India Empire December 2019

India-Diaspora, Diplomatic, Business and Political Connectivity

INDIA

EMPIRE

Editor’s Desk An investment in knowledge pays the best interest

T

—Benjamin Franklin

he observation of 18th century American polymath Benjamin Franklin on knowledge will continue to ring true across every age and era. As a writer, philosopher, politician, scientist, inventor, diplomat and more, Franklin understood with clarity the importance of education. So tall was his stature that writer Walter Isaacson described Franklin as “the most accomplished American of his age, and the most influential in inventing the type of society America would become.”

One man who knows a thing or two about imparting knowledge in India is on our cover—Dr Sandeep Sancheti. Known as an Institution Builder, Dr Sancheti who did a B.Tech from the Regional Engineering College (NITW today) in Warangal, M.Sc (Engineering) from the Delhi College of Engineering (DTU today) and a Ph.D from Queens University in Belfast, U.K., is the current Vice Chancellor of the SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST). In his distinguished career, he’s also served as President of the Manipal University at Jaipur, Director at the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Delhi, and Director at the NITK, Surathkal. He has also been Director in charge at the School of Planning and Architecture in Delhi, NIT Tiruchirapally, NIT Calicut, and Mentor Director at NIT Goa, NIT Puducherry and NIT Sikkim.

In 2018-19 he was President of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), a prestigious body that brings under its aegis all Indian universities— conventional, open, deemed, state, central, private—and institutes of national importance. In addition to Indian universities, the AIU includes 13 universities and institutions from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nepal, Thailand, UAE and U.K., nations that are associate members of the AIU. Inspiration comes in many forms. Outside the sphere of education and business—topics on which we’re carrying several items—philanthropy does inspire. American historian Mary Ritter Beard said that “the results of philanthropy are always beyond calculation.” Indeed they are. Washington D.C.based Indian American Sonny Kakkar bought an old FedEx truck, painted it orange, and now operates it as a ‘Seva Truck’, sending out free meals to local communities, including schools and work organizations, in need. Kakkar’s philosophy is simple—he hopes that there won’t be a need for such a truck going forward since he believes that society would learn to reach out on its own to one another, especially to those marginalized. If that happens, hunger would meet its end. His initiative over the last three years has expanded to feed over 20,000 people, an increase of 30 per cent since he ventured out.

Hope you have a good time navigating through our magazine. Have a great New Year ahead.

Sayantan Chakravarty sayantanc@gmail.com www.indiaempire.com

Volume 15 No. 7 December 2019 www.indiaempire.com RNI No.: DELENG/2005/16693 GLOBAL ADVISORY BOARD

Dr Rami Ranger, Dr Kamalanathan Sappani, Mr Mridul Pathak, Ms Priya Tandon Editor Sayantan Chakravarty Consulting Editor Yogesh Sood (Business and Commerce) Sipra Das (Photography) Kul Bhushan Jayant Borkar (Mumbai Affairs) Sanjay Sharma (BJP Affairs) Paras Ramoutar (Caribbean Affairs) Vishnu Bisram (New York) Premchand Ramlochun (Mauritius) Liladhar J. Bharadia (Kenya) Jay Banerjei (Toronto) Head—Art and Print Jaydev Bisht Additional Contributions From Archana Sharma, Bharat Upadhyay, Yogi Ashwini Registered Office: N-126, II Floor, Greater Kailash I, New Delhi - 110 048.

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Sayantan Chakravarty is in a select group of 12 writers alongside Nobel Laureate William Butler Yeats, RK Narayan (Padma Vibhushan and Sahitya Award winner), journalist and poet Walt Whitman, writer Saki (Hector Hugh Munro), poet Nissim Ezekiel (Sahitya Akademi Awardee), writer Jerome K Jerome (author of Three Men in a Boat), poet Edward Lear, Roald Dahl (16th on Time Magazine’s list of greatest British writers) and others chosen by Scholastic Education to promote advanced English literature for schools worldwide.

Sayantan Chakravarty’s stories featured in Best of Indian Express of 25 years and Best of India Today’s 25 years.

cONTeNTS 06

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SRM ....................................................................... 06 Institute of excellence

INFRASTRUCTURE .............................................. 24 Huge spends in offing, plus Jewar airport

UPCOMING UNIVERSITIES .................................. 11 India’s new academic hubs

RAJASTHAN ........................................................ 26 Large hotel chains eye India’s western state

TECHNOLOGY ...................................................... 16 The rise of InterraIT

SEVA TRUCK ........................................................ 20 Free meals in DC

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Cover Story—vICe CHANCeLLor INtervIeW

Interview with Dr Sandeep Sancheti Vice Chancellor, SRM Institute of Science and Technology

“Raising bar of quality education” Yogesh Sood, India Empire Magazine’s Consulting Editor (Business), interviews Dr Sandeep Sancheti, Vice Chancellor of the SRM Institute of Science and Technology

SRM Institute of Science and Technology won seven awards in the last two months. Can you elaborate on this success achievement?

SRMIST has won not only seven but many more awards in the last two months, the latest being for our contribution in engaging and mobilizing youth to prevent and control HIV/AIDS for the National Aids Control Program. This was awarded by the National Aids Control Organization, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. But the most important award we received in the last two months is the ‘University of the Year’ award presented by FICCI for our overall performance in Governance, Curriculum & Pedagogy, Infrastructure, Student Employability, Collaborative Initiatives, Research, Patents etc. Some of the other awards that we received are new and have been established for the first time by the Government of India such as the ‘One Student One Tree’ award. This was given in appreciation for having planted over 50,000 saplings in 26 villages. We are also part of the Swachhata campaign and drives such as “Swachhata Hi Seva” and “Unnat Bharat” programs done through NCC and NSS activities where we were rated best in India by achieving first rank in India in 2019. We also bagged the Clean and Smart Campus Awards with the third rank for implementing digital technologies on our campus. There are about 25 items in this category such as smart street lighting, recycling water, solar generation of energy and many other similar facilities. These awards were attained because of our continuous efforts. One of the other distinguished awards that SRMIST won is the STEM Impact award, a research award given for technology transfer. Only four institutions two from CSRI and one IIT were part of it.

We received these distinctions because of the quality of the research undertaken by our faculty and students. The latest feather in our cap is a research paper “The GenomeAsia 100K Project enabling genetic discoveries across Asia” published in Nature Journal. Awards are also received by our faculty in their individual capacities and for joint work throughout the year.

Additionally, SRMIST enjoys a very high ranking and rating 6

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both by national and international agencies like NIRF, NAAC, ABET, IET, THE, QS etc. SRMIST is a Category I university with a 12 B status given by UGC and enjoys a higher degree of academic and administrative freedom as well.

What is your take on the significance of research?

Research is the most defining aspect of a university today.

It drives new knowledge thereby the excellence of the university. Research and teaching being conjoined twins help each other including feeding each other. It is significant because of the ranking and ratings that are highly prevailing under the current dispensation of the university system. All of us are directly trying to feed into research as it aids in the position of the University’s ranking nationally and globally. It helps us do something for the needy, society and the industry. It has therefore become an essential ingredient for all institutional activities. The Indian universities have taken a cue from the western or advanced institutions where they have excelled because of research. Keeping this in mind, SRMIST has created many centers for promoting and supporting research. Those include the establishment of Research Institutions, seed grant money for research, and deputing faculty outside India for research under the scheme called Faculty Abroad Program. Similarly, faculties are sent to the industry under the FIIP scheme to get acquitted with the industry, their problems, and also aids in finding solutions. Research is also undertaken in the form of patents. SRMIST has excelled in this aspect with around 280 patents filed by us, including foreign and national patents. Today we are one of the top performers in terms of publications in the country.

We also have attracted grants to the tune of Rs.20 million USD from external agencies. Therefore, SRMIST is a front runner for research and supports research at all levels through various project teams, hi-tech groups, innovation activities and takes part in nationally coordinated projects like the development of hydrogen driven vehicles and student driven satellites etc. We take pride in utilizing approximately 6-7% of our annual budget for research purposes, which is fairly high by any standards.

pedagogy, newer generation approaches have been used by the blending of MOOCS, virtual labs, online examination, continuous learning, etc. The feedback is further improved by the introduction of HoD hour on a weekly basis and student tutoring students. Similarly, the quality of teachers is improved by opening the recruitment process to those with Ph.D. qualifications and also faculty are encouraged to attend faculty development programs at least once a year particularly in the domains of learning new pedagogy, developing abilities for delivering higher level of contents and exploring new avenues for research.

Dr Sandeep Sancheti, Vice Chancellor of the SRM Institute of Science and Technology

Tell us about the well-trained and highly-qualified faculties of your varsity and their role in providing quality research?

As I mentioned earlier, we have created a special track for research faculties under a special group called the Research Institute. Around 100 faculty members are currently employed under this scheme. Most of them have at least one qualification from outside India as well as have post-doctoral experience.

Such faculty members are provided higher compensation as well as a higher degree of work freedom such as flexible working hours, attachment with more than one department, optional classroom teaching and a higher level of funding for research (seed grants) etc. In return, they are expected to lead the research activities of the University, form specialized groups, attract external grants for research activities, and undertake doctoral guidance for Ph.D. students.

What are the latest initiatives of SRMIST in providing good quality higher education?

New initiatives are aplenty which helps us raise the bar of quality education. The first and foremost is the offering of programs at all levels, including Post-doctoral work which has been initiated recently. We have created around 25 positions for Postdoctoral work, which will help us scale the performance in research and facilitate learning. Another important initiative is the multi-disciplinary and diverse set of education that SRMIST offers. We have all major discipline of higher education which is generally prevailing in the country. To add to our strength, we recently started offering programs in agriculture and horticulture through the Faculty of Agriculture. Quality of education also gets improved by the use of the right pedagogy and constant feedback. In order to improve feedback, students are engaged in all formal committees like the Board of Studies, Faculty Board, and Academic Council. Similarly, in terms of

Elaborate on the infra facilities in SRM varsity towards achieving the dream of quality higher education?

