Category: Business

KOCHI TO GET AN INFRASTRUCTURAL FACELIFT IN 2021

The year 2021 will be witnessing a grandiose infrastructural facelift of Kochi, the stupendous port city of Kerala. Kochi has undergone a massive transformation during the past decade, with the launch of Cochin International Airport, Cochin Shipyard, Infopark, Kochi Metro etc which has uplifted it from a tiny port city to a metropolitan urban city we see today. Enormous investment in the construction and expansion of roads and bridges has increased the pace of life in the city. 

With the inauguration of the Vytilla and Kundannor flyovers, the two major projects which Kochi has been anticipating for a long time; the city has kickstarted its infrastructural facelift of 2021. The Vytilla Kundanoor flyovers built under the supervision of  Roads and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala (RBDCK) are expected to reduce the traffic congestion at the busiest junctions of the city. With the completion of the Palarivattom flyover by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation in the coming months, commutation through and within the city will become facile.

The first phase of Kochi Water Metro, a project introduced as an alternative public transport system to reduce traffic congestion within the city with minimal pollution is expected to be completed by mid-2021 under the supervision of Kochi Metro Rail Limited. Kochi will become the first city in the country to have an integrated road, metro rail and water transport system under one roof with the launch of this project. The Phase I extension of the Kochi Metro to Tripunithura is expected to be completed this year. 

Efforts to resolve the waterlogging and flooding in Kochi during monsoon season as a follow up to Operation Breakthrough is said to begin in March 2021. Several innovative projects such as rooftop solar panel projects and Intelligent Traffic Management System have been rolled out by Cochin Smart Mission Limited (CMRL). A walkway development project, an open-air theatre and renovation of Dutch Palace premises in the Fort Kochi area will also be carried out this year.

The Ernakulam Medical College Hospital was transformed earlier this year into a state-of-the-art healthcare hub that the state can be proud of. The commissioning of the GAIL pipeline in January by the Prime Minister marked a historical achievement as the city and the government had to tackle numerous hard knocks to make the project a reality. With the launch of numerous infrastructural and economically uplifting projects, Kochi is expected to become one of the leading metropolitan cities in the coming decade.

WILL OTT PLATFORMS REPLACE MOVIE THEATRES IN FUTURE ?

Over The Top (OTT) platforms are on-demand content streaming services which provide the viewers access to movies and TV shows directly through the internet rather than using broadcasting mediums like cable TV, satellite TV etc. Some of the most common OTT platforms are NETFLIX, AMAZON PRIME VIDEO, HOTSTAR etc. The spontaneous boom of OTT platforms happened out of the blue when people were forced to stay back at their homes during lockdowns imposed due to the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic. The major advantage of OTT services over the traditional platforms is the convenience of watching favourite shows at our fingertip within the comforts of our home at a reasonable cost. 

Recent reports have shown that the OTT platforms promises the low budget films with less saleable names, a larger audience with a considerable slashed cost on advertisement and distribution. With the shutdown of movie theatres, OTT releases of latest movies became a new trend. In view of the rapidly increasing consumers, the OTT platforms have now shifted their focus onto creating contents on their own meeting the varying demands and tastes of its viewers.

The discourse on positioning the OTT streaming platforms and theatres is a present-day development in the entertainment sector. Cinema being one of the worst hit industries during the pandemic found itself in a greater challenge of sustenance. The effect nudged to the surface by this crisis was evenly handed for both the movie lovers and film industrial workers. This opens the door to the heroic entrance of OTT platforms saving both parties, granting industry the monetary benefits and viewers a platform to entertain themselves within their homely comforts at an affordable rate which propounds a win-win situation. Having said that, the inaccessibility of the OTT services to a large mass counts as the worst part as it is the working middle class people, the so called majority consumers, who contribute to more than 75% of the viewership leaving the rest 25% to decide between poor, lower middle class and elites. The OTT  results in the shutting down of entertainment to the unfortunate for whom technology is still a luxury.

OTT platforms are never a newly discovered competition for theatres as they have lived through the worst times and challenges during VCRs, DVDs and the still relevant piracy days. This testifies the unending interest  people carry for the theatrical experiences and any alteration is beyond thought. Though the OTT media services are propelled by the rise in the standard of living, evolution of smartphones, and affordable internet connectivity; socialising and community viewing experience from theatres will remain unmatched. Moreover, the real like involvement  offered  by big screens  is something the streaming platforms can never tone with . In conclusion, OTT platforms can coexist with the theatres but never top it.

WHEN THE GATEWAY FOR INDIANS TO HOLLYWOOD CLOSES

After their two decades of service, the renowned English film channel HBO which served as a gateway for Indians to Hollywood Movies, has discontinued its airing in India on 15th December 2020. WarnerMedia International has already announced that they will be shutting down HBO and WB movies in other South Asian countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Maldives along with India by the end of the year 2020. This decision was taken as a result of the shifting market dynamics with the introduction of OTT streaming platforms like Amazon Prime, Netflix e.t.c. Even though there was an exponential growth in the number of viewers preferring to view contents in english, TV channels like HBO and WB were unable to capitalize on this, but to loose their grounds owing to the stringent competition from the on demand streaming platforms.

