Bright Future partners with Cognizant Foundation’sTech4All program to ensure sustainable livelihoods for young women of marginalized communities in Pune

 

·       215 female aspirants registered in the first batch.

·       This is the 15^th operational center of Bright Future I Pune with past 13+ years of its establishment

·       We run different programmes–Buniyaad, Bulandi & Badi Soch

·       The new center is situated at Yerwada, on the Nagar Road

 

Bright Future with support from Cognizant Foundation inaugurated a new training center with more than 215 female aspirants registered in the first batch. The center will provide skills training to young women from marginalized communities in Pune under Cognizant Foundation’s Tech4All program to facilitate sustainable livelihoods. The program will be providing IT-based specialized training, career guidance and life skills support to help enhance confidence and obtain gainful employment leading to a better life.

 

Tech4All, launched in December 2021,is Cognizant Foundation’s flagship program designed to skill women as well as persons with disabilities for careers in technology and technology-enabled services.

 

The inauguration ceremony was conducted in the presence of Ms. Nisha Deshpande, Senior Director, Delivery Excellence and a member of Cognizant Foundation’s Pune Core Committee, and Mr. Kishor Palve, Founder & CEO, Bright Future.

 

The new center is situated at Yerwada, on the Nagar Road, and easily accessible to the targeted communities. It is equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure and adheres to the highest standards of hygiene and safety, especially for the girls who will be trained in the center. This is the 15^th operational center of Bright Future in India after the successful functioning of 14 centers in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru in the past 13+ years of its establishment.

 

Mr. Kishor Palve, Founder & CEO, Bright Future, said, “I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the dedicated teams of Cognizant Foundation and Bright Future, to the aspirants, their parents, and our community stakeholders for making this possible. It has always been our endeavor to reach more young people while ensuring sustainability for their livelihoods. Women empowerment is one of the major concerns of our country and I am proud that we are able to come together to address this persistent impediment. It is important that we, as conscious individuals, do whatever is necessary for the women, the youth, the community, and our society.”

 

He further added, “Such collaborative efforts by all the stakeholders will surely take us closer to our mission to ensure a world where the young people have the guidance to choose a better career. Lastly, I would also like to take a moment to thank our supporters –donor partners, employer partners and volunteers for their continued support along with our efforts to serve the youth and communities over the last 13 years.”

 

Ms. Rajashree Natarajan, CEO of Cognizant Foundation said,“Tech4All started with two partners in four states less than two years ago. Today, we have scaled to seven states and collaborated with nine partners for implementation. We are happy to see how the programme has expanded, creating opportunities for everyone to shine in this digital economy. We will continue to look for more opportunities to help improve lives, deploying the power of digital technology to create significant impact and deliver maximum value to underserved communities. We deeply thank our partners and look forward to our continued engagement with all our stakeholders –thought leaders, NGO partners, experts, and government authorities to accelerate the impact of our work.”

 

About Bright Future

 

Bright Future is working around an entire ecosystem to build the change that lasts since 2009. We are focused towards bringing the tangible changes in each young person’s life by working with everyone involved –including their parents, teachers, communities, and panchayats, in addition to the young person themselves. We guide them at every step while they understand their interests, feasible careers, and we help them build their skills accordingly.

 

We run different programmes–Buniyaad, Bulandi & Badi Soch -that caters to the needs of the underserved communities in order to empower their livelihoods by providing necessary education, skilling, mentorship & career guidance.

 

Bright Future has successfully and positively impacted more than 40,000 lives till date and aims to impact 100,000 lives by 2025 across India.

 

About Cognizant Foundation

 

Cognizant Foundation India is one of the channels of Cognizant’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives in India. At Cognizant Foundation India, we are building a sustainable ecosystem at the intersection of inclusion, technology, and collaboration. The Foundation’s initiatives are along the two thematic areas of building an equitable society through education and skilling, and improving access to quality healthcare.

 

Our focus is on empowering persons with disabilities, promoting holistic child development and gender equality. Since its inception in 2005, the Foundation has implemented over 500 education, healthcare, and livelihood projects in partnership with several non-profit organizations, positively impacting the lives of millions across India.