Good quality infrastructure is key to deliver quality higher education and SRMIST is no exception in this regard. SRM is currently having four campuses of its own. It serves to a wide spectrum of clients through almost a full spectrum of higher education courses except that for Veterinary Sciences. The institution is located on the outskirts of Chennai (metro city of India) and is set on an area of 220 acres. It has a total built-up area of over 12 million square feet.

In addition to the academic spaces, there are around 45 hostels that can accommodate more than 15,000 students inside the campuses. The academic infrastructure includes all modern classrooms, laboratories, studios, conference halls, seminar rooms, open workspaces, computer labs, etc. For the need of common researchers, SRMIST has established a highperformance computing facility with 73 Teraflops. For specific teaching and research requirements, a large number of centers of excellence (COE) and centers of research (COR) have been established with millions of dollars of investment.

For all-round development of students, excellent sports facilities like an indoor stadium, synthetic courts, football and cricket grounds, gymnasium, other indoor and outdoor sports facilities are available. SRMIST is a green, clean, and energy-efficient campus. Solar energy is one of the major sources of power in the institution. The energy generated from it is used to power solar street lighting, solar water heaters and solar steam cooking installed in hostel kitchens. A good number of students come from various parts of Chennai and the institute has made adequate transport facilities through 125 buses plying on a daily basis. Battery-driven vehicles are also available in the institution.

Can you throw light on foreign tie-ups in providing quality higher education with SRM varsity?

SRMIST has a huge number of foreign tie-ups across all continents and nations. There are around 150 collaborations focusing on different aspects of education, research, skilling and also for experiential learning or international familiarization programs. SRMIST boasts of several tie-ups with foreign universities which are internationally ranked within the top 25 by agencies like QS and THE. Exchange of faculties and students are important to propel foreign tie-ups and to do so we provide semester abroad programs for students along with the facility of credit transfers. Our students have gone to the best of the Universities abroad through these tie-ups. SRMIST and its partner institutions have also benefitted immensely through joint activities like conferences, seminars, short term faculty exchanges, and joint funding for research projects like ErasdeCember 2019 | india empire

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Cover Story—vICe CHANCeLLor INtervIeW

mus Mundus and Fill Bright scheme.

Is there a need to include a value-based education system for students?

While in education institutions students have to follow at least certain minimum protocols for a healthy and comfortable living within the campus. Hence there is a dire need for the value-based education system for students, the reason being that they come from diverse cultures, backgrounds, societies, and families. Therefore, this is achieved through value-based courses that are delivered right in the first year or entry-level.

Some of the value-based courses are offered as electives and are credited courses. In certain cases, programs and activities like NCC, NSS, Swachha Bharat, and Unnat Bharat also help in inculcating a value-based education system that cuts across all disciplines and helps learning by doing.

To further promote values, activities like yoga and national day celebrations and other common support services like book banks, blood donation, sapling drive, and charity to needy people are also undertaken. Gender sensitivity programs are offered to all students and faculty from time to time. Several committees have been constituted to facilitate all of the above activities and its effective implementation.

What is your take on the students mentoring students?

All students are not alike when it comes to academics and hence an innovative approach of students tutoring students has been initiated recently. This is to help students who are poor in academics. Such students are tutored by senior students who have done well in similar subjects while they were studying these subjects. Such an approach breaks the monotony of teacher-student based classroom learning. The students feel more comfortable to ask questions or to interrupt seniors to learn more actively. Simultaneously, the tutor can also make efforts to match the wavelength of the students. In this process, the student tutor also gets paid and gains experience under the scheme of ‘Earn While You Learn.’

How should faculties help students’ focus from just passing exams to becoming professionals?

The demand for a new graduate to be an overall performer is much more than being a pure academic performer. Hence students have to learn many newer aspects which will be helpful in their profession. These may be hands-on skill, analytical abilities, team working, and communication skills in addition to their core specialization. These are delivered by faculty members through a variety of activities like seminars, minor and major projects, internships, group exercises, independent projects, etc. To do so faculties themselves have to change to deliver all these and migrate from just being a “Teacher” to a new role of “Facilitator”. Based on the needs or interest of the students they should guide them to learn more about different aspects of the profession and life.

Education is a continuous journey all through one’s life. How do you see it?

In the era of knowledge and knowledge century, changes are much faster than one can foresee. Hence it requires continuous education on the changing workspaces, methods, and 8

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expectations. As it is known that many traditional jobs will vanish in the immediate future and many new jobs will appear at the same time, continuous education all throughout life becomes essential. Keeping this in mind, SRMIST focuses on delivering students the ability to learn or acquire the skills of learnability. Also learning beyond a certain age may not be possible through regular and conventional classroom teaching therefore we should promote open to learning while in service.

SRMIST has also ventured into distance education and online education recently to support such requirements.

Are we on par with nations across the globe on higher education front? If not, what are your suggestions?

India is a large country with a huge diversity of performance in all sectors and more so in higher education. There is a high degree of variance in our performance at all levels even within the states and smaller regions within a state. Therefore we tend to handle a wide variety of performance in higher education institutes of India. At the top-level IITs, IIMs, NITs, etc. and some private institutions like SRMIST have done well but on the other hand, many of them are still struggling, irrespective of being aided or self-financed. In general, one can say that in India, higher education level up to Under Graduatelevel is good because they are offered jobs easily in top-notch countries across the globe and also admitted in higher education programmes in all advanced institutions of the world.

However our doctoral programs are still in the nascent stages and have not made a big name for itself as external support from industries, overall finances for research and other advanced facilities are not adequate to raise the bar.

What are the best policies that can be added to improve the present education system?

The present education system is very traditional, conventional and can be improved by making it highly student-centric with a choice-based credit system, credit transfers, offering more electives and accommodating of skill-based courses. The education system can be further improved by the inclusion of digital platforms, supporting smart classrooms, online laboratories, examinations on demand, etc. The other aspect of improving is through the introduction of research at all levels, promoting innovations and its culture, supporting the incubation and helping students take up entrepreneurship as a career.

What makes SRMIST a right place apart from the rest in providing a good higher education?

Our aim is to add value to every student who comes to our institution. To aid this, SRMIST has many unique practices and approaches on top of the available conventional methods. As students pursue their studies in SRMIST, they can exercise their rights to follow a path of their choice to build their careers.

Many initiatives like scholarships (amounting up to 5 million USD annually) are offered to bright and needy students as well as those in sports quota. As a result of such approaches, students from all over India and abroad are present in the campus.

As of now, we have students from 60 nationalities in our campus. We also follow the philosophy of Inter-Disciplinary Experiential Active Learning (IDEAL) to make our students true ❐ to our motto: Learn - Leap - Lead.

Cover Story—MoDerN INStItUtIoNS

SRM–INStItUtE OF EXCELLENCE

By Yogesh Sood

Joint Director (Research) Dr. SRS Prabaharan, Registrar N. Sethuraman, President Dr. P. Sathyanarayanan, Vice-Chancellor Dr. Sandeep Sancheti, Director (Communication) R Nandakummar and Associate Director (Campus Life) Dr. V. Thirumurugan pose with the awards won by SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur ABOUT SRM SRM Institute of Science and Technology is accredited with the highest grade of A++ by NAAC and graded as Category I university with 12 B status. All Engineering, Pharmacy, Architecture, and MBA programs are approved

by AICTE. SRMIST has secured the third rank in the Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA). SRMIST is ranked globally by QS and rated by QS with ‘4 Star’ globally and awarded India centric QS IGAUGE Diamond rating.

SRMIST carries out cutting edge research in frontier areas with more than 224 government-funded research projects at an outlay of Rs. 115 crores since 2007. It has 11 international patents also. The institute recently opened Sir C V Raman Research Park at an estimate of Rs 120 crores with state-of-the-art equipment. The facility was opened by Hon’ble Minister of HRD, Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’.

SRMIST has over 50,000 students and nearly 3,200 faculty across all the campuses offering a wide range of undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programs in Engineering, Management, Medicine and Health Sciences, Hotel Management, Science and Humanities, Agricultural Sciences and a School of Law.

The University functions from four campuses in the country, namely, at Kattankulathur in Chengalpattu district, Tamil Nadu, Ramapuram and Ramapuram Part in Chennai city and Modi Nagar, in NCR New Delhi, built over a total land area of about 220 acres with a built-up area of over 12 million square feet.

SRM offers several scholarships, fee waiver schemes, teaching, and research assistance to meritorious and deserving students. In addition to SRM Institute of Science and Technology, the SRM group has established state private universities at Haryana, Sikkim and Andhra Pradesh.

Recent Awards SRM bags seven prestigious industry awards SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur has received seven recognitions in a short span of 45 days. The awards are of national and international importance and have added yet another feather to its cap. This QS-IGauge Diamond rated institute has been the recipient of STEM impact award, Green Metric Award, AICTE-CII IndPact Award for Best Industry-linked institution for Electrical Engineering and Allied Institute, University of the Year Award 2019 from FICCI and three

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Cover Story—MoDerN INStItUtIoNS Swachhata ranking awards from AICTE. Present for the press meet were SRMIST’s President Dr. P. Sathyanarayanan, Vice-Chancellor Dr. Sandeep Sancheti, Registrar Dr. N. Sethuraman, Joint Director (Research) Dr. SRS Prabaharan and Associate Director (Campus Life) Dr. V. Thirumurugan.