“After 20 years of successes for the HBO linear movie channel in South Asia and more than a decade with the WB linear movie channel, this was a difficult decision to make. The pay-TV industry landscape and the market dynamics have shifted dramatically, and the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for further change,” said Siddharth Jain, senior vice president and managing director for WarnerMedia’s entertainment networks in South Asia. 

WarnerMedia International is planning for a resurgence to the South Asian market through launching their own streaming service named HBO Max. But for the time being, they will be offering their content through Disney’s streaming platform. They have also declared that their entertainment organization will continue its broadcasting in popular kids channels like Cartoon Network, POGO e.t.c in the South Asian region. They are planning to invest more in this stream, with a focus on local animation production.

For Gen Z Indians, HBO has always been a part of their childhood. They were introduced to the world of Hollywood movies through the channel. Though the newly introduced OTT platforms provide great contents, for most of the Indians who grew up watching the likes of Harry Potter, Home Alone series, e.t.c, the shutdown of HBO will be considered as a great loss.

Fantasy sport in India: Legal or Illegal

Fantasy sport is an online game that involves selection of and competition among virtual teams for points. These points can be redeemed in prizes, including money. However, when cash for stakes is involved, a fantasy game or sport is required to comply with additional legal compliances.

There is no legal definition for “fantasy sports” in India. Games of chance fall under gambling and are thereby restricted by state gambling laws. Fantasy Sport is classed as a game of skill, rather than chance. The Supreme Court of India has explained skill in terms of “superior knowledge, training, attention, experience and adroitness… although the element of chance necessarily cannot be entirely eliminated”. It is the dominant element, either ‘skill’ or ‘chance’ that determines the character of the game.

 However, games involving considerable and substantial degree of skill (mathematically, more than 50%) fall outside the extent of betting laws and consequently are legitimate in India. Courts have examined the game format of Dream11 and have considered its format as ‘game of skill’. Courts have not examined any other fantasy gaming formats and have not offered any views, judgments, or analyses the format of any other fantasy gaming platform. Whether a fantasy sport is a game of chance or a game of skill, legality is based on the modalities of each game.

As there are no set of government regulations, Fantasy industry standards in India are regulated by Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS. Self-regularisation norms for the Indian fantasy sports industry is set up by the federation until the government comes out with any standards and laws.

The gambling laws in India are State specific. In most State enactments games of skill are excluded from the application of gambling laws.

When it comes to taxation, as per the Indian rule, 18% GST is applicable on games that are skill-based, like Dream11’s format, and fantasy sports gaming. The court referred to Schedule III of the Central Goods and Services Act, 2017 which states that ‘actionable claims, other than lottery, gambling and betting’ are excluded from the scope of supply.”
To understand it definition of the gambling is reproduced hereinafter:
‘Gambling’ as per most Gambling Legislation is understood to mean “the act of wagering or betting” for money or money’s worth. Gambling under the Gambling Legislations however does typically not include (i) wagering
or betting upon a horse-race/dog-race, when such wagering or betting takes place in certain
circumstances, (ii) games of “mere skill” and (iii) lotteries (which is covered under Lottery Laws).

Online gaming is Legal up to the extent, when there is use of skill which can be said as when the chances to win are not wholly based on probability, The key points from an Indian High Court’s judgment specifically regarding (challenge to this judgment was also dismissed by the Supreme Court of India therefore it attained finality)

The Court, in its ruling, stated that playing the online game involves considerable skill, judgment and discretion and that success on online games arises out of users’ exercise, superior knowledge, judgment and attention
The Court also held that ‘the element of skill’ had a predominant influence on the outcome of the game, which follows the following format:
Participants have to choose a team consisting of at least the same no. of players as playing in a real-life sports team (e.g.11 in cricket/football, 7 in handball, 7 in kabaddi )
All contests are run for at least the duration of one full sports match
No team changes are allowed by participants after the start of the sports match
On this basis, the Court adjudged that playing on constitutes a ‘game of mere skill’, which makes the game exempt from the provisions of the Public Gambling Act, 1867 (PGA).
Finally, the Court held that the online gaming is a legitimate business activity protected under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India.
You can find more information on the legality of Fantasy Sports in India on the website of the Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG): http://www.ifsg.in. IFSG is India’s first and only self-regulatory Sports Gaming industry body formed to protect consumer interest and create standardized best practices in the Sports Gaming industry.

Fantasy Cricket launched in India

As a strategy-based game, Fantasy Cricket requires thorough sports knowledge and research skills, meaning the outcome does not depend on luck but on the actual performances on your chosen players on the field.
Till now, many such fantasy sports app or websites are available like Dream 11, Ballebaazi, Fanfight, Playerzpot, Real cricket and many more. Dream 11 is also the first and top in all others. Dream 11 is also the title Sponsor of IPL season 13, starting from 19th September in UAE under Bio secure Bubble. They offer fantasy cricket and fantasy football.

In simple words, this is legal because here you use your knowledge and understanding although there is a luck factor but not in entirety. However, if you are resident of Assam, Odisha, Telangana, Nagaland and Sikkim, you are not legally permitted to play online games for a fee. The laws are different in these Indian states.