 

Epoch Homes Launches Day Care in Pune: Specialized Dementia Day Care for Elders

 

·       Epoch Elder Care has more than 10 years of relevant experience in India

·       Epoch Elder Care has started a new Dementia Day Care program center in Pune Kharadi.

Dementia is a complex neurological condition often accompanied by psychiatric symptoms and behavioral challenges. It is often difficult to diagnose especially in the early stages and leaves caregivers feeling exhausted and confused. Dementia is progressive in nature and as of now, there is no treatment available for it. But all is not lost with a dementia diagnosis. Good management and a great supportive environment can help preserve the quality of life to a great extent. Early diagnosis and intervention has a critical role to play in the prognosis of the condition.

 Epoch Elder Care has more than 10 years of relevant experience in India, and is helmed by Neha Sinha, a dementia specialist & clinical psychologist, she is also trained in palliative care philosophy. They have 3 facilities, and they have started a new Dementia Day Care program center in Pune Kharadi.

On this launch, Neha Sinha co-founder and CEO shared her thoughts, "My grandmother was detected with Alzheimer’s that had an indelible impact on me and my family. Managing elders with dementia and maintaining their quality of life requires never ending patience, skill set and deep understanding about the condition. A day care centre is a good start to seek help and add structure and intervention to prevent fast deterioration in dementia. My goal is to lessen the stigma associated with dementia for elders.      I request one must reach out for professional care for      their parents for conditions such as dementia, since a lot can be done with early intervention.      Further she said,” dementia care can be very philosophy based. There are several approaches practiced globally At Epoch, we have specialized dementia care program for elders suffering from dementia of any type and across all stages.”

Epoch Dementia Day Care Program approach    

Epoch Dementia Day Care Program focuses on emotional well-being. It is a stimulating and supportive home-like environment for the elderly living with dementia, wherein they can freely engage in planned activities with their peers and receive nurturing care.

●        Holistic, person centered care

●        Structured, yet freely adaptive day-plan

●        Meaningful activities (cognitive/ motor/sensory/physical)

●        Evidence-based engagements (e.g. music, art, dance, doll therapies)

●        Social interactions and celebrations

●        Assistance in meals

Benefits of this program:

●        Promotes maximum level of independence

●        Normalizes and preserves the quality of life, as much as possible

●        Delays further stage progression

●        Restores, maintains the individual to the highest possible level of functioning

●        Enhances cognitive stimulation

●        Managing behavioral challenges

Founded in 2012, Epoch Elder Care provides premium care homes for elders with specialized needs, focused on conditions such as dementia, Parkinson’s, stroke, COPD etc. Epoch understands each resident living with dementia at a personal level. Caring for someone with dementia can often be a challenge. Simple tasks such as giving a shower or eating a meal become particularly difficult. Our team uses evidence-based methods to care for residents living with dementia to ensure they receive the highest quality of care in the most comfortable manner.

Some residents’ experiences:

"Our father has been under Epoch's care since 2014. The attention to medical / physical well-being as well as the sophisticated, caring approach to managing dementia that Epoch has provided is truly excellent, and way beyond anything else in India. While they operate professionally, it's with a warmth and flexibility that helps families like ours cope with the difficulties of this situation."

Daughter of an Epoch resident.

One NRI Son from Australia expresses his gratitude towards Epoch for his father who was a person with dementia, ‘Our father was a successful, well-respected entrepreneur and a fiercely independent person. Since my brother and I reside in Australia, we explored many facilities and options. And then we found Epoch! It took only a couple of interactions with Neha and her team and a brief visit of the facilities, to be reassured that we had found the perfect elder care home and environment for our father.”

Gratitude, integrity, and a strong sense of responsibility for the elderly is what ignites Epoch’s team towards greater heights. For more information please visit, https://www.epocheldercare.com/ , https://www.epocheldercare.com/about-us/care-leaders

 

GKN Aerospace delivers first product from state of the art wiring facility in India

 

·         $10 million investment and 800 jobs for highly skilled operators and engineers

·         A diverse workforce, including a significant proportion of female employees

·         Wholly owned electrical wiring interconnection systems business in Pune, India

 

A year after opening its new factory all-new facility for Electrical Wiring Interconnection Systems (EWIS) in Pune, India. GKN Aerospace shipped its first product to the customer.