Speaking at the press meet, Dr. P. Sathyanarayanan said, “This is a special honor for our Institution as we have received seven awards in a short span of time.”

Dr. Sandeep Sancheti highlighted some of the recent achievements of the institution, research works, patents received, research centers, funded projects, own projects and technology transfers.

“The Swachhata ranking awards were based on toilet adequacy and maintenance, garbage clearance system, hostel kitchen hygiene & sophistication of equipment, water purity, storage, distribution the facility, campus greenery & rainwater harvesting, use of solar systems and villages adopted for hygiene,” he said and added, “The STEM Impact award was given for innovation. SRMIST is the only privately funded university to receive this award. The award was presented on the basis of socio-economic relevance.”

STEM IMPACT AWARD SRM Institute of Science and Technology won the STEM (Society for Technology Management) Impact Award for innovating a cost-effective, Microbial fuel cell for bioelectricity generation and heavy metal reduction from environmentally available biowaste, namely tannery effluents.

SRMIST is the only privately funded university to receive this award, others being IIT Kanpur and two CSIR labs. SRMIST had three in-house technologies submission and Microbial Fuel Submission received the STEM Impact Award.

The award was presented on the basis of socio-economic relevance, which includes bioelectricity generation and simultaneously heavy metal reduction up to 99.7%, electricity generation through a renewable energy source, zero water concept – Renewable, recycle and reuse and can be scaled up to be a standalone power source and bioremediation sources.

This project was spearheaded by Dr. S Harinipriya, Associate Professor of SRMIST and her students. This innovation has also been granted a US patent (US 10,230,122 B2). A technology transfer is initiated and MoU has been signed between Suprajaa Solutions Pvt. Limited, Tamil Nadu.

GREEN METRIC AWARD SRM Institute of Science and Technology has been ranked 243rd in GreenMetric World University Rankings and third in India. The award was given for the category ‘World’s Most Sustainable University’. This was organized by the University of Indonesia. About 780 universities participated in the event globally and 25 Indian Universities and Institutions participated in it.

AICTE-CII IndPact AWARD AICTE-CII IndPact Award for Best Industry-linked institution for Electrical Engineering and Allied Institute (Established-Degree) was awarded to SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur. SRMIST won the

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award for Best Industry Linked Technical Institute in India 2019 for Electrical Engineering and Allied Institute. This year around 9,832 institutes participated in the survey, out of which 39 Institutes were shortlisted for final presentation and EEE department of SRMIST, Kattankulathur was one among them. Dr. K. Vijayakumar, HOD / EEE, SRMIST gave the presentation for EEE department and showcased the best practices of industry partnerships.

FICCI honour for SRM SRMIST won the prestigious ‘University of the Year Award 2019’ (under the category of 11-30 years old Institutes) at the 6th edition of FICCI Higher Education Excellence Awards 2019, held in New Delhi.

Universities and Institutions were awarded in seven categories and SRMIST competed under ‘University of the Year Award 2019’ since, being a multi-stream university, it has many dimensions of excellence. The process consists of submitting an exhaustive questionnaire highlighting how SRMIST stands out in many facets of university life. These include Governance, Curriculum & Pedagogy, Infrastructure, Faculty Development, Internationalization, Student Employability, Collaborative Initiatives, Research, Patents, Impact on Society, etc.

SRMIST highlighted 19 best practices covering the abovementioned areas which inter alia include Semester Abroad Program, Flexible Choice-based Curriculum, Specialized UG programs in the disciplines of Computer Science and Engineering, Electronics and Communication Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering and Biotechnology, Mandatory Industry Training Program, Faculty Industry Immersion Program, Liberal Student Scholarships, Accreditation, etc.

Three Swachhata Awards SRMIST ranked No. 1 under the category of AICTEResidential Universities in the third edition of Swachhata Ranking Award. The Ranking Award was presented by MHRD as a part of its Swachh Bharat Mission to promote environmental hygiene in the Higher Education system and beyond. SRMIST excelled in the parameters of hygiene like student-toilet ratio, hostel hygiene, water conservation, campus greenery, harnessing solar energy, rainwater harvesting, waste segregation, and solid waste management.

SRMIST secured the third rank in AICTE’s Clean and Smart Campus Awards. The process of ranking consists of assessing the institutes on the impact of deployment of digital technology in order to encourage students, faculty and management in the campus to reduce consumption of natural resources (such as paper, gas, energy, etc) and alignment of the latest digital trends like IoT, Big Data and Cloud Networking to achieve various aspects of sustainability in the campus, specifically to contribute to United Nations’ SDGs. SRMIST also came first in the AICTE’s ‘One student One tree’ campaign, where 50,000 saplings were planted in 26 villages near Kattankulathur and Kundrathur Panchayath. This initiative was done by students from NSS, NCC, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, Swachhata-hi Seva and ❐ student chapter for engineers association.

UPCoMING UNIverSItIeS

Universities—hubs of ideas, not ivory towers: President

The President Mr Ram Nath Kovind at the closing ceremony of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of the Utkal University, at Bhubaneswar, in Odisha in December 2019. The Governor of Odisha, Prof. Ganeshi Lal and the Chief Minister of Odisha, Shri Naveen Patnaik are also seen

P

resident Ram Nath Kovind in December said students and teachers should be sensitive towards empowerment of the marginalised sections of society. Addressing the concluding ceremony of the platinum jubilee celebrations of the Utkal University, he said universities were great hubs of ideas, but not ivory towers. They were part of society and thus remain engaged with social change, he added.

The academic community should be engaged in research that would create not only new knowledge base but also sustain human society, he said. Environment, health and education should be taken up vigorously. Institutions like the Utkal University that were endowed with multidisciplinary faculty were better equipped to undertake this task, he said.

Stating that an occasion like platinum jubilee is a milestone, Kovind said, “During a long journey, when we come across it, we pause; then we look back and gaze ahead.

It’s time to take stock of achievements as well as the areas where further improvements are possible.”

For the whole Utkal community, it was the time to rededicate themselves to the vision of the institution’s founders, the President said.

The President Mr Ram Nath Kovind addressing the gathering He expressed confidence that the University would remain committed to playing a significant role in higher education and research, nationally and globally. Earlier in the day, the President laid the foundation stone of the Paika Rebellion Memorial at Barunei Hill in Khurdha. ❐

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UPCoMING UNIverSItIeS

Yogi calls for uniform education system Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in December called for a uniform education system in the whole country. Inaugurating the very first school summit taking place in the state capital, the Chief Minister said that there should be uniformity in the education system of various states, boards and institutes.

He said that if the Constitution gives the right to equality, there should also be equality in education. The feeling of equality does not arise in people because there is no equality in the sector. Adityanath said that if education system is held captive, then the society and the country cannot progress. Calling for an “innovative change”, he said that education should be linked to all round development and also self-reliance. The Chief Minister also pointed out that education has its own importance in different countries, time periods and situations. “We need to build a strategy in the education sector,” he said. Adityanath also called for

Yogi Adityanath

public participation in improving the educational system in the state and in the country.

JGU signs mOUs with seven Australian Universities benefit Indian and New South Wales students and faculty members, who will gain opportunities to deepen their educational and cultural connections, while also promoting important links that will foster academic excellence in our two nations,” said the Governor of NSW. The partnerships will promote faculty and student exchanges, dual degree programmes, joint teaching, Margaret Beazley AO QC, Governor of New South Wales with Prof. (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar, Founding Vice joint research, joint Chancellor O.P. Jindal Global University, at the signing of 7 MOUs with leading Australian universities conferences and joint The O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) in Sonipat in publications, besides pathways into the Ph.D. programmes in Haryana has signed MoUs with seven Australian universities all the Australian universities. A delegation led by C. Raj Kumar of which have been ranked among the top 3 per cent of visited Australia this week as a part of JGU’s larger vision to universities in the world. The seven universities are Macquarie establish strong international collaborations with global University, University of New South Wales, University of New universities. The Australian visit coincides with JGU’s 10th England, University of Newcastle, University of Sydney, anniversary and a commitment since its founding to develop University of Technology Sydney and Western Sydney strong Australia-India linkages. “These collaborations will University. It is notable that two of these universities are among create stronger people-to-people linkages and research the Top 50 in the world. The delegation was hosted by Margaret collaborations between the students and the faculty in India Beazley, Governor of New South Wales, led by JGU’s founding and Australia. India’s demographic dividend has created new Vice Chancellor, Professor C. Raj Kumar, at the Government opportunities for higher education to become the strongest House in Sydney. “As Governor of New South Wales, I am pillar of the partnership between both the countries,” C. Raj honoured to host the signing of the MOUs between a number Kumar said. As part of the vision of the CIAS, JGU will be of New South Wales universities and O.P Jindal Global hosting more than 100 Australian students in India in 2020 University at Government House. These partnerships will for various India immersion programmes.

12 india empire | deCember 2019

Jaipur’s IIHmr University tops Swachh campus rankings The IIHMR University here has been ranked first amongst the cleanest higher educational institutions in India in the non-residential university category in the Swachh Campus rankings 2019 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).

R. Subrahmanyam, Secretary, Department of Higher Education, MHRD, presented the award to Pankaj Gupta, President, IIHMR University. Speaking on the occasion, Gupta said: “We are elated and proud to receive the award for being the cleanest university in India by the MHRD. As a health management university, it is our duty to continuously educate our students as well as the society to keep the surroundings clean and be environment-friendly.

Recently, we had also declared our campus plastic free.”

The third Swachhata Rankings was undertaken by the MHRD as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission of the government of India to promote environmental hygiene in the higher education system. On the basis of reports given by the UGC and the AICTE, 48 universities and institutions were recommended for awards in various categories.