Since fantasy sports involve skills, it does not fall in the gambling category of games in India. Other than fantasy sports in India, Indian laws have categorised Rummy, Chess, Carrom, and Wagering on Horse Races as games of skill.

Lockdown or Unlock rumours: what’s next on the brink

a message about a complete lockdown is going viral on social media platforms. Reports that the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) had recommended the Centre to impose another lockdown from September 25 have gone viral on social media, along with a screenshot claiming to be of the NDMA’s order.

“In order to contain the spread of Covid-19 and decrease the mortality rate in the country, the National Disaster Management Authority, along with the Planning commission, hereby urges the government of India and directs the Prime Minister office, ministry of home affairs to re-impose a strict nationwide lockdown of 46 days starting from midnight September 25, 2020. Maintaining the supply chain of essential commodities in the country, therefore hereby NDMA is issuing a prior notice to the ministry to plan accordingly,” said the “order”.

PIB tweeted that the NDMA ‘order’ in circulation was fake.

“Claim: An order purportedly issued by National Disaster Management Authority claims that it has directed the government to re-impose a nationwide lockdown from 25th September. PIB Fact Check: This order is Fake. NDMA has not issued any such order to re-impose lockdown,” PIB tweeted.
Amid rising coronavirus COVID-19 cases in India, the government on Monday (September 14) rejected reports that another lockdown had been recommended from September 25 to curb the spread of the coronavirus in the country. The news was denied by Press Information Bureau in a post with a “Fake News” alert.

India was under a strict lockdown from March 25 to slow down the spread of the coronavirus. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had imposed a nationwide lockdown in March-end to contain the spread of the coronavirus. All activities were prohibited except essential activities during the lockdown period.

The coronavirus-induced restrictions and the lockdown measures have been eased in a phased manner since June.

The lockdown is being eased in a phased manner since June. The rumours of another lockdown come amidst a surge in coronavirus cases in the country. India is currently the second worst-hit country in the world and has recorded over 48 lakh infections. The country is also registering over 90,000 cases daily for the past few days.

In last few weeks many such fake news was revolving around the corner, stating different rules regarding the next phase being imposed in India. Most of the news was about the rules of unlock guidelines. However, the clicking part was some regulation regarding sectors that will be opened from coming days. There were no proper circular regarding what will open when what other portion of market will remain shut.

The Health Ministry had on September 8 issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) for a partial reopening of schools for students of classes 9 to 12 for taking guidance from their teachers on a voluntary basis.

The SOP follows Unlock 4 guidelines of Home Ministry which came into effect from September 1.

The health ministry issued the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for Skill training institutes, Higher Education Institutes conducting courses in technical programs requiring lab work to be permitted from September 21. As per the guidelines, the seating arrangement should be done in an order to ensure a distance of 6 feet between chairs, desks.

Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Ashwini Kr. Choubey shared a picture of the guidelines on his Twitter handle on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said despite “unlock” measures to open up the economy, citizens must follow all precautions including masks and social distancing until a vaccine is found.

Route Mobile IPO: After Subscription duration

The IPO, which is being sold at Rs 345-350 per share, is seeking a valuation of 29 times PE on FY20 basis (fully diluted). Analysts are positive on the issue and believe the IPO can offer listing pop as well as long-term gains.
Analysts are positive on the issue and believe the IPO can offer listing pop as well as long-term gains.

Route Mobile Ltd.’s initial public offering (IPO) was fully subscribed on the very first day of bidding as it attracted a large influx of retail investors oversubscribing their portion. The Rs 600-crore issue includes a fresh issue of Rs 240 crore and an Offer For Sale (OFS) of up to Rs 360 crore. It enters the market at a time when liquidity is abundant and IPOs are being welcomed with an overwhelming response, as is evident from the Happiest Minds Technologies issue which was subscribed 151 times. Route Mobile has already managed to collect Rs 180 crore from anchor 15 investors, before the issue opened yesterday.

Route Mobile provides cloud-communication platform as a service to enterprises, over-the-top (OTT) players and mobile network operators (MNOs). Its range of enterprise communication services includes application-to-peer (A2P)/peer-to-application (P2A)/2-Way Messaging, RCS, OTT business messaging, voice, email, and omni-channel communication.
The Rs 600 crore IPO by Route Mobile received 5 times bids so far on Day 3 of the bidding process. As per data available with BSE and NSE, the issue received bids for 6,15,32,960 shares by 11 pm on Friday, which was 5.05 times the total issue size of 1,21,73,912 shares.

The company has no listed peers. The proxy peers, which have a small presence in services offered by Route Mobile, are Tanla Solutions and Tata Communications. Continuous development of omni-channel digital communication offerings and innovative solutions focus on developer community program, service offerings through inorganic opportunities and growing presence in additional markets to serve clients locally augurs well with the company going ahead,” said Ashika Institutional Equities.

Route Mobile is going to use the net fresh issue proceeds for repayment or prepayment of certain borrowings, acquisitions and other strategic initiatives, purchase of office premises in Mumbai and general corporate purposes.