 

Maarten Durville, Managing Director: “As a supplier in the aeroplane industry, we were severely impacted by the pandemic and the lockdown. Just when we had trained our team to Aerospace level, we had to shut down. I am very proud that we can leave this chapter behind us and ship the first product. We can look forward again: the lockdown was just a delay in our growth plan, we have added 50 employees in the last months and are on track to grow to 300 next year.”

 

The first product is a wire harness for Collins Aerospace and will be employed in the Air management system of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. GKN Aerospace will grow the $10 million site, with a surface of 11,000m2, to 800 persons within five years. GKN Aerospace will recruit a significant number of female operators and engineers and will provide on-site training for employees. A team of 30 persons has been built to date. GKN Aerospace has invested $10 million in the site and in its state of the art equipment and technologies. The expansion to Asia is an important part of GKN Aerospace’s long-term growth strategy and global operating model.

 

About GKN Aerospace:- GKN Aerospace is the world’s leading multi-technology tier 1 aerospace supplier. As a global company serving the world’s leading aircraft manufacturers, GKN Aerospace develops, builds and supplies an extensive range of advanced aerospace systems, components and technologies– for use in aircraft ranging from helicopters and business jets to the most used single-aisle aircraft and the largest passenger planes in the world.

 Lightweight composites, additive manufacturing, innovative engine systems and smart transparencies help to reduce emissions and weight on the aircraft and enhance passenger comfort. GKN Aerospace is market leading in aerostructures, engine systems, transparencies and wiring systems and operates in 15 countries at 50 manufacturing locations employing approximately 18,000 people.

SEBI INVESTIGATION EXPOSES “AGENT” ALAWANI FOR HELPING ATUL KIRLOSKAR IN 275 CR FRAUD AT KIRLOSKAR INDUSTRIES LIMITED

 

SEBI has slapped a penalty of Rs.15 lakhs to Kirloskar Industries (KIL) Director, AN Alawani for indulging in fraudulent and unfair trade practices and alleged that he helped the promoters who owned 15% of the company to walk away with Rs. 275 crores. The regular has also barred him from the capital markets for period of six months.

Even though  Mr. Alawani did not trade in shares in his own personal trading account, SEBI in their note said he  was an insider as he was in possession of the UPSI. He was trading as an authorised “agent” for and behalf of the Kirloskar Industries (KIL). The note added that he aided KIL promoters in selling their shares of Kirloskar Brothers Ltd (KBL) to Kirloskar Industries (KIL) thus together have allegedly committed fraud on KIL and public/ minority shareholders of the company.

In KBL’s board meeting held on 27th July 2010, the management disclosed the poor profitability of KBL. This was clearly confidential information, and also UPSI under SEBI regulations. KBL directors Gautam Kulkarni, Rahul Kirloskar and AN Alawani who attended the said board meeting, were privy to this UPSI. The very next day, on July 28, at the Kirloskar Industries board meeting, its Chairman Atul Kirloskar, Rahul Kirloskar's brother, added a new item, not on the agenda, shockingly suggesting that Kirloskar Industries invest its surplus funds by buying KBL shares on the false representation that KBL would do well.

After suggesting that Kirloskar Industries buys KBL shares, Atul Kirloskar and Nihal (Gautam Kulkarni’s son) being directly interested as sellers, “excused” themselves from discussions on this subject. It was left to two Group executives AN Alawani – the then Audit Committee Chairman, AR Sathe who chaired the board meeting in the absence of Atul Kirloskar, and another director, to vote to buy the KBL shares.

SEBI said, that Mr.Alawani who was on the audit committee chairman of Kirloskar Industries was also on the board of KBL and being a non-executive director, makes him a ’connected person’ with KBL, and thus it is reasonably expected that he had access to unpublished price sensitive information  of KBL. He had participated in Kirloskar Industries board meeting and thus had a direct role and access to UPSI leading to the inducement of KIL to buy shares of KBL.