IIHMR University emerged as No. 1 in the non-residential category. The ranking system is based on various parameters

of hygiene such as student-toilet ratio, hostel hygiene, hostel kitchen hygiene, availability of water, water conservation measures, campus greenery, administrative responsibility for hygiene, etc. In 2019, a total of 6,900 institutions participated in the ranking exercise.

Hero Group to set up school of innovation with UK university

The Lala Bahadur Chand Munjal Foundation in December announced Hero Group and the Birmingham City University are collaborating to establish the Munjal BCU School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (MBSI) to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in Punjab.

The project will come up in Ludhiana town and will

cater to the needs of the business industrial sector of the state, Hero Enterprises Ltd Chairman Sunil Kant Munjal told the media at a side event of the Progressive Punjab Investors’ Summit at Mohali near Chandigarh.

Higher education in Punjab finds itself at the crossroads with many students seeking to study and then immigrating to other countries in search of better opportunities, he said. The proposed Munjal-BCU School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (MBSI), which will be launched early 2020, could emerge as a game changer. The MBSI plans to take a STEAM-oriented (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) approach to higher education. Steam house, pioneered by Birmingham City University, is designed as a centre for innovation, research, and creative production where technology, art, and design are used to nurture innovation and creativity.

It is proposed to establish a MBSI in Ludhiana to meet the growing innovation needs of industrial enterprises in the state. Punjab is home to around 50,000 SMEs spread across the clusters of Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Mohali, Patiala, Mandi and Gobindgarh. deCember 2019 | india empire 13

Pictures By: siPrA DAs

PhOtO GaLLERy

LEFT: Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi welcomes the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany Dr Angela Merkel at a Ceremonial Reception, at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi in November 2019. RIGHT: PM Modi and Dr Merkel witnessing the exchange of agreements between India and Germany at Hyderabad House in New Delhi in November 2019

CREDENTIALS PRESENTED

BY HEADS OF MISSIONS

H.E. Mr. Satoshi Suzuki, Ambassador, Japan 14 india empire | deCember 2019

H.E. Dr. Marjan Cencen, Ambassador, Republic of Slovenia

DIaSPORa NEwS

INtervIeW—teCHNoLoGy

Interview with Mr Asoke K Laha Founder, President and CEO, InterraIT

“we are one of the finest software service providers in the world” Yogesh Sood, India Empire Magazine’s Consulting Editor (Business), interviews Mr Asoke K Laha, Founder, President and CEO, InterraIT

How did you start this company?

A long innings in US gave me the courage and experience to try new area. When I came back to India as MD of Cadence India I was practically at the zenith of my career.

However, I along with a handful of friends thought we could develop a company on our own. We started InterraIT in 1997 in my apartment in Noida itself.

What was the greatest challenge at the beginning?

Till then I was used to getting a handsome cheque in my hand every month. Now I felt the table had turned and employees waited to get their cheques from me not the other way round. This added to the burden and sense of responsibility and urgency to get new business.

What does InterraIT actually do?

We are one of the best software service providers in the world. We have delivered projects and are still delivering in an amazingly broad cross section of domains and verticals.

Fortune 500 and 1000 companies worldwide seek our service to deliver smarter services and products to their clients.

We are into mobility, retail, logistics, healthcare, e platforms, business intelligence, articifial intelligence, virtuality and a number of spaces both old and emerging.

What is your market geography like?

We are present worldwide with our services. But our majority market share is into the US. Are you present in Indian market?

Yes very much. We have developed the interactive cus16 india empire | deCember 2019

tomer-to-business portal for Indian Railways. We have done significant consulting and development services for HP, WEBEL, SAIL, ECIL etc.

Where are your development centers located?

One in Kolkata and two in Noida. We are proud to say that we have one of the top infrastructure and facilities in the world.

What is your benchmark about quality.

We have got both latest ISO certification alongwith CMM level 5. However, quality is not just a matter of reaching some parameters and documenting them accordingly. We take maximum care that our obsession with quality filters down to each and every action we take to satisfy the clients.

We would like to hear about your policies and strategy in human resource management.

I have considered HR as a prime tool to run this company since its inception. HR or people are the life blood or main asset of any organization. We are especially focussed in HR because we are a global company and we need to keep the best talents in our fold to serve Fortune 500 and 1000 clients worldwide. We have kept our formal structure very flat, I am accessible to all my people most of the time, I meet them over regular pizza lunch and comms meeting events. I work very closely with HR and have weekly meeting to make myself available to solve any particular issue relating to the projects and the people.

Mr Asoke K Laha Founder, President and CEO, InterraIT

With a successful business how do you intend to pay back to the society in general?

We have a very interesting program of Corporate Social Responsibility ( CSR ). We are working closely with Noida and UP government in fighting the menace of gender abuse and discrimination. InterraIT has developed mobile apps which women employees of the whole area can use to inform police and seek official help. In fact my company is highly concerned about women’s progress and we undertake CSR with this idea into our heads. Apart from this we also help needy children with computers, needy students with computer education and so forth.

What you will figure as a major differing point between employees and what makes them different.

Communication and ownership. I would say we should hire people with A+ communication skills only. That makes your team integrally different to serve gl;obal clientele like we have. We have a very bubbly Toastmaster Club in our company which helps people to develop, improve their communication and leadership skills in a completely non threatening way. I myself take lot of interest in the club and mentor many members to go ahead in their life and career.

As the leader I consider it my duty to lead them from the front and coach them through practical hassles of career.

About ownership I will only mention that I view my employees as “ individual corporation”s, this idea was read by me long back. I have nurtured these values ever since. I encourage every individual employee to behave like a business unit on his or her own and make the work profitable in this way. This is the way one learns to take ownership.

What is your chief hobby or pastime.

I would say I enjoy reading management books and watching videos of synergic values. With age and time I am having more faith in spreading right ideas all around you.

You have held top positions in Indo American Chamber of Commerce and many other business and professional bodies. What is your take about such responsibilities and networking?

Whatever I do I try to do it with full energy and interest. In my roles as industry association leader I have tried to provide service to the members. My objective was always to add value as an idea leader so that more and more people get aligned to better practices.

Being a leader of a multinational software company you have to travel a lot and have often had to sacrifice personal time for work time. How do you keep balance between home and office?

A beautiful question. I have worked very long hours since my young days and that caused stress for my near and dear ones. That’s true for any sincere worker who does not spare himself in work life. But my success lies in the fact that I could make my wife and daughter understand my values, earn their affection and trust, and make the best use of whatever time and occasion we all spend together.

Of course I am very thankful to get understanding partners in life. However, I am confident there’s no regret on anyside. If there is trust and understanding friends and loved ones are always ready to make sacrifice for one another isn’t it? ❐ deCember 2019 | india empire 17

DIASPorA—SCIeNCe AND teCHNoLoGy

INDIAN ORIGIN SCIENTISTS AT FOREFRONT OF NEW INVENTIONS

Older adults can opt for weight-loss surgery: Study Weight-loss or bariatric surgeries are not usually performed in people above the age of 65. But researchers, including Indian-origin, have now found that these procedures could lead to successful weight loss and better diabetes control in older adults.

The study, presented at the Society for Endocrinology annual conference in Brighton, UK, indicates that elderly patients treated with bariatric surgery (gastric bypass or gastric sleeve) can recover well and have a reduced risk of Mr Nader Lessan obesity-related complications, including heart disease and diabetes.

“Although based on a small number of patients, our data suggest that successful weight loss and improved diabetes control can be safely achieved with surgery in older patients, which could have real benefits for their longevity and quality of life,” said study researcher Nader Lessan from the Abu Dhabi-based Imperial College London Diabetes Centre.

Lessan and the study’s co-author Saradalekshmi Radha

assessed the results of 22 patients who had attended their medical centre and who had undergone weight loss surgery after the age of 65. Two years after weight-loss surgery, the patients had, on an average, lost 24 per cent of their original body weight. In addition, of the 11 patients who had been on insulin to control their type 2 diabetes, four no longer needed it, while for others, the total insulin dose required had significantly decreased.

The only adverse effects reported during the two year period were iron and vitamin D deficiencies, which happen in younger patients too. “Management of obesity and diabetes in old age is challenging. There is a lot of scepticism around conducting weight-loss surgery in patients over 65,” Lessan said.

“Our study suggests these procedures could be considered in older adults as an effective intervention to aid weight loss and associated complications.”

AI-based algorithm to treat brain injury developed Researchers, including one of Indianorigin, have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) based algorithm that could help doctors treat patients with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). The algorithms can predict the probability of the patient dying within 30-days with an accuracy of 80-85 per cent, said the study published in the journal Scientific Reports.

“A dynamic prognostic model like this has not been presented before. Although this is a proof-of-concept and it will still take some time before we can implement algorithms like this into daily clinical practice, our study reflects how and into what direction modern intensive care is evolving”, said Indianorigin researcher and study author Rahul Raj from Helsinki 18 india empire | deCember 2019

University Hospital in the Finland.

Traumatic brain injury is a significant global cause of mortality and morbidity with an increasing incidence, especially in low-and-middle income countries. The most severe TBIs are treated in intensive care units (ICU), but in spite of the proper and high-quality care, about one in three patients dies. This is why researchers at Helsinki University Hospital (HUS) started to develop an artificial intelligence (AI) based algorithm that could help doctors treat patients with severe TBI. At its best, such an algorithm could predict the outcome of the individual patient and give objective data regarding the condition and prognosis of the patient and how it changes during treatment.

Mr Rahul Raj

Indian-origin researcher turns banana plant into packaging material An Indian-origin researcher-led team at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in November announced it has discovered a novel way to turn banana plantation waste into packaging material that is not only biodegradable but also recyclable. Associate Professor Jayashree Arcot and Professor Martina Stenzel looked at ways to convert agricultural waste into something that could value-add to the industry it came from, while potentially solving problems for another.