The Rs 600-crore public issue witnessed strong subscription of 73.3 times during September 9-11 as the portion set aside for qualified institutional investors was subscribed 89.76 times, non-institutional investors 192.8 times and that of retail investors 12.66 times on final day. “As expected, Route Mobile received an overwhelming response from all the category of investors. We are positive on the future outlook for the industry as well as the company. We expect good listing,” Keshav Lahoti- Associate Equity Analyst at Angel Broking told in Moneycontrol’s release.

Ahead of the IPO, Route Mobile had raised ₹180 crore from 15 anchor investors, including Goldman Sachs, SBI Life Insurance, and SBI Mutual Fund. Route Mobile offered 1.71 crore shares at a price band of ₹345-350 apiece. According to brokerages, Route Mobile shares are likely to get listed on 21st September. KFintech Pvt Ltd is the registrar of the issue. ICICI Securities, Axis Capital, Edelweiss Financial Services and IDBI Capital Markets & Securities are the managers to the issue.

Digital Marketing: An Emerging Field

The importance of digital marketing is taking quantum jumps in today’s business world. The world has become so digital now even small kids are becoming tech-savvy and started doing digital experiments. People have realized the importance of digital marketing in today’s competitive world, and so our young curious minds. Digital Marketing as a career has benefits which far outweigh other streams of Marketing, in much the same way demand outweighs the supply of Digital Marketing professionals. Yes, that’s right. The demand for professionals in the Online Marketing field has high sky-rocketed ever since companies realized that traditional channels of Marketing alone won’t bring in revenue. 70% of marketing job openings now require digital skills.

Digital marketing skills are so high in demand right now that many companies prefer giving jobs to the candidate who is digital amateur. But unfortunately, there are lot of jobs available but not enough readily adequate people to fill them. Today all job profiles seek practical knowledge. Going for a job interview with an academic degree does not work nowadays as these people are instantly rejected undoubtedly, Digital Marketing is a versatile and rewarding career.
With increasing budgets, higher pay and expanding career choices, the digital domain is finally being taken seriously. There has been an increase in Digital Marketing jobs worldwide, and Digital Marketers are hot property. With the possibility of steering your own career, the benefits of Digital Marketing are immense.


Various subfields spinning out of the Digital Marketing domain are in themselves full-fledged with a wide range of career options.

  1. SEO- Search Engine Optimization is the art of getting a high rank for a website in SERP’s.
  2. SEM- Search Engine Marketing involves using paid methods for maximum outreach.
  3. SMM- Social Media Marketing involves optimizing content and using social media to reach the target audience.
  4. Email Marketing- Effective Emails are written and designed for engagement and increasing product reach.
  5. Content Marketing- Effective copy and content are extremely important in engaging users.

Other than these most favourable career options of Digital Marketing, there are many other choices available such as Analytics, Copywriting, Web Design and Development, Advertising etc.

1. Compete with Large Corporations- Digital Marketing can enable you to compete head and head with large corporations. With Digital Marketing, you can get a coma competitive advantage even as a startup or small business leader.

2. Get Prepared For The ‘Internet Of Things’- As people are getting tech-savvy would be a good move to promote your business through the digital platform. This can help you connect with your customers anytime and anywhere in an effective way.

3. Earn People’s Trust And Build Brand Reputation- It’s important to classify brand objectives with customers interest. Digital Marketing can help target the right customers in a substantial way.

4. Ensure Online Business Survival- Digital Marketers can implement innovative ways to entice customers. By targeting the right kind of people, marketers can take the necessary steps for betterment and success for their businesses.

5. Know All About Your Competitors- Many brands and businesses are ramping up on their digital marketing campaigns, using various channels. Have a look at your comcompetitor’srategies and plan yours accordingly to get an edge over them.

6. Real-Time Results- Digital Marketing lets you know how influential your approach has been. By understanding the scenario, you can take the necessary steps to retouch the results in stipulated time.

7. Improve Your Outreach- The online platform is the best medium to connect with your customers worldwide. With Online Marketing, you can be more fetching in terms of providing earnest responses to the relevant queries and feedback.

Final Thoughts:
If there ever was a time to jump on the digital career bandwagon, then this is the time. Make yourself the perfect fit to fill in the Digital Marketing skill gap and open the doors to a wide variety of career choices. With the domain still in its infancy, the possibilities are endless but one thing is for sure: it’s only going to get better from here.

Money does not get Locked ,it’s get invested:MUTUAL FUNDS

A mutual fund is a company that pools money from many investors and invests the money in securities such as stocks, bonds, and short-term debt. The combined holdings of the mutual fund are known as its portfolio. Investors buy shares in mutual funds.

Mutual funds are a popular choice among investors because they generally offer the following features:

  • Professional Management. The fund managers do the research for you. They select the securities and monitor the performance.
  • Diversification or “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Mutual funds typically invest in a range of companies and industries. This helps to lower your risk if one company fails.
  • Affordability. Most mutual funds set a relatively low dollar amount for initial investment and subsequent purchases.
  • Liquidity. Mutual fund investors can easily redeem their shares at any time, for the current net asset value (NAV) plus any redemption fees.