Despite hearing about the poor profitability of KBL the previous day, Mr. Alawani did not tell the other directors that it would be wrong to invest Kirloskar Industries’ funds in KBL shares, but participated and voted to buy the shares of a company he knew was going to have very poor profitability for the long term. He helped the promoters who owned 15% of the company to walk away with Rs. 275 crores.

SEBI has also asked Gautam Kulkarni, Rahul Kirloskar, Atul Kirloskar, Alpana Kirloskar, Jyotsna Kulkarni and Arti Kirloskar to pay up Rs. 31.21 crore in 45 days and have been barred from the capital markets for six months, for indulging in insider trading and committing fraud on public shareholders.

FLAME University Team is the Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa winner of Global Online Marketing Academics Challenge (GOMAC), Second Time in A Row

FLAME University, the pioneer of liberal education in India, once again wins the Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa Global Online Marketing Academics Challenge (GOMAC) of 2020. It had won this accolade on the prestigious international platform in 2019 as well. The team members, Edward D’souza, Shreya Mohta, Ishanika Sehgal, Soumya Biradar and Namitha Ravindran, all MBA (Communications Management) students at FLAME University, were awarded this title after beating stiff competition from 83 teams across 15 countries, many of which were from renowned global schools.

The prestigious digital marketing competition – GOMAC – is a showcase for digital enthusiasts coming from all over the world. Thousands of bright minds compete in the month-long competition with the goal of not only creating the best digital marketing experience for a chosen client but providing outstanding campaign results too. The team from FLAME University picked Questern Tours, a Pune-based company, and impressed the judges with their impressive results. They were praised for the level of detail in their analysis and the clear and logical explanations provided related to campaign results. The team exceeded their campaign goals in website traffic and social media likes, which clearly paved their way to the win.

Edward D’souza, Shreya Mohta, Ishanika Sehgal, Soumya Biradar and Namitha Ravindran had enrolled for the challenge as a part of their major in Digital Marketing and Communications. They were mentored by Prof. Rohit Tiwari, faculty of digital marketing, FLAME University, under whose guidance the team provided handcrafted itineraries for sports events, management of athlete logistics, and touring packages including local cuisine and culture. The GOMAC website while congratulating the regional winners stated that the judges felt this team’s approach was very professional and their efforts were very much in line with the organization’s goals. The reports included good use of graphics and a thorough write-up.

Prof. Rohit Tiwari while congratulating the students said, “FLAME University students have continued the winning streak by managing an outstanding campaign that was focused on its approach and delivered upon its objectives. This shows the strategy that the team formulated worked well. As a part of Digital Marketing and Communications specialization, the students get the opportunity to interact with top industry professionals and learn the best practices for advertising on different platforms like Google, Facebook, etc. This project-based learning is a good methodology where students get to execute all that they have learned by working on a real-life project and compete in a prestigious global competition like GOMAC.”

FLAME School of Communication offers courses in Advertising and Branding, Journalism, Digital Marketing and Communications and Film and Television Management. The team believes that quick thinking and flexibility was possible because of the interdisciplinary nature of studies at FLAME University. It has constantly encouraged them to think beyond the tried and tested strategies and equipped them with the skills to adapt to diverse situations and perspectives. These skills along with their solid understanding of digital marketing were instrumental in their winning the challenge, which also provided them excellent firsthand industry exposure.

 

 

 

Leading Ad Agency Drags Danik Bhaskar To Court For

Copyright Infringement, Plagiarism

 

All About Ads Private Limited, a leading award-winning advertising agency having its operations in 16 states in India, has dragged Divya Bhaskar of Dainik Bhaskar Group to court for copyright infringement and plagiarism of its work "Desh ke Hero" campaign which was created for the Government of India (GoI). The campaign aimed at felicitating Corona Warriors across the nation.

 

A civil suit has been filed by Ankur Jain, director of All About Ads Private Limited, before the Commercial Court at Mizapur, Ahmedabad and sought damages to the tune of Rs 9.5 crore along with seeking a restrain on Divya Bhaskar from publishing the contentious ad campaign.

