00 pm – 12:00 midnight 20 at The Dining Room and Chulha Experience the rich food traditions from the former Portuguese colony, now a state of India - Goa. We bring forth the Goan charm with Apa de Camarao, Ambaleachem sason, Patoleo, Ale Bele and our special Portuguese Egg Tart along with the Goan all time favourites Choris-Panv, Sannas, Vindaloo, and Bebinca. Indulge.

August

Alyque Padmasee’s keynote address

17

August

With his lithe mind, this septuagenarian not only conquered the media world but also politics, literature, theatre and education.

With significant contributions in each of these fields, Alyque Padamsee has led more than just a Double Life (his bestselling autobiography). Known as the ‘Brand Father of Indian Advertising’ he has built more than a hundred brands.

The creator of Lalitaji for Surf, Cherry Charlie for Cherry Blossom Shoe Polish, the MRF Muscle Man, the Liril girl in the waterfall, the Kamasutra couple, Hamara Bajaj, TV Detective Karamchand, the Fair & Handsome brand, to name a few.

He was instituted into the world of theatre by his elder brother Sultan, at a very young age.

He went on to become the “Advertising Man of the Century”.

He brought about a revolution in the Indian advertising fraternity.

With a swoosh of his magic wand he re-wrote the fate of a loss making ad agency, Lintas and made it one of the top ad agencies in the country. He worked from the minds of the consumers and gave them what they wanted to hear.

The ‘wow-waa’ effect, wow for catching attention and waa for the public response, was his tool for spinning some of the best advertisements that ran for eons and ensured that the brand was engraved in the minds of the viewers. His achievements also ran into other domains. He gave an unforgettable performance as Mohammad Ali Jinnah in Sir Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi.

A Padmashree and Karmaveer Puraskaar awardee also worked as Communications Advisor to Chandrababu Naidu the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh State 15 AUGUST 2012 Business Goa

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BON APPÉTIT

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Raunaq Rao goes to his usual haunt in the quiet lanes of Fontainhas – for some fish, caju feni and a little bit of Panjim’s nostalgia

Soak in a little bit of Panjim Inn you!

Quiet chatter at Panjim Inn

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The courteous staff and the restaurateur Ajit Jack Sukhija make sure, no palette leaves unsatisfied

estled in Fontainhas, the latin quarter of the city is the landmark heritage hotel, Panjim Inn. Although in the midst of action, its open air garden spaces allow you to have your share of peace and quietness, just as you order a pot of hot coffee. Its the place you can catch a quick grub, sandwiches or two and if you have some time on your hands then the mixed veggie pakoras are a must try.

First impressionists like myself, get carried away with the finely maintained antique Portuguese furniture and the way it’s jelled in so perfectly with the contemporary times. The rustic look, antller horn trophies and

15 AUGUST 2012

impeccable spread of specialities from Goan populars like Cafreal and Reichado, to Indian, Continental and Chinese. From the fragrant Prawn Biryani and Butter Chicken to Chicken Hakka Noodles, there’s consistency in taste every single time. And if you are a vegan then you’re in for some good amount of tummy pampering too. Not to mention the desserts, be it banana fritters with vanilla ice-cream or just simply Crème Caramel they know how to please you.

The courteous staff and the restaurateur, Ajit Jack Sukhija make sure, no palette leaves unsatisfied

Kingfish in green masala

Crispy fried king prawns

42 Business Goa

art on the walls strike a stark contrast just enough to distract you from the mundane.

It’s my favorite joint not just for those famished late afternoons post rising of the Court when I’d sit down for an evening café and grub, but also for those lazy Sunday lunches. Besides having a regular menu, Panjim Inn also have their specials!

Fresh seafood like calamari, tiger prawns, lobsters, crabs, snappers – you name it. All that with your choice of preparation.