“What makes the banana growing business particularly wasteful compared to other fruit crops is the fact that the plant dies after each harvest,” Arcot from UNSW School of Chemical Engineering, said in a statement. “We were particularly interested in the pseudostems - basically the layered, fleshy trunk of the plant which is cut down after each harvest and mostly discarded on the field. Some of it is used for textiles, some as compost, but other than that, it’s a huge waste,” she added.

According to Arcot, banana growing industry produces large amounts of organic waste, with only 12 per cent of the plant being used (the fruit) while the rest is discarded after harvest. Using a reliable supply of pseudostem material from banana plants grown at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, the duo set to work in extracting cellulose to test its suitability as a packaging alternative.

“The pseudostem is 90 per cent water, so the solid material ends up reducing down to about 10 per cent,” Arcot noted. The team brought the pseudostem into the lab and chopped it into pieces, dried it at very low temperatures in a

Prof. Jayashree Arcot (left) and Martina Stenzel

drying oven, and then milled it into a very fine powder. The team then took this powder and washed it with a very soft chemical treatment. “This isolates what we call nanocellulose which is a material of high value with a whole range of applications. One of those applications that interested us greatly was packaging, particularly single-use food packaging where so much ends up in landfill,” informed Stenzel.

When processed, the material has a consistency similar to baking paper. Depending on the intended thickness, the material could be used in a number of different formats in food packaging.

Scientists produce complex glass from a 3d printer Creating glass objects using 3D printing is not easy but a groups of researchers including one of Indian-origin has now used a better technique to produce complex glass objects with addictive manufacturing. Researchers from ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich) used the method based on stereolithography, one of the first 3D printing techniques developed during the 1980s.

David Moore, Lorenzo Barbera and Kunal Masania in the Complex Materials group led by ETH processor Andre Studart developed a special resin that contains a plastic and organic molecules to which glass precursors are bonded. The resin can be processed using commercially available ‘Digital Light Processing’ technology.

This involves irradiating the resin with UV light patterns.

Wherever the light strikes the resin, it hardens because the light sensitive components of the polymer resin cross link at the exposed points. The plastic monomers combine to form

a labyrinth like structure, creating the polymer. The ceramicbearing molecules fill the interstices of this labyrinth, said the team in a paper published in the journal Natural Materials.

An object can thus be built up layer by layer. The researchers can change various parameters in each layer, including pore size. “We discovered that by accident, but we can use this to directly influence the pore size of the printed object,” said Masania. These 3D-printed glass objects are still no bigger than a die. Large glass objects, such as bottles, drinking glasses or window panes, cannot be produced in this way “which was not actually the goal of the project,” emphasised Masania. The aim was rather to prove the feasibility of producing glass objects of complex geometry using a 3D printing process. However, the new technology is not just a gimmick. The researchers applied for a patent and are currently negotiating with a major Swiss glassware dealer who wants to use the technology in his company. deCember 2019 | india empire 19

DIASPorA NeWS

canadian erwin Singh, HdFc mF, among bidders for Yes bank that a meeting of the board of Canadian industrialist Erwin directors of the company was Singh Braich and HDFC Mutual scheduled for November 29 “to Fund, among others, are said to be consider and approve raising of interested in acquiring a stake in Yes funds by issue of equity/equityBank, media reports have said. The linked securities through permissible bank had earlier announced that it modes, subject to necessary had received a binding offer from a shareholders/regulatory approvals, as global investor for an investment of applicable”. $1.2 billion. Also, in an investor The bank, however, has not come presentation this month, Yes Bank out with the decisions taken in the said that it had received multiple board meet so far. other non-binding but strong bids On November 19, the bank had from marquee domestic and global informed the exchanges that Rana institutional investors and family Kapoor and promoter entities—Yes offices and that its board was Capital and Morgan Credits—have evaluating all the bids. sold their remaining 0.8 per cent Braich, the founder of the Braich Mr Erwin Singh Braich stake in the private lender. On Group of Companies and Trusts, has reportedly offered to pump in $1.2 billion into the bank. November 4, ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala bought In a regulatory filing in November, Yes Bank had said 1.30 crore shares or 0.51 per cent stake in Yes Bank.

Sikh-American’s ‘Seva Truck’ sends out free food

A Sikh-American from Washington D.C. is operating a ‘Seva Truck’, via which he sends out free meals to local communities in need including schools and social work organisations. Washington D.C.-based Sonny Kakar bought an old FedEx truck, painted it orange and began operating his ‘Seva Truck’, the American Bazaar has reported.

His initiative specially targets kids at risk in underserved

20 india empire | deCember 2019

communities. In just three years since its inception, the orange truck has not only become the pride of the area but has also expanded to feed over 20,000 people.

Showing his compassionate side, Kakar believed that there was need for such an initiative when he started it, but “we hope that ‘we are out of business’ in the fuMr Sonny Kakar ture”. “We hope there won’t be a need for a Seva Truck because we hope that society reaches a stage where they do not think about serving themselves but serving the broader purpose.” In one of the schools where the truck has been regularly dropping off meals since last three years, the attendance has gone up by 30 per cent, Kakar said. Encouraged by the success Kakar opened another location in Michigan and hopes to spread his initiative across the country.

DIASPorA NeWS

department of Global cooperation in Haryana The Haryana government in November decided to create the Department of Global Cooperation and Engagement to streamline and focus on initiatives for the promotion of investment, employment for youth and welfare of the non-resident Indians (NRIs) or persons of Indian origin.

A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet presided over by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar in Chandigarh.

The department will work to enhance international cooperation with provinces of foreign countries and engagement with cities under the sister provinces and twin cities programmes of the Ministry of External Affairs.

The new department will deal in formulation of country-wise strategies for promotion of investment, employment, education and skill development and promotion of state culture and welfare of diaspora.

The department will also deal in participation in bilateral working groups with a view to promote state’s interest in foreign countries in the area of trade and investment both in-bound and out-bound in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs, a government statement said.

Shree Saini

Mr Manohar Lal Khattar

The department will also maintain liaison with Indian missions abroad on matters pertaining to Haryana with regard to investment, employment, education, skill development and culture and issues relating to the NRIs and persons of Indian origin.

Indian-American beauty queen raises funds for drug awareness An Indian-American student and anti-bullying activist who was crowned Miss World America Washington, was on a quest to raise $1 million for drug-addiction awareness. The 23-yearold Shree Saini, who is also the winner of five awards at Miss World America 2019, said in a statement in November: “It is an honour to serve our community. I hope everyone takes the time to go out in their local school, city halls and do their part of improving our world,” India West reported. In particular, to solve the drug-addiction epidemic, Saini is working together with organizations on the local, state and national level. Drug overdose takes 129 lives victims everyday, the statement added.

“I am speaking with school students to never start drug experimentation, so they can lead a life free of drug addiction,” Saini said. Saini and her mother Ekta took part at a fundraising gala that helped to raise $1 million to prevent deaths from drug overdose. The funds were raised through table sales, a silent and live auction, and individual donations. deCember 2019 | india empire 21

Pictures By: siPrA DAs

PhOtO GaLLERy

22 india empire | deCember 2019

BUSINESS aND

GOvERNaNCE

B&G

INfrAStrUCtUre

Rs 5 lakh crore to be spent in infrastructure: Minister Gadkari

T

he Government would spend a whopping Rs 5 lakh crore over the next two years in infrastructure projects to spur the economy and create thousands of jobs, Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said in December. “We will spend Rs 2 lakh crore in infrastructure projects in this fiscal (2019-20) and Rs 3 lakh crore in the next fiscal (2020-21) to boost the economy and generate employment in thousands,” Mr Gadkari said at a trade event here.

Asserting that there was no dearth of funds for the infrastructure sector, the minister said the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) would lease land flanking the highways across the country for building petrol-filling stations, logistics parks, bus ways and parking plazas to generate Rs 30,000 crore annually from the transport ecosystem.

“We have invited IIT engineers to develop technologies that will reduce the cost of constructing world class roads and highways across the country,” Gadkari told the stakeholders at the 10th edition of CII-Excon 2019, organised by the India Inc’s apex body, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) on the city’s outskirts. NHAI will step up building roads and highways up to 40 km daily by March from 30 km daily presently.

Mr Nitin Gadkari

The five-day biennial event with the theme “Smart Itech Next Gen India @75” is a convergent platform for showcasing advancements, innovations and latest developments in the constructions sector the world over.

“Around 1,250 firms, including 390 from overseas, are participating in the expo,” the event’s committee member Sandeep Singh said on the occasion. The event will explore ways and means to attract women in the male-driven sector through a special initiative launched recently, Women ❐ Building India.

24 india empire | deCember 2019

INfrAStrUCtUre

Zurich Airport wins bid to develop UP’s Jewar Airport

Z

urich Airport International AG was on Friday selected as the concessionaire for developing the Noida International Airport at Jewar in Uttar Pradesh. The company, headquartered in Switzerland, made the highest perpassenger bid for the airport, outbidding competitors like Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), Adani Enterprises and Anchorage Infrastructure Investments Holdings Ltd. Under the norms, DIAL had the ‘First Right of Refusal’ as the proposed airport will be developed within 150 km of the IGI airport. However, the provision did not qualify, as its bid was not within the required 10 per cent range of the winning bid amount.

Shailendra Bhatia of the project’s nodal office said that Anchorage offered Rs 205 premium per passenger, Delhi International Airport Rs 351, Adani Enterprises Rs 360 and Zurich Airport Rs 400.97. “Zurich Airport International AG has made the highest bid for developing the Jewar airport and has been selected as the concessionaire for the airport,” he said. The financial bid will now be put up before the Project Monitoring and Implementation Committee on December 2. The Swiss company operates the Zurich Airport, and eight airports in Latin America.