 

Apart from Divya Bhaskar (Dainik Bhaskar Group), its Chief Executive Officer Sanjeev Chauhan and Managing Directors Girish Agarwal and Sudhir Agarwal have also been named in the suit. The media house’s Brand Head Amit Rathod and Eight Petals Creative Solution Private Limited have also been added as defendants in the suit.

 

Divya Bhaskar is a leading Gujarati newspaper in Gujarat owned by D B Corp Ltd. It has one of the highest circulation of Gujarati dailies, with the most number of editions in Gujarat. The Dainik Bhaskar Group started its Hindi newspaper Dainik Bhaskar in Bhopal in 1958. Later, it launched its Indore edition in 1983. Today, Dainik Bhaskar Group is present in 12 states with 65 editions in Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati.

 

Mr Ankur Jain’s advocate, Dr Sarvam Khare, said that the civil court issued summons - notice to Dainik Bhaskar Group on September 19. The civil suit is kept for hearing on October 1.

 

All About Ads has also filed a criminal case before the magistrate court at Mizapur, Ahmedabad which was heard on September 7. “As per the directions of the magistrate, the police have recorded my statement,” said Mr Ankur Jain.

 

It is pertinent to note that Intellectual Property Rights of plaintiffs are recognized by the Event Management Federation.

 

Details from the plaint

 

In April, plaintiff created the project “Desh Ke Hero” for the GoI as a national campaign to facilitate honouring of Corona Warriors, wherein merchandise and certificates were to be presented to the awardees. This project was created in the form of literary script, dramatic, artistic and visual work presentation under title “Desh Ke Hero” which qualifies to be original literary, artistic and dramatic work within the meaning of Section 2(y) of the Copyright Act 1957.

 

The campaign was proposed to the GoI and was first published by the plaintiff on April 11, 2020.

 

Mr Ankur Jain, who started from a one-room office in Ahmedabad, Gujarat in 2010-11, has worked for various MNCs, BJP and GoI, including on the ‘Fir ek baar Modi Sarkar’ campaign for 2019 the Lok Sabha election. He said, “My team and I worked really hard for ‘Desh ke Hero’ campaign and it was wrong on the part of Divya Bhaskar to steal the concept and showcase ‘Gujarat Hero’ campaign as theirs.”

 

The plagiarism

 

Mr Ankur Jain, who has known Mr Amit Rathod (Brand Head, Divya Bhaskar) since 2013 as they have worked together commercially on several campaigns created by the plaintiff, shared his work with the latter in good faith for his feedback and review.

 

Dr Khare, said that the shared work bore a “specific DISCLAIMER at the end which specified that the information contained in the presentation was privileged and that the entire presentation was the property of the plaintiffs.” Mr Amit Rathod, not only breached the trust, but also infringed the plaintiffs’ copyright by sharing the campaign work with Sanjeev Chauhan, CEO, Divya Bhaskar.

 

On July 31, 2020, Mr Ankur Jain learnt that the defendants had reproduced his work and put their name on another campaign titled “Gujarat Hero”. The campaign “Gujarat Hero” is not a case of innocent adoption, but of a fraudulent and dishonest adoption. The defendants did not obtain any license, permission and/or consent from the plaintiffs and have used the said script for campaign solely for the self-serving interest.

 

On confrontation, Mr Amit Rathod admitted that he had made a mistake and that he will discuss this with his editor. On August 1, 2020, Mr Ankur Jain, Mr Amit Rathod and Mr Sanjeev Chauhan had a telephonic conversation. Later, Mr Amit Rathod also sent a WhatsApp message to Mr Ankur Jain apologizing for the incident. The transcripts of all the calls and a screenshot of the message have been annexed with the plaint before the civil court.

 

Fraud with the Gujarat Government

 

It was later learnt that the defendants dishonestly obtained the consent of the Gujarat Government for the campaign. The Plaintiffs have utmost belief that Gujarat government would not have supported or contributed in their campaign “Gujarat Hero” if it was aware that the defendants have committed theft of the intellectual property of plaintiffs; and have misappropriated their confidential data. The defendants also suppressed the fact from the Gujarat Government that the plaintiffs were in talks with the GoI for the release of the campaign “Desh Ke Hero”.

