Shally Seth Mohile, Shivani Shinde &Amp;Amp; Shine Jacob

Stories by Shally Seth Mohile, Shivani Shinde &Amp;Amp; Shine Jacob

A deeper look at Q1 performance of top 4 IT players

A deeper look at Q1 performance of top 4 IT players

Rediff.com   2 Aug 2021

While Wipro leads the pack on absolute numbers, analysts for Infosys for reporting consistent growth, revising FY22 guidance and beating TCS on revenue growth.

'The potential in India is enormous'

'The potential in India is enormous'

Rediff.com   30 Jul 2021

'India is still a small market but whatever we do, we do it with full focus.'

Russia reaches out to Kerala for Sputnik V plant

Russia reaches out to Kerala for Sputnik V plant

Rediff.com   29 Jul 2021

The government may look at areas around Thonnakkal, in Thiruvananthapuram district, for the facility. If successful, this would be one of the few sites of Sputnik V owned by Russian firms outside that country. Shine Jacob and Sohini Das report.

Ola likely to price its e-scooter in the range of Rs 85,000-1.1 lakh

Ola likely to price its e-scooter in the range of Rs 85,000-1.1 lakh

Rediff.com   28 Jul 2021

The entry of SoftBank-backed Ola into the electric scooter (e-scooter) segment is set to power up the overall market and perhaps fast-track the adoption of battery-operated vehicles. But for manufacturers of internal combustion engine (ICE)-powered two-wheelers, such as Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, and TVS Motor, it will be a double whammy. Not only will they have to contend with the aggressive pricing of Ola's scooter and incur a loss at each unit of the e-scooter sold, the volumes of their regular (ICE) models, too, could feel the squeeze, observed analysts. Ola is expected to price its e-scooter in the range of Rs 85,000-1.1 lakh.

Microsoft plans to set up Rs 15,000-crore data centre in Telangana

Microsoft plans to set up Rs 15,000-crore data centre in Telangana

Rediff.com   28 Jul 2021

US tech giant Microsoft is in the final stages of talks with the Telangana government to set up a data centre with a total investment of Rs 15,000 crore. According to sources in the state government, the company has zeroed in on a land parcel near Hyderabad for the facility. "In the information technology (IT) space, Telangana is already seeing some major investments. "Microsoft is establishing its data centre here, and it may come out with a public announcement soon," said a source.

Covid cuts Tirupur garment hub biz, 10% orders go to other nations

Covid cuts Tirupur garment hub biz, 10% orders go to other nations

Rediff.com   27 Jul 2021

India's largest garment hub Tirupur continues to reel from the effects of the pandemic, with almost 10 per cent of its orders for the upcoming season getting diverted to Bangladesh, Vietnam, Cambodia and China. The sector had seen a drop of about 9 per cent in exports during the first wave, but the impact is likely to be more this time, according to industry experts. Being one of the epicentres of Covid cases in the state, a majority of manufacturing units in the textile belt were closed for almost six weeks during the second wave.

Why this Businessman Quit Kerala

Why this Businessman Quit Kerala

Rediff.com   26 Jul 2021

Is there more than meets the eye to Kitex Garments, the world's second-largest children's garment producer, abandoning Kerala for Telangana?

Tamil Nadu inks deals with 35 firms; to see over Rs 17,000 cr investment

Tamil Nadu inks deals with 35 firms; to see over Rs 17,000 cr investment

Rediff.com   22 Jul 2021

The government of Tamil Nadu on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoUs) with 35 companies that may see investment to the tune of Rs 17,141 crore, creating employment opportunities for 55,054 people. The major companies that would be coming up with fresh investments over Rs 1,000 crore in the state include JSW Renew Energy Two, TCS, ZF Wabco and Srivaru Motors among others. JSW Renew Energy Two will be coming up with a 450 megawatt (Mw) wind power generation unit at Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Dindigul and Tiruppur for Rs 3,000 crore. TCS will be coming up with its third phase of expansion at SIPCOT IT Park in Siruseri, ZF Wabco with an auto component unit at Kancheepuram for Rs 1,800 crore and a two-wheeler EV unit by Srivaru Motors for Rs 1,000 crore at Coimbatore.

Pandemic push: Demand soars for digital, technical skills across industries

Pandemic push: Demand soars for digital, technical skills across industries

Rediff.com   20 Jul 2021

The Indian IT services sector is scrambling to retain talent since digitisation-led transformation has increased the demand for a digitally skilled workforce. As a result, the pull for jobs for tech professionals is also coming from non-IT sectors, leading to higher attrition among IT companies. The average number of tech jobs from non-IT sectors has seen a 41 per cent uptick in March-May'21 versus March-May'19, according to data from Naukri.com.

