Shine Jacob And Peerzada Abrar

Stories by Shine Jacob And Peerzada Abrar

Best City For Women To Work Is...

Best City For Women To Work Is...

Rediff.com   10 Jan 2023

'That the South and West regions are more women-friendly in terms of employment is not a surprise.'

What Employees Can Expect In 2023

What Employees Can Expect In 2023

Rediff.com   5 Jan 2023

'Enterprises have become more demanding in terms of their productivity expectation from their employees.'

Top Carmakers Post Double-Digit Export Growth With Maruti At The Wheel

Top Carmakers Post Double-Digit Export Growth With Maruti At The Wheel

Rediff.com   4 Jan 2023

Clock 11% growth in the first 11 months of 2022.

Toy makers face a 'glocal' challenge

Toy makers face a 'glocal' challenge

Rediff.com   30 Dec 2022

The Chinese dependence is far from over, industry players are also citing a shortage of electronic toys in the country.

India may become a supply hub for Apple iPhone

India may become a supply hub for Apple iPhone

Rediff.com   20 Dec 2022

If reports that Apple Inc plans to triple its iPhone production in India come true, it is likely to help the country become a supply hub for the American company. There are some 190 Apple suppliers globally, but only 12 have manufacturing facilities in India now. Apple's strategy is to focus on India and a clutch of other countries as it diversifies its supply chain out of China.

Vedantu gives pink slips to 385 employees in 3rd round of layoffs this year

Vedantu gives pink slips to 385 employees in 3rd round of layoffs this year

Rediff.com   8 Dec 2022

Edtech unicorn Vedantu has laid off 385 employees, nearly 11.6 per cent of the company workforce, according to sources. This move is being seen as part of a drive in the edtech sector towards profitability via cost-savings and consolidation, as funds dry up, they said. The Bengaluru-based firm has laid off over 1,100 employees (both full-time and contractual), so far, this year.

Funding for space start-ups zooms

Funding for space start-ups zooms

Rediff.com   30 Nov 2022

The race for space has got real, and it is attracting funding like never before. In 2022 so far, funding to private players in the space sector has jumped a whopping 61.5 per cent - soaring to $108.52 million compared to $67.2 million in 2021. Propelling it is the government's decision to open up the space sector to private players and the work done by companies like Skyroot Aerospace, the Hyderabad-based start-up behind the launch of India's first privately developed rocket on November 18.

Amazon to shut down distribution unit in India, focus on core businesses

Amazon to shut down distribution unit in India, focus on core businesses

Rediff.com   28 Nov 2022

Amazon India has decided to shut down 'Amazon Distribution', according to sources. This follows its recent decision to shut its food delivery and edtech offerings. The moves are part of the annual operating planning review process amid global macroeconomic uncertainty. The e-commerce giant is looking to focus on its core businesses, sources said.

Ronnie Screwvala-led upGrad to hire 1,400 amid edtech sector turbulence

Ronnie Screwvala-led upGrad to hire 1,400 amid edtech sector turbulence

Rediff.com   23 Nov 2022

At a time when there is a growing number of edtech companies laying off employees in a bid to conserve cash and focus on profitability amid a funding winter, Ronnie Screwvala-led upGrad is expanding its facilities and hiring talent. The company plans to hire over 1400 team members between November 2022 and March 2023 in India and at offices outside the country. upGrad has also signed new leases in the past few months for 335,000 sq ft of space across four cities -- Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Noida.

Vikram-S private rocket launch could be India's SpaceX moment

Vikram-S private rocket launch could be India's SpaceX moment

Rediff.com   17 Nov 2022

'The current launch is a sounding rocket, this cannot be called a milestone. The importance is this is for the first time a private player is doing it.'

Unacademy gives pink slips to 350 employees in second round of layoffs

Unacademy gives pink slips to 350 employees in second round of layoffs

Rediff.com   8 Nov 2022

Unacademy is conducting another round of job cuts and laying off 350 employees or 10 per cent of its workforce of 3,500, as the SoftBank-backed edtech firm targets profitability and reduces costs, according to an internal note sent by Gaurav Munjal, co-founder and CEO of Unacademy group, to the staff. Munjal said the restructuring exercise would affect about 10 per cent of employees across the group. "I am deeply saddened to share that we will have to say goodbye to some of our extremely talented Unacademy employees," said Munjal in the letter addressed to employees and reviewed by Business Standard.

Covid impact shows that work can be done remotely: Rishad Premji

Covid impact shows that work can be done remotely: Rishad Premji

Rediff.com   3 Nov 2022

Indian technology industry has a "big opportunity" despite global macroeconomic challenges, said Rishad Premji, chairman of IT services firm Wipro, on Wednesday as he spoke about how Covid-19 had changed work. "My confidence is driven by two things: the rapid pace of digitisation across the world, and the shift in the mindset of stakeholders who engage with us as an industry," said Premji in Bengaluru while addressing industry leaders and civil servants at the Invest Karnataka 2022, the state's Global Investors Meet (GIM). Businesses are using technology for customers and employees: a trend marked by the shift to cloud computing and leverage of data.

