India’s annual rate of inflation based on wholesale prices increased to 5.13 per cent in September from a rise of 4.53 per cent in August, official data showed here on Monday.

Even, on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) data furnished by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry was higher than 3.14 per cent reported for the corresponding period of 2017.

“The annual rate of inflation, based on monthly WPI, stood at 5.13 per cent (provisional) for the month of September, 2018 (over September, 2017)as compared to 4.53 per cent (provisional) for the previous month and 3.14 per cent during the corresponding month of the previous year,” the Ministry said in its September review of wholesale price in India.

“Build up inflation rate in the financial year so far was 3.87 per cent compared to a build up rate of 1.50 per cent in the corresponding period of the previous year.”

A senior woman crew member fell off an Air India plane at the airport here as it was preparing for a flight to New Delhi, official sources said on Monday.

The incident occurred at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) when the Mumbai-Delhi flight AI-864 was preparing for departure shortly before 7 a.m.

The 53-year-old air-hostess, identified as Harsha Lobo, who was closing the door for the pushback prior to taxing, suddenly fell from the aircraft onto the hard tarmac several metres below.

Some ground crew members immediately rushed Lobo to the Nanavati Hospital.

The national carrier later said that she had suffered injuries to her legs and termed the incident as “unfortunate”.

“In an unfortunate incident, one of our cabin crew (members) Harsha Lobo, fell down on the tarmac from the Boeing 777 aircraft door while closing it,” the airline statement said.

The flight departed for Delhi after over an hour’s delay.

Japanese consultants will join hands with Indian architects to develop the 12 proposed bullet train stations and its adjoining areas in an integrated way.

In a meeting with senior officials of Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority and Gujarat’s Urban Development and Municipal Commissioners, it was decided to take the help of Japanese experts in developing the areas around the stations — connecting them to bus, metro and other forms of transportation, a senior Indian Railways official in the know told IANS.

The 12 proposed stations on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed train route are: Bandra Kurla Complex, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Baroda, Anand, Sabarmati and Ahmedabad.

Railways will adopt a “transit-oriented development plan” for all these stations so that each becomes a commercial hub ensuring smooth connectivity with the outside world.

In urban planning, transit-oriented development is a type of urban development that maximises the amount of residential, business and leisure space within walking distance of public transport.

“There will be scope of constructing housing complexes near some stations as per the plan,” the Railways official added.

The terminal building, which will have space for commercial activities like eateries, forex counters, malls and parking lots, will also be a major interchange hub, providing passengers seamless connectivity between the bullet train network and other services such as the metro and bus services, as well as last-mile connectivity.

“Unless the stations are well-connected with neighbouring districts, the bullet train service will not attract the ridership required to make the project viable,” said the official.

The bullet trains are expected to run at 350 km per hour covering the 508 km stretch in about two hours. In comparison, trains currently plying on the route take over seven hours to travel the distance, whereas flights take about an hour.

Railways will have two distinct schedules for the bullet trains. The faster route will stop at fewer intermediary stations, which will include Surat and Vadodara, before reaching Ahmedabad, while the other will stop at all stations.

The development of 12 stations and its adjoining areas is expected to be a boon for economic activity in the region.

The cost of the ambitious project is estimated to be Rs 1,10,000 crore and Japan is providing a soft loan worth Rs 88,000 crore at 0.1 per cent.

The 508-km high speed train corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad is expected to be operational by August 2022.

The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday said that it has attached properties worth Rs 54 crore of former Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram’s son Karti Chidambaram and Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd (ASCPL) in connection with its ongoing probe into the INX media money laundering case.

A senior official of the financial probe agency told IANS: “We have attached six properties of Karti worth Rs 54 crore.”

The properties attached include a cottage worth Rs 8.67 crore in the UK’s Somerset, a tennis club and land located in Spain’s Gava worth Rs 14 crore.

The ED also attached land and properties worth Rs 16 crore in New Delhi’s Jor Bagh area (Karti’s mother Nalini Chidambaram is also a stake holder of 50 per cent in the land), a bungalow in Tamil Nadu’s Ooty worth Rs 50 lakh and another one worth Rs 3.75 crore in Ooty and an agricultural land worth Rs 25 lakh in Kodaikanal.

The ED has also attached properties belonging to Peter and Indrani Mukerjea in connection with the same case.

The properties were attached under the section of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Karti is facing probes by the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in several cases, including alleged irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board clearance to then INX Media for FDI in 2007 and the Aircel-Maxis case in 2006 and a money laundering case.

The ED and the CBI are probing how Karti managed to get clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) when his father was in office.

Karti was arrested on February 28 by the CBI for allegedly taking money to facilitate the FIPB clearance to INX Media in 2007. He was later granted bail.

IANS

US-based audio equipment major Skullcandy Inc on Wednesday expanded its wireless headphone line-up with the launch of “Venue”.