“Under a 40-year concession, the Flughafen Zurich AG will build and manage the new greenfield airport in Jewar.

The new airport will be located around 80 km south of Delhi and will be fundamental to accommodate the expected flight traffic growth rates in the National Capital Region,” the company said in a statement. “The capital investment associated with the first phase is expected to amount to roughly CHF (Swiss francs) 650 million during the construction period of approximately four years. The first phase will be able to accommodate around 12 million passengers per year,” it added. This is not the first time that the company has participated in India’s aviation sector. In 2017, it had sold its remaining stake in Bengaluru’s

Kempegowda International Airport. Commenting on the development, ANAROCK Property Consultants Vice Chairman Santhosh Kumar told IANS: “The expectation is that just like any mega infrastructure project, this greenfield airport will give a major boost to the overall economic activity around the Noida and Greater Noida region.

“Let’s take a closer look. Once completed, Jewar International Airport will not only ease traffic at Delhi’s IGI Airport but also create multiple job opportunities and give decent impetus to the property market in Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway. “These markets have been reeling under tremendous pressure over the last three to four years, and require a fresh injection of opportunity and intent to overcome this slump. For an area to become end-user centric and liveable, a massive infrastructure project like Jewar International Airport can definitely make a huge difference.

Such projects are invariably followed by more real estate developments including housing, commercial, hospitality, etc.”

Jewar Airport or the Noida International Greenfield Airport will come up in a 5,000-hectare area and is ❐ estimated to cost Rs 29,560 crore.

deCember 2019 | india empire 25

toUrISM AND HoSPItALIty

BIG hOtEL

ChaINS hELP BOOSt LOCaL

ECONOMy IN

RajaSthaN

By Archana Sharma

B

ig hotel chains in Rajasthan are helping the local economy grow by providing newer employment avenues to the natives. These hotels are hiring local people to showcase the colourful heritage of Rajasthan to guests coming from different parts of the world. Ibis, an Accor brand, recently re-launched its property in Civil Lines, Jaipur, in which locals were engaged in the task to design a vibrant and colourful lobby with traditional Pichwai artwork connecting to the ethic charm of the Pink city.

The property also showcases a quirky auto and bike parked outside the lobby which comes in different shades of pink connecting with the theme of the pink City. Again, in this perspective, the local students’ views were taken into account to make the pretty decor of the auto and bike, said Saumitra Chaturvedi, General Manager, Ibis Jaipur Civil Lines. Further, the hotel had hired a local band, Marudhar, during the relaunch of the property,

26 india empire | deCember 2019

which has got six local members who shot to fame after displaying their talent in ‘India’s Got Talent’. Chaturvedi said, “It gives me immense pleasure to showcase the re-

vamped Ibis property in Jaipur which has been designed after seeking services of local artists. We look forward to serving the best blend of local and global in terms of food, delicacies and experiences, he added. The other property pushing local economy to new heights is Alila Fort Bishangarh where locals are engaged in diverse tasks including garden landscaping, housekeeping, driving and even the kitchen for dishes, said Binny Sebastian, General Manager, Alila Fort Bishangarh’s heritage hotel, some 50 km from Jaipur.

As our property is situated on the outskirts, the surrounding villages had people engaged in farming and hence we are training them in diverse tasks to ensure they have a decent source of earning. Now, the villages look changed as there are many shops and businesses coming around, he adds. These guests are also taken around for a barber shop where they love to get a hair massage done which is called as Champi in local language. Villagers are getting a decent

price for it. We have a chai shop where guests are taken and they pay villagers a decent sum for a tea.

Then comes as zero mile cuisine system we have introduced recently where food produced within the vicinity of one mile is being served to guests. This again boosts local economy, Sebastian says. This Diwali, we gifted paper bag made from newspapers with an earthen pot having tulsi plant grown in our garden. Again local services were taken to make bags and pots, he adds.

“Our association with locals is quite strong. Our guests also visit the artisans’ houses and sip tea there while watching them make pottery and weave carpet. In this way, we ensure that locals get a decent livelihood,” Sebastian added.

“We have started getting regular income since this property came up a year back. We have been showing our art to the guests here which gives us satisfaction as well as an income,” said Nizamuddin, a bangle maker engaged in Alila Fort, Bishangarh. ❐

deCember 2019 | india empire 27

HoSPItALIty

OyO’s valuation continues to soar despite losses

H

ospitality unicorn OYO’s funding round, whereby RA Hospitality valuation has almost Holdings will infuse approximately $700 doubled in a year, reaching million as primary capital in the company, $10 billion between with the balance $800 million being September 2018 and supplemented by other existing investors.

October 2019, despite significant losses in A significant part of the funds will be the financial year ending on March 31. The diverted towards its growth plans in the US losses have reportedly mounted due to the market, and in strengthening the company’s rise in operating expenses fuelled by the position in the vacation rentals business in company’s aggressive expansion in Europe, the company said. Earlier this year, overseas markets.

RA Hospitality Holdings received Competition The provisional net loss of the company Commission of India approval to invest $2 jumped from Rs 360.43 crore in the previous billion in OYO. “In order to facilitate this Mr Ritesh Agarwal financial year to Rs 2,384.69 crore this year, transaction, Lightspeed Venture Partners and according to unaudited financials prepared by a valuation Sequoia, are selling part of their shareholding in OYO to help expert. “The numbers are based on a valuation report prepared the founder increase his stake while remaining invested and

by OYO’s valuers (not auditors) that includes certain committed to the company’s long-term mission,” OYO said. provisional financials for FY 19. It may be pointed out that the OYO had raised over $1 billion in its last financing round, valuation parameters such as share prices are based on fair announced in September 2018, led by SoftBank through market value and are not reflective of the share premium SoftBank Vision Fund, with participation from existing price,” an OYO spokesperson said in a statement. investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, Sequoia and Greenoaks “We would like to clarify again that these are not the final Capital and supported by new strategic partners like Airbnb. audited financials and the same will be issued later by the OYO is present in over 80 countries. As per the company, it company along with the annual report that we issue every year witnessed “3.8x” year-over-year revenue growth in August and file with the RoC as well,” the spokesperson added. But 2019. However, the company’s growing losses provoke this did not reduce the growth in the valuation of the company comparison with the struggling co-sharing workspace company backed by Japanese billionaire Masayoshi San’s Softbank Vision WeWork which recently laid off 2,400 employees following its Fund. The major boost came from the $700 million investment failed attempt to go public. This long-anticipated layoff is the made by OYO CEO Ritesh Agarwal in October this year biggest move by Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank through RA Hospitality Holdings (Cayman). OYO announced Group Corp, which is providing a $9.5 billion lifeline and will ❐ in October that it would raise $1.5 billion in the Series F soon own about 80 per cent of WeWork’s shares.

28 india empire | deCember 2019

HoSPItALIty AND SUStAINIbILIty

cabinet approves five-star hotel at Pragati maidan

A five star hotel will soon come up at Pragati Maidan at a cost of Rs 611 crore, as the Union Cabinet in December approved monetisation of 3.7 acres of land there for building the hotel. The India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), which is responsible for managing the premium exhibition

site, will now transfer the land on 99-year fixed leasehold for development and operation of the five-star hotel.

The transfer will be made in favour of special purpose vehicle that will be formed by India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).

“In order to ensure completion of the hotel project at Pragati Maidan in a fast-track mode, the SPV will take necessary steps, including selecting a suitable developer and operator third party through a transparent competitive bidding process to construct, run and manage (directly or through a professional brand) the hotel on a long-term fixed lease basis,” an official statement on the decisions in the Cabinet meeting said.

A major redevelopment work is being carried out at Pragati Maidan for the last couple of years which includes construction of a new international exhibition-cumconvention centre (IECC), executive accommodation blocks and a tunnel.

Hinduja Group offers to lift paddy stubble from Punjab The Hinduja Group in December offered to help Punjab in addressing the stubble burning problem by lifting all the paddy straw from the fields for use in ethanol plants. The offer came during a meeting here between Hinduja Group Chairman, Prakash Hinduja, and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

During the meeting, Hinduja, who was leading a high-level delegation, also showed interest in partnering the state’s progress through investments in agriculture, transport, banking, healthcare and automobile sectors.

Offering transport and technology solutions to mitigate the menace of stubble burning, Hinduja, who was to discuss investment opportunities as part of the Progressive Punjab Investors Summit, assured Amarinder Singh that the tippers of the Group could ensure timely lifting of stubble from fields to support the state government’s efforts to eliminate the problem. The Chief Minister asked his Chief Principal Secretary to look into the Group’s proposal, said an official

spokesperson after the meeting.

The Group, said Hinduja, could also make investments in the banking sector to facilitate loans for unemployed youth, self-help groups and progressive entrepreneurs to establish their ventures.

Acceding to a proposal from Amarinder Singh, the Group also agreed to join hands with the state in its flagship programme ‘Yaari Enterprises’, under the Rozgar Mission, to provide easy loans to skilled drivers to run buses, for which permits would be allotted by the state Government. deCember 2019 | india empire 29

LoGIStICS

Logistics in India costlier than US: Expert

L

ogistics cost in India is more expensive than the United States, which needs to be minimised using the country’s railways and waterways, said an expert on Wednesday at the Global Exhibition of Services (GES).

“Logistics in India costs 13 to 14 per cent of the GDP while in the US it is only nine per cent,” said Armes Maini Storage Systems chief executive and Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) shipping and logistics committee national member S.A. Mohan. Mohan said India’s transportation model is skewed, with 60 per cent encompassing road transport, 20 to 25 per cent rail transport and the balance 10 to 15 per cent via waterways.