How to buy and sell mutual funds

Investors buy mutual fund shares from the fund itself or through a broker for the fund, rather than from other investors. The price that investors pay for the mutual fund is the fund’s per share net asset value plus any fees charged at the time of purchase, such as sales loads.Mutual fund shares are “redeemable,” meaning investors can sell the shares back to the fund at any time. The fund usually must send you the payment within seven days.

Types of mutual funds

  • Money Market Funds: have relatively low risks. By law, they can invest only in certain high-quality, short-term investments issued by U.S. corporations, and federal, state and local governments.
  • Bond funds: have higher risks than money market funds because they typically aim to produce higher returns. Because there are many different types of bonds, the risks and rewards of bond funds can vary dramatically.
  • Stock funds: invest in corporate stocks. Not all stock funds are the same. Some examples are:
    • Growth funds focus on stocks that may not pay a regular dividend but have potential for above-average financial gains.
    • Income funds invest in stocks that pay regular dividends.
    • Index funds track a particular market index such as the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
    • Sector funds specialize in a particular industry segment.
  • Target date funds: hold a mix of stocks, bonds, and other investments. Over time, the mix gradually shifts according to the fund’s strategy. Target date funds, sometimes known as lifecycle funds, are designed for individuals with particular retirement dates in mind.

Women participation in equity markets grows during Covid-19 pandemic

Women participation in equity markets has surged during the pandemic and experts believe the growing need to share household expenses with rampant pay cuts and lay-offs has brought them to trading.Additionally,women are looking for alternatives to the decreasing bank’s fixed deposit (FD) rates, they added.Interestingly, most of such women are first time investors and a large number of them are housewives.”As retail participation has grown during the lockdown, this has been true for women as well. In line with the overall investors population, women are looking for alternatives to decreasing FD rates,” said Shankar Vailaya – Director, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.”Lockdown has just been an accelerator allowing women to deepen their capital market knowledge via digital solutions,”Vailaya added.Online brokerage house Upstox said it has witnessed a growth of 32 per cent in account opening by women from April to June 2020, compared to the preceding three months.Of these, 70 percent of women are first time investors. Additionally, more than 35 per cent of the brokerage house’s women customers are housewives.According to Upstox, around 74 per cent of female customers are from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities like Visakhapatnam, Jaipur, Surat, Ranga Reddy, Nagpur, Nashik, Guntur, among others.Out of the overall number of active female customers, 55 per cent are traders, whereas 45 per cent are investors (those that invest in equity delivery).It has seen a jump in active female customers by 53 per cent from April to June 2020, as compared to preceding three months. Nikhil Kamath, who co-founded Zerodha and True Beacon, said they have added 11 lakh clients since March 1, 2020. Of these, women clients are 1.8 lakh. He further said the average age of such women is 33 years.Tejas Khoday, co-founder and CEO, of FYERS, said in the last four months the stock broking fintech startup acquired over 20,000 new customers, of which 10 per cent were women traders.But, the overall traffic online includes 15 20 per cent women traders. Moreover, they are more inclined to invest than trade.In terms of expectations, Khoday said women want high profits in a very short period of time without too many entry/exits. But this could also be because most of them are first-time investors.

One Rule…can end up corruption by 70%


There are many people who talks about it , and few screams and fight to end it…………but since ages, it’s not being possible to make a difference, and still have not got independence from it’s foul smell, where someone dwelling in it , without sense. But, should we live in this rut forever ?…And to accept ourselves as incapable of destroying it, and to live like a looser.


I have a one brilliant rule, if it comes into play that undoubtedly changes the fate of the country. Before i reveal it, let us know why this rule works besides many measures being taken were failing since decades.
The main feasible condition for corruption, is lack of surveillance and awareness among people,and how it greatly damages our standard of living. So,creating awareness among all the people might sometimes work, but most of the time it rewards us with great disappointment. because, India has biggest population, it’s hard to make all of us to bring on to one platform with one voice.


But, there was no dearth of solution, if we think and the first said idea is………….
This idea works with collection of students, professors, university bodies, govt anti corruption and adminstrative bodies , police.
You may wonder that how, could you connect students, professors with police?
The bitter fact is, about 90% of indian passouts graduates are unskilled according to the several esteemed surveys. The main reason for it is, not having a platform to access practical knowledge, we have severe shortage of internship opportunities and real time project works. This problem can also be indirectly solved by our main idea.

The govt should make project works mandatory and give them more importance in their course, some may refrain with this idea…but if we couldn’t able to perform on projects itself, how can we able to sustain after getting to global market; initially it might be hard, but with support of our peer and lecturers we can excel gradually.
Now, we all should be assigned project works by our colleges in collaboration with national education body (now MHRD), only on all governmental assets and organisations….here comes a game changing shot. But, how is it possible?

The government must allow all the students to study governmental organisations, properties, and projects build by them.(let’s say a dam, hospital etc…). This helps to make an assessment for the quality of work being done in various govt fields and organisations.The reports submitted by students can be used by anti corruption agencies and help them to understand the situation at very ground level. As it’s not possible for anti corruption agencies to keep an eye over every inch of the whole country, they can use this student community as a strongest trustworthy network as they don’t provide false reports, if in case; the professor and the whole college who guided him will be felt guilt, and leads to their lack of reputation in society. so, this locking system can help students ro not provide false reports.