Every time I’m there, for me, it is their in-house Cashew feni over some prawns in green sauce and the Kingfish Tandoori. A menu that lays down for you, an

GOABUZZ

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Agnelo and Francis Braganca open Hilton’s first DoubleTree in India at Arpora Hilton Worldwide opened the newlyrenovated, upscale, full-service DoubleTree by Hilton Goa-ArporaBaga with an exclusive party. Several regulars on Goa’s social circuit were present at the soiree hosted by Agnelo M. Braganca, chairman and managing director, Riviera De Goa Resorts and Hotels Private Limited, and Francis Braganca, director, Riviera de Goa Resort and Hotels Private Limited.

Also present at the launch were Martin Rinck, president - Asia Pacific, Hilton Worldwide, and Lenny Menezes, chairman – India, Hilton Worldwide.

Rohit Bajpai

Rajesh Dempo

Noel de Sousa

Nitin Kunkolienkar

Ralph de Sousa

Stefan Radstrom

Rohan Khaunte

Natasha Viega

Andrea Maganlal

Antonio Sabido Costa

Dr Bossuet Afonso

Katia Braganca

Dr Modassir

Aloo Gomes Pereira

Kezya Braganca

Tablic Veljee

Darryl Pereira

Tony Dias

Neelima and Suraj Morajkar

Lenny Menezes

Melanie Braganca

Francis and Agnelo Braganca

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Martin Rinck

Owned by Riviera De Goa Resorts and Hotels Private Limited and managed by Hilton Worldwide, DoubleTree

by Hilton Goa-Arpora-Baga is ensconced in a quiet setting. The 104-room hotel is located centrally just a few kilometres from the picturesque Baga and Anjuna beaches and in the heart of the popular shopping, dining and entertainment districts. The Saturday Nite Bazaar and Splash Down Water Park are both within walking distance from the hotel, and the Anjuna Flea Market is also close, making the hotel a comfortable and convenient base from which to explore the breathtaking coastline of North Goa

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Siddharth Zantye installed President of Rotary Club Panaji Riviera Siddharth Zantye was installed as President of Panjim’s youngest Rotary Club, Panaji Riviera.

A businessman whose brand Zantye’s Cashewnuts are market leaders in the sector has ambitious plans for community service. The AGM of the club and installation was hosted at Hotel Fidalgo, recently

Deepak Bandekar Shashikala Kakodkar

Virgil Velho

Prasad Pawar

Veronica Velho

Rajesh Salgaonkar

Dr Suresh Idnani

Praveen Zantye

Raja Melvani

Vishnu Tarcar

Shiva Naik

Angad Singh

Dr Mahesh Pai

Abhijeet Shetye

Raghu Shetiye

Pradeep Dhuri

Clayton D’Souza

Parag Sardessai

Yogesh Kulkarni

Madhavi Shetye

Chandan Bandekar

Jeet Tolani

Pallavi Salgaocar Paresh Sawardekar Christina D’Souza

Siddharth Zantye Nitin Kenkre

Goa Management Association hosts its annual BizQuiz

Anand Naik

Debashish Patnaik

Ashok Chowgule

Annirudha Sengupta

V Gaitonde

Ameya Mardolker

Anand Babu

B Naveen Kumar

Rajiv D’Silva

Binayak Datta

Suresh Zantye Dr Shekhar Shirwoikar Victor Albuquerque

As part of its annual knowledge-series, Goa Management Association under the able stewardship of its Chairman, Anand Naik hosted what is now an annual Biz Quiz at Panaji. Quizzing teams from across the nation spanning top corporates vied for the top position which was clinched by B Naveen Kumar and Anand Babu of Sai Mitra/ICRA Hyderabad.

Quizmaster Rajiv D’Silva posed various toughnuts to the quizzers in a long drawn finals after 6 of the 43 teams participating had qualified. “The idea behind the quiz is to initiate management knowledge via the medium of an edu-taining exercise, and we have been largely successful over the last two years,” said Anand Naik. President of GMA, Ashok Chowgule congratulated the participants and gave away the prizes

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Business Goa 45

NEWSMAKERS

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Sagar Kurade is Chairman of AIFPA-North Zone

Ashank Desai elected to the Executive Committee of GMA

Sagar A. Kurade was recently appointed as Chairman, North Zone of All India Food Processors Association (AIFPA).