Byju's takes Rs 300 crore unsecured loan from Aakash for 'principal biz'

Byju's takes Rs 300 crore unsecured loan from Aakash for 'principal biz'

Rediff.com   28 Oct 2022

Educational technology giant Byju's has taken a loan of Rs 300 crore from its subsidiary Aakash Educational Services (AESL), which it acquired for nearly $1 billion last year. AESL, in its filing with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, said that Think & Learn - the parent firm of Byju's - is in need of funds for its 'principal business activities'. It said the board of directors of the company at its meeting on October 3, subject to the approval of the members at the general meeting, has given its approval for granting the unsecured loan to Think & Learn for an amount not exceeding Rs 300 crore.

From layoffs to cost-cutting, start-ups brace for long funding winter

From layoffs to cost-cutting, start-ups brace for long funding winter

Rediff.com   28 Oct 2022

On a cloudy Monday this month, Mohammed Irshad flew from Kochi to Gurugram to attend an exclusive investor networking event. Among a handful of founders selected for the event, Irshad was to pitch his peer-to-peer learning start-up Notespaedia for funding in front of top venture capital investors such as AngelBay, Elevation Capital, and Inflection Point Ventures. He failed to woo them, but the feisty entrepreneur was determined to continue his hunt.

How Mamallapuram Came To Be Top Tourist Site

How Mamallapuram Came To Be Top Tourist Site

Rediff.com   25 Oct 2022

Mamallapuram's Group of Monuments -- a collection of 7th- and 8th-century religious structures -- attracted 46 per cent of the total foreign tourists who visited India compared to 12 per cent by the Taj.

Isro launches 36 OneWeb satellites in first commercial launch for LMV-3

Isro launches 36 OneWeb satellites in first commercial launch for LMV-3

Rediff.com   24 Oct 2022

On Sunday, at 12.07 am in Sriharikota, off the coast of the Bay of Bengal, it was almost like an early Diwali, with the sky lit up by the launch of 36 OneWeb satellites. The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) did the launch on a 43.5-metre-tall Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV Mk III) rocket. After the countdown, which started 24 hours in advance, once the mega screen marked the launch, a select group of invitees at the gallery cheered by applauding the feat.

Spectrum auction to hurt India's satellite play, says Sunil Mittal

Spectrum auction to hurt India's satellite play, says Sunil Mittal

Rediff.com   24 Oct 2022

Spectrum allocation for satellite services came up as a dominant theme at the launch of 36 communication satellites by OneWeb, a Bharti group venture, here on Sunday. Following the launch, Bharti Enterprises chairman Sunil Mittal, in a conversation with a group of reporters, reiterated that spectrum auction did not make sense in the case of satellite services. "This (satellite services) is not competing with mobile services where you can justify the auction.

Byju's to raise $600 mn, in talks with Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth funds

Byju's to raise $600 mn, in talks with Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth funds

Rediff.com   24 Oct 2022

Byju's is planning to raise $500-600 million from Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth funds and existing investors, according to sources, as the start-up world is facing a funding freeze. The educational technology (edtech) giant targets profitability by March next year. "There is no change in Byju's valuation. The new fundraising process is still going on," said a person familiar with the matter. "Any new valuation would be determined in the futureByju's is planning to raise $500-600 million from Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth funds and existing investors, according to sources, as the start-up world is facing a funding freeze. The educational technology (edtech) giant targets profitability by March next year. "There is no change in Byju's valuation. The new fundraising process is still going on," said a person familiar with the matter. "Any new valuation would be determined in the future as it is very tough for investors to do that in this environment." as it is very tough for investors to do that in this environment."

Byju's to lay off 2,500 staffers, targets profitability by March

Byju's to lay off 2,500 staffers, targets profitability by March

Rediff.com   13 Oct 2022

Edtech giant Byju's is set to lay off nearly 2,500, or 5 per cent, of its employees as part of an "optimisation" plan. The move by India's most valuable start-up comes amid a funding winter and steep losses. "To avoid redundancies and duplication of roles, and by leveraging technology better, around 5 per cent of Byju's 50,000-strong workforce is expected to be rationalised across product, content, media, and technology teams in a phased manner," said the company in a statement. In June, Byju's laid off about 600 employees at its group companies -WhiteHat Jr and Toppr.

iPhone 14 production cut may not impact Apple's India plans: Experts

iPhone 14 production cut may not impact Apple's India plans: Experts

Rediff.com   8 Oct 2022

The Apple iPhone comprises 44 per cent of the global smartphone market's revenues and it is the second most-such device to be shipped after Samsung. More than half of smartphones used in the US are iPhones. More than 7 million iPhones are expected to be sold in India in 2022, extending the user base to 20 million, according to market research and analyst firm Techarc. Hence, the news about Apple scaling down its production target for iPhone 14 in India has made news.