All the students must be allotted some projects on live aspects(like dams, hospitals ,industries built and being run by govt) in their respective fields, and we have to start analyzing their maintenance and prepare and submit the report of it’s quality and working efficiency. Here itself, we get an opportunity to dig up the flaws went up and to make a change by preparing efficient reports of the atrocities made and corruption that underwent.

For say, i’m a student of civil engineering, got a project to understand about kaleshwaram dam and have to submit report on it. I started by when it has built, and how much cost it took, what are the materials used in it, what are the technologies use in it, why does the walls of the dam is being getting cracks just after 5 years of its inauguration, what is the reason for recent fire accident……..when i submit the detail report to the college, I am gonna get my marks
The above said will be the work of every student in every field, not only engineering also health,law, agriculture,finance and every field.
Instead the anti corruption bureau working on intensive ground level, they can collect all the project reports form all colleges and will be easier for them to take action, by using the information.
As, it is a real time project, the professor of individual group must take care of no flaws and genuinity of information, as it will be a major source for higher govt authorities to take action.
In simple, students has to set on to study the past govt projects and organisations; and the detailed project reports and student community acts as a strong surveillance framework and it bring out the corruptions of the past as well as prevents the corruptions of the future. This idea, if it honed by the bright minds of our country, it can surely be an influential act.

Retargeting versus Remarketing: The Subtle Distinctions

Introduction

Many of us, while scrolling through the labyrinth of the Internet, have come across an advertisement about some product that we had checked out recently. Many assume it to be a coincidence, but is it really so? The online marketing strategists say otherwise. This is, what in common knowledge, known as retargeting, (or remarketing).

Retargeting vs Remarketing

Retargeting (or remarketing) is a very feasible way of advertisement in present times. In this form of online advertisement, the people who already have had some sort of previous interaction with the concerned brand or website are the part of the ‘target audience’. Hence the ‘re’ prefix in the term. The companies prefer this tactic for the better calculation and planning data it provides.

Both retargeting and remarketing serve a very similar purpose, and hence, used interchangeably, but there are differences in their core principles, in terms of:

1. Audience

Retargeting mainly looks over the target audience, which includes anyone who has visited the website or any related product page, including for random surfing, price comparison etc.People see ads of the website or product they visited; the agenda behind this is to remind the audience of their interest in that particular product or service.

On the other hand, remarketing is for a more specific audience, also known as the custom audience. They are those people who have already shown their interest in some products by adding the item(s) in their cart, or have purchased something previously from the website. This audience is more likely to avail the services the host has to offer, and so, the companies approach them with different, yet more persuasive tactics.

2.Means of Marketing

Retargeting uses the cookies on the websites pages to assemble a list of potential customers. The audience is reminded about the website via static(pop up ads) or dynamic(ad videos) means.

Remarketing takes this a step forward and is mainly characterized by generating Emails regarding discounts, offers on the carted items, making it seem like a good deal to the customers. Buyers also have some ground level experience to rely on and hence, are more susceptible to indulge in the given offers.

Modes of Payment

ROI (Revenue on Investment) in an essential factor to consider while advertising. To make a net profit, the income must be more than the investment. One of the major investment on a product is on its marketing. And retargeting has very economic way of payments. Some of them are:

CPM (Cost Per Mille): It is the most common form of pricing, and is calculated on the basis of every thousand impressions served

CPC (Cost Per Click): In this tactic, cost is charged to the investing company on the basis of per ad clicked on.

CPA (Cost Per Acquisition): Here, the advertisers are charged on the achievement of the pre decided acquisition action.

In case of remarketing, advertisers adjust their campaigns on the basis of who does or does not opens the email. This is also termed as email retargeting. The purpose of this system is to weed out the uninterested people, and in turn increasing the number of potential buyers. 

Advantages of Online Marketing

  • It is easier and subtle to pitch ads for audience consideration.
  • Unnecessary costs can be reduced
  • The extent of advertisement is vast
  • Peer advertisement is a explorable option
  • Customer and potential customer database is easy to avail

With all the above considerations, it is often advised that remarketing and retargeting, as a whole should be used in tandem with each other to achieve optimum results. And other marketing tactics can also be implemented accordingly.

First impressions: Upcoming IPO of LIC

On the 1st February of the year, Govt released the budget for the year 2020 including various points and some new things to kick start. One of the major news was about the disinvestment of the LIFE INSURANCE CORPORATION. The government has decided to give an Initial Public Offering for his stake of some of its holdings. LIC was established in 1956 which is fully owned by the Govt. of India. “Listing on the stock exchanges disciplines the company, provides access to financial markets and unlocks value,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her Budget 2020 speech. “It also gives an opportunity for retail investors to take part in the wealth so created.”

LIC has total assets and costs is around 36 lakh crores. This IPO plays a major role in Finance of India for this. After the COVID-19 situation, this becomes the most important yet vulnerable in equity market case. Govt has some more divesting plans including the BPCL and Air India in the 2nd half of FY 2020-21. However both are running sluggish but LIC expected to list soon. Govt. has set some targets and hopes from this move in future financial years which are following:

  • Disinvestment Target – Rs 2.1 lakh crores.
  • Expected IPO size of around 1 to 1.2 lakh crores for LIC.
  • IPO size of approx. 20k-25k crores for Air India.
  • Estimated IPO size of 50k-60k crores for BPCL.
  • Test of Indian share market’s depth.