The new wireless headphone comes with active noise canceling (ANC) technology to deliver powerful sound and is available in black-black and white-crimson colour combinations at Skullcandy.in, Brandeyes.in and select retailers for Rs 18,999.

“For 15 years, Skullcandy has thrived at the intersection of music, technology and boardsports by unleashing the visceral power of music for all. With Venue, we’re continuing our vision of delivering immersive audio experience,” Jason Hodell, CEO, Skullcandy, said in a statement.

When users do need to tap into the outside world, “Monitor Mode” easily lets them hear their surroundings with just a push of a button, the company added.

The device comes equipped with “Tile” — a feature that allows users to track or find their headphones through the “Tile” application on a smartphone.

“Venue” comes with up to 24-hour battery life, Bluetooth capability and rapid-charge technology that provides five hours of battery life with just 10-minutes of charging, the company added.

ACEF Organized 7th Award Function Rewards

ACEF organized its 7th forum & awards for Branding, Marketing & Rural Initiatives & CSR activities. The event was held on 5th Oct, 2018 at Hotel Westin, Mumbai.

The theme for this year’s happening was “Integrating advertising, Branding & Marketing Communications”. More than 350 senior level professionals from marketing, branding & marketing agencies attended the event.

In the event, the speaker’s KV Sridhar, Ravikanth Bank, Jayant Kshirsagar, Anamika Sirohi enlightened the participants with their knowledge & experience apart from that individuals & organizations were recognized for brilliance on branding & marketing.

The region’s top companies & brand marketers redefined how to assemble & prolong great brands amidst rapid cultural & technological change. The event provided elite spectators of senior marketing executives.

Zydus health care won the gold position in the Excellence in branding for the most innovative marketing strategy. Johnson & Johnson won an award in the Excellence in CSR category.

The awards (over 350 shortlisted entries from over 90 organisations) were judged by Sr. Level industry professionals from across the globe. Companies from varied sectors were recognized for their Excellence in Branding, Marketing, Rural Activities & CSR Initiatives. To prominent names in the award winners list were: Outstanding Individual Corporate Leadership: Rana Kapoor, Founder, Managing Director & CEO, Yes Bank & Brajesh Kumar Choudhary, General Manager-CSR & Group CSR Head, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Outstanding Individual Community Hero: Suresh Chukkapalli, Chairman, Phoenix Group. Marketing Leader of The Year for 2018: Nikhil Rastogi, Director Marketing & Digital Business, Citibank India & Rubeena Singh, CEO, iProspect. ACEF Award for Asian Marketing Leadership 2018: Sujan Roy, Head International Business, Passenger Vehicle, Tata Motors, Navin Thakur, Head Marketing, Vascon Engineers Ltd., Karan Kumar, Head of Brand & Marketing Strategy, Fabindia Overseas Private Limited. Most Admired Business Leader 2018: Samrat Gupta – CEO – Tata Motors Finance & Amit Saxena, CEO & MD, Unimoni Financial Services Ltd. Excellence in Business Development: Umesh N. Jhawar, VP – Strategy & IR, Arihant Superstructures Ltd. Most Admired Brand Manager 2018 (Joint Winners): Abhijan Roy, Brand Manager. Emami Navratna Oil & Mandeep Singh Gulati, Deputy VP-Marketing, Aegon Life Insurance Company Limited, Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2018: Arvind Jain, Netbiz. Young Marketing Leader of the Year 2018: Siddharth Bhatia, Chief Marketing Officer, Radius Developers; Neha Gupta De, Hil Limited: Rishi Baruah, Director, Pratidin Group. Most Admired Brand of the Year: Reliance Digital. Marketing Team of the Year: Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd. Marketing Effective Agency of the Year: THINK XQ. Ambient Marketing Agency of the Year: Khushi Advertising. Most Admired Upcoming Agency of the Year: FreshBox Media Pvt. Ltd.

The forum helped the business with generating brand reorganization, generate sales growth, boost employee moral & obtain 3rd party endorsement.

The event was attended by the CMO’s, VPs of the marketing, brand & product managers, advertising agencies, innovative brand engagement practitioners, consumer insight professionals, researches, agencies & also people related to the industry.
The main magnetism of the event structured this year was the introduction of the new categories in the award ceremony i.e. the category for Sr. level professionals & Organisation in branding & marketing categories.

This affair helped the professionals to grow & discover solutions from the information shared by the expertise. It updated them on the current topics & the recent business methods & tools. The participants also got a brief of new trends, best practices & case studies so that they can get a clear picture of practices followed in the industry.

The prominent thing that the participants learn was about their clientele & the tactic to engage with them.

Founded in 2012-2013, the ACEF program is organized by a team of professionals from India, Srilanka & UAE and is guided by the Advisory Members from Branding, Marketing & Creative Agencies based in India, US, Australia, Singapore, UAE & Srilanka.
Their programs are focused on Customer Engagement Activities, Branding, Marketing, CSR, Rural Marketing, Properties (Hospitality & Real Estate), HR and are planned for India, Srilanka, GCC Continent & Asia Pacific Regions.