How India can avoid being crippled by chip shortages

How India can avoid being crippled by chip shortages

Rediff.com   19 Jul 2021

Tata Motors recently cut the sales forecast of its luxury car brand, JLR, due to chip shortages, scaling down its production numbers from the earlier 120,000 units to 60,000-65,000 units by September, and leading to an almost 10 per cent fall in the company's stock. In May this year, Bosch India, too, had stated that chip shortfalls would impact its production, as supply chains were getting disrupted.

20-25% of Hotels may Close Down Forever

20-25% of Hotels may Close Down Forever

Rediff.com   16 Jul 2021

'On an average we have been getting four to five such proposals a month, but we aren't pursuing them as they don't tick the boxes.'

Despite security risks, 95% Indian cos to continue with WFH

Despite security risks, 95% Indian cos to continue with WFH

Rediff.com   15 Jul 2021

The survey covered 1,210 IT executives and technology professionals from North America, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and India. In India, 202 respondents from businesses with more than 500 employees across 18 industry verticals completed the survey. Overall, 89 per cent of the respondents said implementing a work-from-home policy had increased security challenges for their organisations. The risk posed by shadow IT was especially high, with 89 per cent of companies having no control over the software that employees purchase and install on their devices.

Strong deal pipeline may boost Q1 show of IT firms: Analysts

Strong deal pipeline may boost Q1 show of IT firms: Analysts

Rediff.com   12 Jul 2021

A seasonally-strong quarter, with no immediate impact of the second wave and continued acceleration of digital transformation will allow the IT services sector to report a robust Q1 this financial year. However, key metrics to look out for will be attrition rate and margin lever as they will be impacted by salary hikes. Analysts expect growth for the quarter to be broad-based, with sectors like banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), retail, manufacturing, hi-tech and life sciences driving revenue growth. Analysts across brokerage houses are pegging revenue growth in the range of 1.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent.

Nasper-backed PayU in talks to acquire BillDesk for up to $4 billion

Nasper-backed PayU in talks to acquire BillDesk for up to $4 billion

Rediff.com   7 Jul 2021

Nasper-backed fintech firm PayU has started talks to acquire domestic payment gateway major BillDesk, and the deal size could be in the range of $3-4 billion, sources in the know said. "BillDesk has been open to being acquired for some time now, but in the past the valuations that the company was seeking proved to be a hurdle," said a source. "Three years ago too, PayU had approached BillDesk for an acquisition, but things didn't go ahead due to high valuations. "BillDesk had asked for $2-billion value then," said the source.

Chip shortage throws a spanner in JLR's plans

Chip shortage throws a spanner in JLR's plans

Rediff.com   7 Jul 2021

Tata Motors has halved the volume outlook for its UK subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover Automotive (JLR) and warned of lower earnings as it sees the semiconductor shortage deepening in the September quarter of the current financial year, according to a notification issued by the company to the stock exchanges on Tuesday. The announcement caught investors unawares. They were hoping for a quicker recovery. Tata Motors' stock tanked 13 per cent (on July 6) from the day's high of Rs 358.10 and hit the lower circuit (Rs 311.45) in intra-day trades.

Gourmet meals on wheels, 5-stars' latest success mantra

Gourmet meals on wheels, 5-stars' latest success mantra

Rediff.com   4 Jul 2021

Since home-delivered meals from five-stars are cheaper by 15 to 20 per cent as compared to eating at the destination outside, food delivery has emerged as an important part of every restaurant's service portfolio.

Cyber Fraud Helpline: How it Works

Cyber Fraud Helpline: How it Works

Rediff.com   29 Jun 2021

Since its launch in April, helpline 155260 has been able to prevent more than Rs 18.5 million of defrauded money from reaching the hands of fraudsters.

As data hacks rise, firms turn to bug bounty hunters

As data hacks rise, firms turn to bug bounty hunters

Rediff.com   22 Jun 2021

Bug bounty hunters or independent ethical hackers are certified cybersecurity professionals or security researchers who crawl the web, scanning the systems for gaps through which hackers can sneak in and alert the companies, says Shivani Shinde.

Three-row SUVs are the latest draw for auto firms

Three-row SUVs are the latest draw for auto firms

Rediff.com   21 Jun 2021

Close to half a dozen more three-row premium mid-size models are expected to hit the road over the next two years.

3rd Wave Fears: India Inc trims FY22 growth outlook

3rd Wave Fears: India Inc trims FY22 growth outlook

Rediff.com   16 Jun 2021

'While most companies were bullish before the second wave of double-digit sales growth in FY22, that may not be the case now.'