The association is India’s leading Industry association for Food Processing sector. Sagar is already an executive committee member of CIFTI–FICCI and also currently serves as Vice President of Association of Food Scientist and Technologist. He is based in Delhi and is the Managing Director of Suman Project Consultants Pvt. Ltd. which provides industrial and technical advisory to food processing and agri-infrastructure projects in India and abroad.

In the recently held elections to the Executive Committe of the Goa Management Association, veteran IT guru Ashank Desai was elected under the Institutional Category. After working with Godrej and Boyce for 6 years, Desai co-founded Mastek GmbH. Desai is an expert in specific functional area: Planning & strategy, corporate governance initiatives and active in other CSR initiatives of Mastek. He is the Founder of NASSCOM and served as its Chairman. He also serves various institutions and companies in an advisory capacity. Some of them being IvyCap Ventures, Keystone Solutions Private Limited, System Task Group International (India) Pvt. Ltd. and Info Tech Corporation of Goa Ltd. Desai holds a Post-graduation in Mechanical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai and Post-graduation from IIM, Ahmedabad.

Sayiprakash Raikar installed as President of Rotary Club of Panaji Owner of Bhavana Earthmovers, Sayiprakash Raikar was recently installed as the President of Rotary Club of Panaji. A hands-on business person, Sayi, as he is known, has plans to do exemplary community service at his club. The first of which was a schools quiz held to celebrate the Olympics. He has also a host of social service initiatives that he is putting into action supported by a board that comprises of some of the top professionals and businesspersons from Panjim. He also supports two schools back at his native village near Karwar.

Caculo Mall’s Westside awarded

Sujay Gupta is editor of Goa’s new weekly The Goan on Saturday Former editor of Gomantak Times and Herald, Sujay Gupta is the editor of the newly launched weekly The Goan on Saturday. Sujay has been associated with NDTV 24X7 and a host of other publications including The Telegraph and Times Of India.

Talking about the launch of Goa’s latest weekly publication, Sujay said “The Goan is a product from our land and for our people.

It seeks to redefine journalism by making it more relevant, more real and above all ‘game changing’. The Goan does not seek to compete but to compliment other publications in giving all those who live in Goa and who have Goa in their hearts, a paper that ensures comprehensive reading”. The weekly is owned

by Fomento Publications.

quiz

38

Meghna Caculo

Shefali Caculo

Goa’s first Mall – Caculo Mall was the pioneer in introducing the mall culture to Goans with innumerable brands coupled with family entertainment centre, food court, fun and convenience under one roof.

One of Caculo Mall’s anchor store – Westside, in a record breaking time, has been awarded ‘Best Store’ in India for sales, service and overall performance recently. The award for the ‘No.1 Store in India in Franchise Category’ was awarded at a glittering function at the Leela in Mumbai recently. Westside is a Trent (Tata Retail Enterprise) outlet, which is part of a chain of departmental stores having pan India presence, and known for its quality, service and economically priced apparels, home décor items, perfumes, other household items, shoes, cosmetics, accessories and jewellery, artefacts, etc, and has the most attractive and affordable price structure. Under the able guidance of the Directors of Caculo group, Meghna Caculo and Shefali Caculo, the store has achieved this success in a short span of time.

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1. Which business thinker has written the book ‘Blink’?

2. Which Goan businessman is the President of Goa Management Association?

3. In management jargon what do the words MBWA expand to?

4. Who founded the Central Bank of India?

5. Which Indian company’s slogan is ‘Rise’?

6. Identify the businessperson in the picture Answers to BG Quiz 37 1. 1969 2. Nissan 3. British East India Company 4. IBM 5. Scrabble 6. Cadillac Email your entries to businessgoa.media@gmail.com First all correct entry will get 1 year’s subscription to Business Goa

15 AUGUST 2012

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