In April 2019, ACEF is coming up with Forum & Awards for AI (Artificial Intelligence) for Enterprises & Global Customer Engagement Awards.

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday sanctioned Rs 2,044.31 crore for 78 days productivity linked bonus to about 11.91 lakh non-gazetted railway officials.

The announcement was made by Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad while addressing a press conference here after a Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Each employee under this head would get about Rs 17,951 for 78 days,” Prasad said.

IANS

Global cybersecurity firm F-Secure on Wednesday announced the appointment of Rahul Kumar as the Country Manager for India and Saarc.

Prior to joining F-Secure, Kumar was the Country Manager and Director of data security provider WinMagic, where he spearheaded the sales, pre-sales, marketing and post-sales support for the company in India.

In his career spanning over a decade, Kumar has had the opportunity to work closely with companies such as Dassault Systemes, Sutherland Global Services and WNS Global Services, among others.

“Cyber security has a great role to play in India as the nation witnesses’ unprecedented digitisation. I am excited to join F-Secure at this crucial juncture,” Kumar said on his appointment.

Kumar will report to Keith Martin, F-Secure’s Regional Director for Asia Pacific and Japan.

Lockheed Martin is hosting a conference in this tech hub for industry suppliers on its flagship fighter F-16 with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL), said the American aerospace major on Tuesday.

“The four-day meet since Monday is discussing opportunities for the suppliers and prospective Indian partners on the F-16 programme, which has the world’s largest fighter aircraft ecosystem,” said Lockheed in a statement here.

The all-weather single-engine F-16 supersonic multirole fighter, developed originally for the US Air Force by General Dynamics, is in use by air forces in 25 countries the world over.

“The fighter jet offers opportunities for Indian firms and their suppliers’ new business with us, TASL and other industry leaders,” said Lockheed’s strategic and business development Vice-President Vivek Lall in a statement here.

If the fighter is produced in India, it offers the Indian aerospace industry a whopping $165-bilion jet aircraft sustainment market, claimed Lall.

“The conference has provided a platform for Indian industry players to explore opportunities with global suppliers in the F-16 manufacturing ecosystem.

Globally, F-16 industry leading partners include GE, Terma, Honeywell, Fokker, Israeli Aerospace Industries, Elbit, UTC, Terma, Eaton, Moog and Parker.

“The potential F-16 India Project, as a single source globally, will be strategic to build new capabilities in the local defence production. We look forward to participating in the selection process for the fighter programme of the Indian Air Force (IAF),” said Tata Advanced Systems Chief Executive Sukharan Singh at the conference.

As part of its commitment to India, Lockheed has partnered with TASL to produce the fighter’s (F-16) wings at the latter’s aerospace facility in Hyderabad.

“We have offered to produce F-16s in India for the IAF and export customers if the government selects the fighter’s Block 70 version for IAF and agrees to our partnership proposal,” reiterated Lall.

Lockheed’s initiative positions TASL to become the provider of wings for all future customers.

The F-16 block 70 version features advanced avionics, a proven Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, a modernised cockpit, advanced weapons, conformal fuel tanks, an automatic ground collision avoidance system, an advanced engine and extended service life of 12,000 hours.

Though Lockheed sold a record 4,604 F-16s to 28 customers the worldwide over the years, about 3,000 of them are in operation with 25 air forces.

As a Tata Sons subsidiary, TASL provides integrated solutions for aerospace, defence and homeland security.

IANS

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday searched 15 locations in Jharkhand and West Bengal in connection with a probe into the role of some companies allegedly involved in funding of a Maoist outfit Tritiya Prastuti Committee (TPC), said the agency.

Fifteen teams of the NIA were assisted by the state police forces during the raids it conducted at the residences and offices of managers of different companies in Ranchi, Hazaribagh and Jamshedpur in Jharkhand, and Durgapur in West Bengal.

The companies are associated with purchase and transport of coal in Amrapali and Magadh coalfields in Jharkhand and allegedly involved in providing funds to TPC, an NIA statement said.

The anti-terror agency has also seized huge incriminating materials and documents pertaining to payments made to Amrapali and Magadh area committees, bank account details and fixed deposits, deduction of levy amount, computers, hard discs, mobiles containing accounts of companies, and diaries containing entries of money paid to TPC and Peoples Liberation Front of India during the raids.

The NIA has also seized cash equivalent to Rs 68 lakh, besides 10,000 Singapore dollar and 1,300 USD, besides Rs 86,000 demonetized currency.

The NIA took over the case from Jharkhand Police and registered an FIR on February 16 this year following Home Ministry’s order. The Jharkhand Police had registered an FIR in the case in January 11, 2016.