Market depth will be stake for test because usually market crashes after some big IPO comes. Asset monetization is the big factor for reviving the economy after some crisis times. Latest fall in market was when SBI Card IPO was offered and hence market attracted towards it and rest of market saw a big down.

As year 2020 has seen a low phase of century in all terms like economy, socialites and life threat due to COVID-19. People are very cautious about their money and they are taking each step only after they are double sure, and they feel necessity to do so. Market has surge and it is not getting levelled in coming months.  A report suggests that economy has fall about odd 20% which will take a year or two to resurface. Looking at situation the only place people are hoping is for their insurance and other covers. Which is good sign for LIC and also for market and economy. Public is caring for their health crisis and hence it may result in good for LIC if it works well.

First year business of LIC before IPO is around 75.9% of market share. (we have not considered the first quarter as its not confirmed and also it is full of disruptions). It has registered the growth of 25% in this year. While Policies wise, it has share percent of 68.7%. However private companies also saw a growth rate of nearly 10% which is little better than their previous performances. LIC has total of 1.2lakh employees including its agents. This factor plays an important role for their brand value and reach to each people in India.

Unlike other finance options, Insurance and other schemes has seen a growth over the COVID-19 period as peoples are scared about their money. They are not willing to invest in other things like equity, debt bonds and commodity. They are looking for an option for future which can return money with a little but sure profit. They also want security for various reasons including any sudden emergency and problems. LIC while has some brilliant figures in terms of returns and claim settlement overall. LIC has more than 99% ratio of successful claim settlements. LIC has become the brand over the years. In the backward areas like village which have not grown as fast as cities, they feel LIC as the only Insurance provider. Infect they will misinterpret you if you say take some insurance. They will feel you are saying to buy LIC, such is the depth of trust in PAN India.

LIC is so successful that it has nearly 1lakh crore of unclaimed settlements in total. This is the amount which has not ever been claimed. This says all about their service and value. Total Asset Under Management is around RS 31lakh crores. LIC has revenue of Rs. 3.37 lakh crores and their net Income is 30,000 crores. While other private companies have total revenue of 1000 crores to 2000 crores. Media discussions estimates the market cap of Rs 10 to 12 lakh crores. Embedded value of LIC focuses on net profit growth a company has to offer his share holders in future. While the LIC has structure to offer 95% of his earning as bonus to their policy holders and employees, while remaining 5% goes to the government of India. This structure is quite old and not preferable as per the guidelines of SEBI. It has to be changed to get Under the equity market and SEBI.

LIC is a very big company on paper which is now preparing to appear for public. It is expected to come as a bang, but somewhere down the line company has lost its market hold over the years. It has reduced to 70% from 90% in last two decades. Which is something to ponder on. This will play a big role for shareholders, if they are thinking to go long term with the LIC. Also, an investor should dive deep into such aspects before taking a stake in LIC. The reason to check for such reason is that company is earning profits, but it has not yielding any growth. But due to increasing inflation shareholder needs that extra edge to compete with price hike in future.

Insurance sector contributes almost the 3.7 % of total GDP of India. While this ratio raises to 6.5% of total GDP of World. This shows the actual path it has still to cover to stay at normal scale of worldwide. Insurance sector has natural growth of 10-11% per annum. Total Asset Under Management is around 40 lakh crores and due to this natural growth, equity of insurance companies is increasing with a boom. The growth which company will do as their extra amount of good work and better performance will add ap the total effect in market and their market cap to grow faster. That’s why shares are enjoying such good run and investors are taking benefits of these parts quite well. Thing to watch out now is how other market players of insurance will sustain when LIC IPO gets introduced. That will tell the story of market in future whether we are balanced enough or we are still vulnerable on market stands.

startup-in a simple language

As you have seen above, let us explore the idea of startup in simple sense. Startup is simply coming up with a solution for earlier unsolved problems, or with a more enhanced solution than that of the solutions, which already discovered.

startups are the only way to bring up equality among all citizens, by providing equal opportunity for all of us to execute our own plans. But,I wonder!, how is it possible for all of us to make startup ? and How do they help in bringing up equality?. Cool…let’s us get into the thick jungle,slowly.

It’s really hard to come up with a whole new solution, but we definitely inherit the talent of adding colors to the existing product in our own style. This little glimpse added by us, keeps us apart from the whole crowd and paves a way full of opportunities. This is the ideology, which created a unique brand for desi chai, mobile dosa van, desi handicrafts and many more have emerged into promising brands. One thing in common is adding the local swag to every product and enriching it with our culture creates more opportunities for common man to sustain in this corporate world. There is a great necessity for all of us to promote our very businesses to the next level by analysing trends in the market and making appropriate changes for our products.