 

The plaintiffs have issued a legal notice to the defendants on August 5, 2020. Also, an intimation letter has been sent to Mr Ashwini Kumar (Secretary to Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat) giving details of the dispute and the illegality committed by Dainik Bhaskar Group.

 

 

Prayers in the plaint

 

The plaintiffs have sought that the defendants be restrained from using their campaign “Gujarat Hero”. It is further sought that the court declare that the campaign “Gujarat Hero” is a work of copyright infringement and plagiarism of the plaintiffs’ campaign “Desh Ke Hero”. The plaint also prays that the defendants be ordered to destroy all the material prepared for “Gujarat Hero” campaign and the domain www.gujarathero.com. The plaintiffs have also sought token damage for illegally using their work. It is also prayed that the defendants be directed to produce their books of accounts to ascertain the profits earned by the defendants by commercializing and reproducing the plaintiffs’ work.

 

About Ankur Jain and All About Ads Private Limited

 

Ankur Jain is founder director of All About Ads Pvt. Ltd. He is an author and owner of various types of literary, dramatic, artistic, cinematic, visual work used in advertising scripts and is a veteran in the industry of advertising and promotions since more than a decade.

 

Having its operation in 16 states in India, All About Ads Private Limited designs and executes complete 360 degree campaigns for various organizations including Corporate houses, political parties and various governments, including the Government of India to create awareness among people at large national and state level. It is an ISO 9001:2008 certified advertising agency, having an in-house set up to provide integrated 360 degree solution across India.

 

The award – winning agency has won many awards in different segments one of them being the Gold Award for “Best Intellectual property of the year” in 2017 at EMF Global Awards, Dubai.

All About Ads has been named in the Limca Book of Records for conceptualizing and executing the biggest Dandia Sticks in 2016. It has also cracked Guinness book, Limca book & golden book of records for its innovative concepts for clients in various events / activations.

 

 

Website : http://www.allaboutads.co.in/

 

Sebi pulls up Kirloskar Industries Promoters for fraud

 The markets regulator has charged promotors of Kirloskar Industries, Atul & Rahul Kirloskar with fraud in a decade-old case of the promoter group selling a 13.5% stake in the then-ailing company KBL to Kirloskar Industries Ltd, harming the interests of minority investors.

In a show cause notice to the six promoters of KBL and two others, Sebi alleged that the promoter group was aware of the precarious financial condition of KBL when these shares were sold, committing a fraud on minority shareholders of Kirloskar Industries. The notice was sent in December 2019.

As reported in media, Sebi’s assessment is that the ill-gotten gains in the transaction could be in excess of ₹350 crore, which includes the value of the sale transaction and profit

The promoter group on October 6, 2010 sold 10.72 million shares of KBL worth ₹275 crore in the company to Kirloskar Industries. Sebi has charged the individual promoters of KBL and two others under the Prevention of Fraud and Unfair Trade Practices. The regulator alleged that Gautam Kulkarni, Rahul Kirloskar, Atul Kirloskar, Alpana Kirloskar, Jyotsna Kulkarni and Arti Kirloskar were the direct beneficiaries of the sale.

Sebi observed in the notice that four out of the five directors of Kirloskar Industries were aware of the deteriorating financial position of KBL and thus were duty-bound to check if the decision to buy those shares were in the interest of the company and its stakeholders.

Further, these directors, by inducing Kirloskar Industries to buy shares of KBL, allowed the six individual promoters to dump their shares.

According to the notice, Sebi during the course of investigation had sought information from Kirloskar Industries whether it was aware of KBL’S financial position in 2009 and 2010 before it arrived at a decision to buy its shares. Kirloskar Industries replied that it had only considered the growth and profitability of KBL.

A spokesperson for Kirloskar Industries said: “We reject any suggestion of wrongdoing and refute these allegations. The sale of shares (in 2010) was completed in line with the applicable laws, appropriate stock exchange disclosures and necessary regulatory pre-clearances. We continue to cooperate fully with Sebi in relation to its ongoing enquiries and remain confident of our position.”