Appreciating the national logistics policy as a step in the right direction, Mohan highlighted that first and last mile connectivity to micro small and medium enterprises (MSME) should be guaranteed as they operate on a very small budgets. Bereft of standardisation, too many players lack coordination in Indian logistics, he said at the transport & logistics session titled Emerging Trends in Logistics: The India Opportunity.

Shivayogi C. Kalasad, managing director, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) said technology has the potential to transform logistics and enable savings, incorporating artificial intelligence and big data. Taking the case of the state road transport corporation, Kalasad said digitisation had greatly helped KSRTC to improve the quality of service. He said KSRTC has introduced wearable technology to monitor and track the bus drivers and also keep them awake from dozing

30 india empire | deCember 2019

away. Kalasad said data driven decision making will play a key role in logistics in the future.

Gateway Rail Freight director and chief executive Sachin Bhanushali said Indian logistics sector is plagued by the major issue of parcel size. “India is a trucking nation, we operate on small parcel size and lose out on the cost advantage of scale,” said Bhanushali emphasising on the loss of economies of scale benefit.

Many times in India, transporters also have to bear the cost of return haul as well, said Kalasad highlighting the unorganised nature of logistics sector. Similarly, multiple handlers pilfer and damage consignments, he said. “These issues could be easily fixed by utilizing the vast rail network in the country more effectively, completing the transport cycle through last mile connectivity and intermodal transportation,” added Bhanushali. However, conferring the status of infrastructure on logistics sector mobilised investment, leading to high quality warehousing in the country, said commercial real estate services and investment firm CBRE senior director Karunakaran.

“Over the last three quarters, 70 to 80 million square foot space has been absorbed by the logistic sector and this is not just in major cities but in tier 2 and 3 cities as well,” said Karunakaran.

Scheduled from November 26 to 28, GES is aimed at engaging industry and governments to promote greater exchange of trade in services, organised by Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC) and industry association Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). ❐

JoINt veNtUre

Walmart, Flipkart jointly invest in Ninjacart startup

Mr Krish Iyer, President and Chief Executive, Walmart India

W

Mr Thirukumaran Nagarajan, Chief Executive and Co-Founder, Ninjacart

Mr Kalyan Krishnamurthy, Chief Executive, Flipkart Group

almart and its Indian arm Flipkart of fresh produce in a day, forming a link between 44,000 in December jointly invested in farmer suppliers, 60,000 kirana stores and restaurants. fresh produce supply chain Ninjacart helps reduce the transit time of produce from farms startup Ninjacart, to modernise to store at ambient temperature, slashing cost and lessening fresh produce market to benefit food waste in India which lacks cold chain infrastructure. consumers, retailers and farmers.

With the freshly infused funds, Ninjacart will expand its “As a homegrown e-commerce customer base, geographical reach and learn global best company, it is in our DNA to drive change and solve complex practices to better local fresh produce ecosystem. Additionally, local problems in-house through partnering with Ninjacart will bolster technology. In Ninjacart, we see a sourcing for Walmart’s Best Price B2B company that shares our values, our cash and carry stores and Flipkart’s direct pioneering mindset and our commitment online grocery business Supermart. Krish With the new to tech-driven innovation that improves Iyer, president and chief executive of agreement, Walmart, life in India,” said Flipkart Group chief Walmart India said, “Ninjacart’s focus on Flipkart and Ninjacart executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy in a direct-from-farm sourcing resonates well aim to offer better statement. with Walmart’s commitment to access of high quality With the new agreement, Walmart, supporting farmers in India.” Iyer said fresh produce to more Flipkart and Ninjacart aim to offer better Walmart’s Best Price has set a target to retailers and consumers access of high quality fresh produce to source 25 per cent produce directly from more retailers and consumers in the farmers by 2023. in the country even as country even as they economically “Ninjacart wants to make food safer they economically empower farmers. Ninjacart offers and more accessible, while ensuring a fair empower farmers business to business (B2B) supply chain price for everyone involved. We are excited infrastructure and technology solutions that Flipkart and Walmart are joining us to with traceability feature. The startup deploys sophisticated make this vision a reality,” said Ninjacart chief executive and supply chain algorithms, harvesting big data, predictive co-founder Thirukumaran Nagarajan. However, no financial analytics, mobile applications and internet of things (IoT) to details of the investment were disclosed by the retail giants. propel a just in time supply chain, connecting farmers, retailers, Based in Bengaluru, Ninjacart was founded in 2015 by 200 collection centres and 1,200 warehouses throughout India. Thirukumaran Nagarajan, Kartheeswaran K. K., Ashutosh Operating paperless, Ninjacart transports up to 1,400 tonnes Vikram, Sharath Loganathan and Vasudevan Chinnathambi.❐ deCember 2019 | india empire 31

NeW teCHNoLoGy AND INNovAtIoN

Samsung led 5G devices grabbed 5% of premium market in Q3

Samsung brings ‘The Wall’ display to India, starts at Rs 3.5cr

5G smartphones captured 5 per cent of the global premium market in the third quarter (Q3) of 2019 led by Samsung with 74 per cent share followed by LG with 11 per cent and Vivo with 5 per cent share, a new report by Counterpoint Research has said.

According to Counterpoint Research “Market Pulse” service, the global premium market sell-through, however, declined 7 per cent YoY. The Samsung Galaxy S10 5G was the top-selling model which captured over one-third of the total sales of all 5G devices. “All major OEMs in the premium segment now have 5G-capable devices, except Apple. Still, Apple alone captured over half of the premium market in Q3 2019. Apple grew 1 per cent YoY increasing its market share from 48 per cent a year back to 52 per cent during the quarter. iPhone XR was the top-selling model globally in the premium segment,” Varun Mishra, Research Analyst, Counterpoint Research, said in a statement.

Huawei remained in the top three OEMs in the premium segment driven by the popularity of its P30 series, especially in China, despite the US ban. China contributed to over 80 per cent of Huawei’s sell-through in the premium segment as compared to 73 per cent in the year ago quarter.

“The trend is likely to continue. It will be difficult for the newly launched Mate 30 series to create any progress outside China because it lacks Google Mobile Services (GMS). GMS is an important enabler for Huawei to continue its success outside China,” Mishra noted.

OnePlus recaptured its position among the top five OEMs in the segment and also led the India premium segment, which reached a record high shipment level during Q3. South Korean smartphone maker LG also captured a spot in the top five, driven by the V50 ThinQ 5G. The firm grew 20 per cent YoY in the premium segment. This is in contrast with its overall smartphone shipments, which declined over 30 per cent YoY during Q3.

If you love to watch movies or sports on big screens, think of bigger ones now as South Korean technology giant Samsung on Thursday introduced its modular MicroLED display “The Wall” that can stretch your imagination with its 146-inch, 219-inch, 292-inch screen sizes, costing you anywhere between Rs 3.5 crore to Rs 12 crore, excluding taxes. Targeting ultra high net worth individuals, Samsung is hoping to sell 25 to 30 units of these displays by 2020, while raking up revenue of up to $12 million, a top company executive said.

“We see a lot of opportunities for The Wall in India which has approximately 140 billionaires and over 950 multi-millionaires,” Puneet Sethi, Vice President, Consumer Electronics Enterprise Business, Samsung India, told IANS. “Apart from the top metros, we are targeting ultra high net worth individuals in Pune, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Surat, Ludhiana, Hyderabad and Chandigarh,” Sethi said. Samsung said The Wall optimises picture quality scene-by-scene, regardless of the original source resolution due to its Quantum Processor Flex enabled with the AI picture quality engine. Quantum Processor Flex is a machine learningbased picture quality engine that analyses millions of image data to automatically calibrate the original low resolution image according to the display. It can be connected to any operating system through a physical HDMI input, thus providing ease of usage to the customers. When the screen is not used, the ambient mode can display a variety of curated art from paintings, photographs and video art to customisable pictures with digital frames - that best suit the homeowner’s tastes.

“From 25-30 units of The Wall in 2020, we aim to increase the numbers to 100 by 2021 and 200 by 2022,” Sethi said, adding that the sales of the display in India could bring in revenue of $65-$70 million in 2022.

32 india empire | deCember 2019

OPPO set to open 2nd r&d centre in India With OPPO planning to invest $7 bilMr Alen Wu lion in research and development globally in the next three years, the Chinese smartphone maker is set to open its second R&D centre in India, a top company executive said in December. The company currently has one R&D centre in Hyderabad and the second centre may come up in Bengaluru. “India is important to us.

We are looking to open another R&D centre in India. We may open it in Bengaluru,” Alen Wu, OPPO’s Vice President and President of Global Sales, told reporters.

“In terms of revenue, we are doing good in India. So far, in 2019, we have witnessed a growth of over 60 per cent in India and the number will go up by the year end. I’m happy with the performance,” Wu told IANS on the sidelines of the company’s “INNO DAY 2019” event. OPPO Founder and CEO Tony Chen announced at the event that the company would invest $7 billion in research and development in the next three years to develop core technologies in hardware, software and system in addition to 5G/6G, Artificial Intel-

ligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), Big Data and other emerging technologies.

Wu added that country like India is always significant to the company. “Lots of work are yet to be done. We’re closely monitoring India as we are enhancing our services in the country,” Wu added.

In the India smartphone market, OPPO has a share of 11.8 per cent in Q3, as per market research firm IDC. Earlier, OPPO announced the opening of the electronic manufacturing cluster in the Greater Noida region with an investment of Rs 3,500 crore that will have the capability to produce approximately two lakh product units daily.