If startups have not emerged, it leads to dearth of job opportunities, in return leaves huge amount of youth unemployed. You know better, what are the problems to be faced being an unemployed ?. There is an other alarming effect of not coming up with startups. All the wealth will be not distributed uniformly and the flow of money ceases. The best example of this is one man being the fame since decades, the ambani being one of the master businessman and had occupied space in almost every area.The money directly or indirectly from a tiny village to metro city is being transferred to his account. In return, who knows the savings of ambani in banks and as well as the unliquified money in the form of valuable assets. The money from the whole nation reached heavily to one place. To disburse this money equally, it is necessary to come up with startups, but not merely with business. Because, business always cannot reward profits, but we have high opportunities to turn every startup into successful business as it has one unique feature which always helps us to be on top.

The above said format of startups are not very risky neither requires great outstanding intelligence. But, there is always necessary for bright minds to use their knowledge to discover whole new solutions for the problems not yet resolved and being haunting us since ages. There was no great amount of awareness among us regarding research, which was one of the vital base of strong startup. We are just being dwelled in struggle, striving to understand the academics, it is because of poor quality of teaching and educational practices. So, it must be our responsibility to take up new pathways by understanding the whole scenario.

we could able to create, only when we able to learn and apply what we learnt. In the process of pursuing studies by real life applications, enables us to find the gaps and new thoughts bloom in our minds to bridge that gaps. That is what innovation is..and with right vision and the ability to take it into the market makes a great startup…….however, so much glad , that most of the youth are turning towards this naya trend called startup swag…and turning their dreams into reality.

INVESTMENT IN THE STOCK MARKET FOR BEGINNERS

The stock market refers to public markets that exist for issuing, buying, and selling stocks that trade on a stock exchange or over-the-counter.  In simple terms, if A wants to sell shares of Reliance Industries, the stock market will help him to meet the seller who is willing to buy Reliance Industries.  A person can trade in the stock market only through a registered intermediary known as a stock broker. The buying and selling of shares take place through electronic medium.

There are two main stock exchanges in India where majority of the trades take place – Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE). Apart from these two exchanges, there are some other regional stock exchanges like Bangalore Stock Exchange, Madras Stock Exchange etc but these exchanges do not play a meaningful role anymore.

NSE is the leading stock exchange in India where one can buy or sell shares of publicly listed companies. It was established in the year 1992 and is located in Mumbai. NSE has a flagship index named as NIFTY50. The index comprises of the top 50 companies based on its trading volume and market capitalisation.  BSE is Asia’s first as well as the oldest stock exchange in India. It was established in 1875 and is located in Mumbai. BSE Sensex is the flagship index of BSE.

Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is the regulatory body of the Indian Stock Markets. The main objective of SEBI is to safeguard the interest of retail investors, promote the development of stock exchanges, and regulate the activities of financial intermediaries and investors in the market. A stock broker also known as a dealer is a professional individual who buys/sells shares on behalf of its clients. In the stock market, stock broker is registered as a trading member with the stock exchange and holds a stock broking license. They operate under the guidelines prescribed by SEBI.

 ADVANTAGES OF INVESTING IN STOCK MARKET:

  •  the stock market can make great money in a short time of period.
  •  Unlike other investments, such as real estate and CDs, investors can easily access money in the stock market.
  • Investing in the stock market can help in our entire financial portfolio.

DISADVANTAGES IN INVESTING IN STOCK MARKET:

  • Investors can expect daily volatility in the stock market, but large failures in the system are less common.
  • In the stock market, there are winners and losers. Winners can make much money, but those who lose can see all of their investment disappear.
  • Every time an investor decides to buy or sell shares, he or she will have to shell out a certain proportion as brokerage fees to the broker.

TRAVEL INDUSTRY IN COVID-19

From the beginning of the year, the situation around the world is grave. The rise of the newly formed virus had made everyone to stay caution about every little thing. The behavior of population across the globe had changed in an instant. Major industries and firms had faced hard hit from this crisis and suffers a huge loss of turnover and profits. One such sector which is neglected completely altogether from the starting of lock down is travel and tourism. From the commencement of the pandemic had made many people to travel and reach their hometown safely, but lately this industry got completely shut, following a loss in transportation sector as well.

America’s travel industry is among the hardest hit. The U.S. travel associations projects a loss of 4.6 million jobs through May, a figure likely to increase. U.S. weekly jobless claims doubling in a week and by far the biggest spike in half a century. Tourism decline is a driving reason for job losses in states including Nevada, where Las Vegas casinos and jumbo hotels have gone dark.

To improve this situation and employment, the hotel chain has launched their project ‘We Care’ in South Asia which will focus on enhanced technology, sanitation and security efforts to fight the virus spread. “Social distancing will continue and hotels will have to gear up for the day to day operations. With corporate groups, for instance, it is expected that they will split it up into smaller regional events with 3-4 events spread out as opposed to larger events earlier. Self drive car rental company Zoom car has been focused on working with essential service providers in this time and predicts city-based travel to take off sooner. “There will certainly be a bias towards in-city trips compared to outstation ones. Also, we see a stronger focus on shorter term subscriptions. We expect 90% to be in-city rentals and 10% outstation during the post COVID time,” highlights Greg Moran, co-founder & CEO, Zoom car.

Recovery will happen, albeit at its own pace. And with travel taking its own course in a post lock down world, wanderlust will just have to take the road less traveled.