Raghuvir Badrinath In Chennai, Bangalore

Stories by Raghuvir Badrinath In Chennai, Bangalore

VC, PE funds raise Rs 28,000 cr in '07

VC, PE funds raise Rs 28,000 cr in '07

Rediff.com   16 Apr 2008

If you are an entrepreneur and apprehensive that the global market meltdown will strain your fund-raising plans, fear not. India-focused private equity and venture capital funds raised $7 billion (Rs 27,958 crore) in 2007, excluding real estate, last year. They had garnered a similar amount in the corresponding previous year, according to data from Venture Intelligence, a venture capital research company.

Karnataka falls behind in growth

Karnataka falls behind in growth

Rediff.com   15 Apr 2008

Karnataka has registered a lower rate of growth in its gross state domestic product (GSDP) compared to the national average in 2007-08. It logged a 7 per cent growth in its GSDP as against the national advance estimates of 8.7 per cent. Inflation was more or less the same as that of the country. The performance of secondary and tertiary sectors (comprising industry and services) has turned out to be a major disappointment unlike the agriculture sector, which has fared better.

Biotechnology sector suffers from talent shortage

Biotechnology sector suffers from talent shortage

Rediff.com   11 Apr 2008

The Indian biotech sector continues to face an acute shortage of specialists. But now there is a ray of hope, interestingly from a dark story being narrated in the pharma and biotech sectors in the United States and Europe. The sector is seeing downsizing there. This has made scientists of Indian origin explore opportunities in India. "The shortage and the noticeable gap is in terms of discovery-led drug development," said Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD, Biocon

Karnataka's cart-and-bullock story ends

Karnataka's cart-and-bullock story ends

Rediff.com   25 Mar 2008

Two years after the then JD(S)-BJP government announced the cart-and-bullock scheme for the farming community, the State Executive Committee headed by Governor Rameshwar Thakur gave a silent burial to the scheme last week after stopping short of branding it a 'complete failure'.

Karnataka slips to 9th rank in e-governance

Karnataka slips to 9th rank in e-governance

Rediff.com   24 Mar 2008

Even states like Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Himachal Pradesh which were way behind, have now gone several notches up in their rankings. The survey has also exposed another southern state Andhra Pradesh which has fallen to number eight from the earlier fifth position. Politically-sensitive Gujarat has witnessed a major fall in its ranking by dropping 15 levels to occupy the 19th position.

Barclays launches mobile banking in India

Barclays launches mobile banking in India

Rediff.com   15 Mar 2008

Barclays, a global financial services provider, announced the launch of 'Hello Money', a mobile banking service for its customers. The service will enable Barclays' customers access banking services anytime/anywhere on-the-move through mobile phones.Barclays customers can now perform account enquiries and financial transactions by simply dialling *598*1#. They can carry out secure banking transactions like fund transfers, bill payments, requests and other banking services.

Rail link for new B'lore airport

Rail link for new B'lore airport

Rediff.com   7 Mar 2008

A rail link is proposed to carry passengers from Bangalore's centre to the new international airport. The Karnataka govt. has formed a SPV for this project.

EDS follows IT majors in trimming staff

EDS follows IT majors in trimming staff

Rediff.com   20 Feb 2008

The move, alleged employee sources, started somewhere in mid-January. While at least 80 employees were asked to resign over the past week, one company source asserted that as many as 300 employees were being asked to leave. The company, however, dismissed the employee allegations as pure speculation.

Volvo plans to double funds for India JV

Volvo plans to double funds for India JV

Rediff.com   1 Feb 2008

VBT is opening its new manufacturing facility, costing Rs 80 crore, through a joint venture with Azad group at Hoskote near Bangalore on Thursday. Initially, VBT will produce 450 buses and by 2010 the unit will reach its full capacity of 1,000 buses, he said.

Carnegie Mellon, Deakin plan bases in K'taka

Carnegie Mellon, Deakin plan bases in K'taka

Rediff.com   1 Feb 2008

Sources say Carnegie Mellon's president Jared L Cohon, who was in Bangalore recently, held discussions with senior state officials in this regard. The university is planning to establish a skeleton presence in Bangalore to study the market condition before starting a full-fledged campus here. They want to help the IT sector in the country secure quality manpower.

IT start-ups need to focus more on marketing

IT start-ups need to focus more on marketing

Rediff.com   16 Jan 2008

Access to market is going to be the major problem faced by start-up IT firms looking to hit the market with innovative products or solutions. Access to venture or angel funding, which was considered the prime issue a couple of years ago, has now been relegated to second or third position.

Wipro adopts factory like approach for SAP

Wipro adopts factory like approach for SAP

Rediff.com   16 Jan 2008

Based on enterprise service-oriented architecture (enterprise SOA), the programme leverages a pre-developed inventory of reusable form templates, components and services that reduce the cost of form development and deployment time, enabling SAP customers to gain an unprecedented return on their investments in enterprise systems.

Infosys buys land for 2nd campus in B'lore

Infosys buys land for 2nd campus in B'lore

Rediff.com   14 Jan 2008

This is the first time that the company has acquired land on its own without seeking the assistance of the state government's land acquisition agency, Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board.

Retail investors bank on realty sector

Retail investors bank on realty sector

Rediff.com   11 Jan 2008

Retail investors stand to gain from the booming realty sector, through the Real Estate Investment Trusts.

New forum to promote entrepreneurship

New forum to promote entrepreneurship

Rediff.com   11 Jan 2008

A forum to bring together people from different walks of life for building of an ecosystem is undertaken by Association of Computing Machinery.

Budget apartment prices stable in Bangalore

Budget apartment prices stable in Bangalore

Rediff.com   7 Jan 2008

"The stability is because of the good supply. The home buyers have greater choice too," said D Timmana Goud, head retail assets-south, Axis Bank.

HDFC chief wants CSR-aware youth

HDFC chief wants CSR-aware youth

Rediff.com   5 Jan 2008

HDFC chief Keki Mistry stresses the importance of inculcating values of social responsibility amongst Indian youth.

B'lore needs apex body to manage transport

B'lore needs apex body to manage transport

Rediff.com   5 Jan 2008

B'lore turns to IT to resolve its transport management problems.

Kingfisher Airlines in the black this month

Kingfisher Airlines in the black this month

Rediff.com   27 Dec 2007

Kingfisher Airlines, promoted by the UB Group, expects to get into the black in December. According to Ravi Nedungadi, president and CFO, UB Group, the airline has been driving in volumes and efficiencies which is likely to be reflected in the revenues this month.

UB to replicate beer strategy for wines

UB to replicate beer strategy for wines

Rediff.com   27 Dec 2007

The UB Group, which is an established leader in the Indian beer and spirits market, is aiming to replicate its success by addressing the wine market with its two companies - United Spirits and United Breweries.