“OPPO has been more than just a phone maker from the outset. In fact, smartphones have simply been a gateway for the company to deliver a diverse portfolio of technological services,” Chen said. “For OPPO and even the entire industry, there won’t be any company solely focusing on smartphones,” he added.

—Bharat Upadhyay

canada, britain to set up skill centres in Punjab The Punjab Government tied up Canada and Britain to set up skill centres in the state under joint ventures as part of a project set to be launched in 2020.

Also, the state signed a tri-party memorandum of understanding (MoU) for a centre of excellence in microelectronics— application-specific integrated circuit design—to be established on the premises of Software Technology Parks of India.

Punjab Technical Education Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said that international players were joining hands to provide training to youth as per the needs of the global industry. He said in this venture, foreign players would be the training facilitators while the state would provide

infrastructure. There is a big shortage of skilled manpower across the globe and Punjab has the potential to meet this shortage by providing quality, demand-driven and skilled manpower to the global industry as per their needs, added Channi. deCember 2019 | india empire 33

NeW HoNoUrS

Siddharth mittal takes over as biocon’s new ceO Biotechnology major Biocon’s Chief Financial Officer Siddharath Mittal took over as its new CEO and Joint Managing Director in December. “Mittal took over from Arun Chandavarkar, who retired on November 30 after 29 years of service to the evolution and success of the company,” said the city-based Biocon in a statement.

Mittal has been a member of the leadership team since May 2013 and played an instrumental role in the restructuring of the company’s biosimilars business into Biocon Biologics to unlock value for its shareholders, it said. He served as the company’s CFO since August 2014. “Siddharth’s leadership, understanding of the business, financial insights and operational experience make him fit for the CEO role to lead the company through its next growth phase,” said Biocon Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw.

Mittal has over two decades of experience in management, strategic finance and accounting, mergers and acquisitions and taxation. “As an innovation-led biopharmaceuticals company, Biocon is at an inflection point to create value for shareholders by unlocking the potential

Mr Siddharath Mittal

of its business segments. Post the creation of Biocon Biologics as a subsidiary, I look forward to generating value for stakeholders by focusing on small molecules business and strengthen portfolio of APIs and generic formulations in global markets,” said Mittal in the statement.

mukesh Ambani 9th richest in the world: Forbes

Mr Mukesh Ambani

Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani is the ninth richest person in the world, according to ‘The RealTime Billionaires List’ of Forbes. The RIL Chairman was ranked 13th globally in the Forbes’ 2019 rich list, released earlier this year. His rise can be attributed to RIL surpassing the Rs 10 lakh crore market capitalisation mark, becoming the first Indian company to do so in November.

According to the Forbes ‘The Real-Time Billionaires

34 india empire | deCember 2019

List’, RIL Chairman’s ‘Real Time Net Worth’ stood at $60.8 billion on Thursday. The list was headed by Jeff Bezos, CEO and Founder of Amazon, with ‘Real Time Net Worth’ of $113 billion on Thursday. The list “reflects changes since 5 p.m. EST of prior trading day,” Forbes said on its website.

In November, RIL shares hit the 52-week high of Rs 1,581.25 on the BSE, rising 0.64 per cent. While RIL gained nearly 40 per cent during the last year, the Nifty50 index advanced over 13 per cent.

Reliance is followed by TCS as the second most valued firm. HDFC Bank, Hindustan Uniliver and HDFC were the others. Among RIL’s big ticket announcements was its aims to be net debt-free by the end of FY20. The company also announced selling of 20 per cent stake in refining and petrochemical business to Saudi Aramco.

RIL recently announced plans to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary called ‘Jio Platforms Limited’ (JPL) for all its digital platform initiatives. It will infuse Rs 1.08 trillion more equity into JPL, which will invest that amount in Jio. RIL’s current equity investment is Rs 650 billion in Jio. Apart from RIL’s core business, brokerages said RIL’s presence across fashion, lifestyle and consumer electronics is far higher than any other player in the domestic market now.

HoUSING AND eCoNoMy

Nbcc, Suraksha submit sweetened final bids for Jaypee Infra State-run NBCC and Mumbai-based Suraksha Realty on Tuesday submitted their final resolution plans for acquisition of the insolvent Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL). The Committee of Creditors (CoC) of the realty firm had sought clarifications and asked both the companies to sweeten their offers in its last meeting in November.

Sources said that in its final bid, Suraksha has offered 2,200 acres of land to the banks, enhanced from its previous offer of 1,900 acres. It has also increased its upfront payment to the banks to Rs 175 crore from Rs 25 crore. It has also enhanced its offer for the home buyers, by setting aside Rs 250 crore worth of land as compensation for delay, against the previous offer of land worth Rs 100 crore.

People in the know further said that Suraksha has also submitted a letter of support for technical and operational work from the JSW Group for completing the pending

housing projects of Jaypee Infratech.

NBCC, on the other hand, has offered over 1,500 acres of land to lenders as against its earlier proposal of 1,426 acres. The lenders had asked NBCC, formerly known as National Buildings Construction Corporation Ltd, to offer 1,903 acres. This is the third time that resolution plans have been sought to acquire and complete the projects—over 20,000 flats—of Jaypee Infratech. The Supreme Court had on November 6 ordered completion of the JIL insolvency resolution process (IRP) within 90 days and said only the resolution plans of the NBCC and Suraksha would be considered by the CoC for completing pending projects.

crisil revises India’s growth outlook from 6.3% to 5.1%

Crisil Rating in December sharply revised India’s growth outlook for fiscal 2020 to 5.1 per cent from 6.3 per cent, citing a dip in fixed investment, weak private consumption growth, weak growth in tax collections and industrial production among others. A major worry, Crisil said, is the sharp fall in nominal growth to 6.1 per cent in Q2 - the lowest in the new GDP series. “We expect nominal GDP this fiscal to average

8.9 per cent as against the budget estimate of 12 per cent.

This will impact tax collection and fiscal ratios.”

Crisil’s sharp downward revision of growth outlook comes just ahead of the RBI’s three day long monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting, set to start from Tuesday.

It is widely expected to deliver a rate cut in order to support growth. It, however, added that growth may recover mildly to 5.5 per cent from 4.8 per cent in the first half, with support from monetary policy, agriculture, a mild pick-up in government spending, and a weak base effect.

“There is also an atypical brake at work... the cleanup of the financial sector happening after almost 20 years.

That can stretch the slowdown, particularly because policy space for counter-cyclical action is limited with tax revenue way behind target,” Crisil noted. “Recent data shows that government has decided to speed up spending to support the economy. It now becomes important to fast-track non-tax revenue generation through divestments and asset monetisation to keep the fiscal deficit under check.

Monetary policy transmission has also been weak, and financial sector stress and risk aversion have adversely impacted credit flow. deCember 2019 | india empire 35

CoLUMN: yoGI ASHWINI

MIND AND boDy

DIFFERENt DIMENSIONS OF EXIStENCE

by Yogi Ashwini

E

verything in creation is either going up or it is going down, nothing is stationary. Presently we are living on earth, but if anyone thinks that he/she will continue to be here birth after birth, it is a mistaken notion. Like everything in Creation, a being too, moves up or down. Earth is only one level of existence, there are dimensions beyond and below.

The dimension of earth or Bhuloka, is special in that, from here one can reach any dimension based on his/her desire and backed by requisite karmas. Bhuva is the loka higher than earth, reaching here is possible only through complete detachment.

Next comes Swarga loka which can be accessed through recommendation from gods and goddesses. There are specific mantras to please the divine to access Swarga loka.

The loka above Swarga is called the Maha loka, it is the dimension of those beings who are entitled for Swarga, but have no desire to enjoy its pleasures. Beyond this is the Jana loka.

Here the beings responsible for creating the ‘software’ that runs the entire creation, reside. Tapa is the next loka and it is for beings who desire to do tapasya. The heat generated by their tapasya gives energy to the sun, powered by which the entire creation runs.

The final dimension is the Satya lok where Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh reside. Only souls which have an unshakable desire to merge with these energies are able to reach here. At the gate of Shiv Dham there are ganas in the form of bhooth, pret and pishach that try and dissuade a sadhak from entering.

Nandi is one of the favorite ganas of Lord Shiv who fulfills all physical and material desires to keep the sadhak immersed in them so that he/she does not move to the Shiv Dham.

Even though light is the fastest thing on earth, it cannot traverse through these dimensions in an entire lifetime. Only

thoughts can take us to these dimensions.

The dimensions below earth are Atala, Vitala, Sutala, Talatal, Mahatala, Rasatala, Paatala, which we should just read and forget. These are for those beings who live a life devoid of service and charity, full of selfishness, in other words, a life of darkness. This includes beings who harm yogi Ashwini others or even after being in a position of preventing pain of others, look the other way.

These souls are sent to these lower lokas to go through the processes of cleansing through pain, fear, claustrophobia and stickiness with slime. The lower worlds are dark as the occupants of these lokas desire only darkness. The forms taken by the souls in these dimensions are gross, slimy, painful and full of pure fear all the time.

In order to become eligible to go to any other loka, higher or lower, one has to come to Bhuloka. In all the other lokas, the time for being is fixed, after the expiry of which one returns to Bhuloka. Even Lord Vishnu, who resides in Vaikunth, which is a subtler part of Satya loka, has to descend to Bhuloka to discharge his duties towards creation. So find a guru, and make the most of the time you have, while you are in this dimension. Yoga under a guru is a journey with real experiences, not a day dreamers world where kathas and stories are told to you of others experiences, or where you sing, dance, listen to stories and come back, poorer in your pocket. It’s a journey into realty and it’s your individual journey. ❐

Article by Yogi Ashwini of Dhyan Ashram 36 india empire | deCember 2019

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38 india empire | deCember 2019