Archive: August 29, 2022

Tata Motors Releases 8th Annual CSR Report for FY22

Bengaluru, August 22, 2022: Tata Motors, India’s leading automobile company, released its 8th Annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report today, highlighting its comprehensive efforts to address societal and environmental challenges in FY22, while fostering inclusive growth to drive impact, and promote sustainable development and nation-building. Cumulatively, the company’s efforts positively impacted over 7.9 lakh lives during the year, with over 40% beneficiaries coming from SC and ST communities.

During the year, Tata Motors leveraged the benefits of digitization and technological integration to attain a pan-India reach through each of its initiatives, bringing together the collective capabilities of all relevant stakeholders, including government bodies, local authorities, implementation partners and the beneficiaries themselves. Through its collaborative efforts, the company achieved sustainable, replicable, agile, and future-ready results across the country, working towards its goal of fostering social welfare and nation building.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. SJR Kutty, Chief Sustainability Officer, Tata Motors, said, “Community welfare is at the core of our philosophy that guides us as we strive to improve the quality of life of the vulnerable while embedding sustainable development into our partnership models. Our CSR initiatives are designed to maximise impact through partnerships with the Government to enhance reach and scale. With careful planning and optimal use of our financial and human resources, we hope to touch more lives with every passing year.”

Covering a broad range of diverse target groups across India, Tata Motors’ CSR priorities include four key areas that responds to India’s most pressing developmental challenges: Health (Aarogya), Education (Vidyadhanam), Environment (Vasundhara), and Employability (Kaushalya).

Key highlights of Tata Motors CSR Report for FY22 include: 

Providing widespread access to COVID-19 vaccination

Supporting the government’s vaccination efforts, Tata Motors deployed 11 customised and fully-equipped mobile vaccination vans administering vaccines at the doorstep of beneficiaries residing in the remote areas of the country. Over 80,000 individuals across nearly 250 villages and 6 districts were vaccinated, of which 45% were women from socially marginalised sections. Along with its employees, the company created a pool of money and donated a cumulative total of Rs. 6.3 crores towards COVID welfare.

Building a Healthier and Stronger India

Making healthcare more accessible, Tata Motors, through its ‘Aarogya’ initiative, has positively impacted over 5.5 lakh individuals. During the year, the company provided 3.6 lakh people with supplementary diets and curative healthcare services. Further, by bringing 67% of the 2,900 malnourished children across India under the healthy category, it reaffirmed its commitment to cultivating a thriving child population. In some locations, 100% of children in the healthy category were recorded. Moreover, one lakh people, particularly young mothers, were also engaged in sessions focused on behavioral change and awareness raising on important subjects such as menstruation, adverse effects of early marriage, family planning, reproductive health, child-birth gap, timely vaccines aimed at improving the health of newborns and infants, among others.

Water Security for All

Through its ‘Amrutdhara’ initiative, Tata Motors has enabled 5,800 people living in water-scarce regions of the country, especially in tribal hamlets, to access 30 litres of clean drinking water, per capita per day, within 200 metres of their residence.

Imparting Quality Education for All

Expanding equitable access to quality education is essential to empower the youth of a progressive nation. Through ‘Vidyadhanam’, Tata Motors has taken steps in this direction, providing over 1 lakh students access to quality education. Of the 22,000 government school children supported through remedial classes, 96% cleared their Class X Board exams, while 64% secured first division and above. Furthermore, the company’s partnership with 477 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) led to 42% of students qualifying for JEE Mains in FY22. Of this, 26% cleared JEE Advanced. 38% of the students got admission in various IITs while others qualified for top institutions such as NIITs.

Skilling Young India

Under ‘Kaushalya’, Tata Motors took tangible steps to realize the Indian government’s Skill India vision. Over 45,000 youth and farmers have been trained through its employability programmes, with 78% of them going on to find jobs and earning an average salary of Rs. 8,500. It expanded its Learn, Earn and Progress Programme (LEAP), built to provide automotive skills training to underprivileged youth, from two institutes in FY2014 to 60 institutes in FY2021 across 21 states, skilling 32,300 youths with them being offered salaries of around Rs 10,000 and above.

Enriching the Environment

Extending its commitment towards reducing its carbon footprint and encouraging ecological stability, Tata Motors, under ‘Vasundhara’, planted over 1.9 lakh saplings of indigenous varieties that recorded a survival rate of as high as 87%, leading to the creation of microhabitats of varied species of flora and fauna in some locations. It also implemented the Wadi Model in Jawahar, Maharashtra, planting over 2.7 lakh trees with over 2,000 farmers while conserving more than 1,000 acres (265 hectares) of soil.

Getting to Equal

Through its ‘Aadhar’ initiatives, Tata Motors ensures equal opportunity for socially and economically disadvantaged sections of society, promotes equal access to education, eliminates social discrimination and enhances their employability and entrepreneurship abilities. During the year, 40% of its beneficiary coverage and budgetary allocation was committed for the development of the SC and ST communities.

Strengthening Rural India

To ensure that government welfare and financial schemes reach everyone, Tata Motors tirelessly worked across six states— Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand —to improve the quality of life of 17,500 tribal community members through last-mile awareness and service delivery of schemes.

Volunteering for Change

In 2021–2022, 34% of Tata Motors’ employees volunteered for social causes, investing 28,500 hours.

Top 7 trending Jewellery for office going women

By Parag Agrawal co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Fiona Diamonds

Women’s love for jewellery has been engraved in history with golden words. But many people wonder whether, in the fast-paced office-going culture, is it practical or even possible for women to travel or work wearing jewellery (mostly assumed to be heavy and difficult to carry) where most of them seek comfortable clothes and dressing. The answer to that would be yes! There is no need to compromise on your never-ending love for jewellery. Here are the top 6 trending jewellery for office-going women, where comfort and style co-exist.

A Palate of Breath-Taking Rings to Choose from

Classic Solitaire – As soon as the word ‘Classic Solitaire’ hits the ears, the first train of thought that comes across the mind is that it is timeless and eternally desirable, and its craze has refused to die down till today. It is one of the most-wanted and attractive designs in an engagement ring. It consists of a plain band that has a single Solitaire. The solitaire is oxidized in a controlled way which enhances its eye-catching, gleaming look and also maintains the beauty and finishes. It is also an archetype of the sustainable diamond where a Lab-Grown Diamond or Moissanite is set in the centre that adds a glittery tinge against the matt finish of the gold surrounding it. It is a perfect wear for the office because it is light, easy to pull off and does not require too much care, while at the same time, adds to your look and goes well with all kinds of outfits.

Eternity Rings – Currently a rage among the newly wedded brides, it is a vintage and elegant ring design of all time. The Eternity ring suits everyone, as it goes with all types of clothing, traditional, western or fusion. It can be worn in a standalone manner or can be stacked with other rings. Whether it’s studded in 18k rose gold and Sterling Silver, it compliments every skin tone. It justifies the names it has got and can be worn in offices, and parties as it is not hefty or cumbersome to carry, unlike others. It is definitely a not-to-miss addition to any girl’s accessory collection.

Stackable Rings – Similar to our urge for experimentation, stackable rings are also formed by combining a range of pieces and designs to create a serenading and mermaid look. Stackable Rings are quite popular among young working women as they are light-weighted, small, easy-to-wear, goes-with-all types of attires. Stackable rings aren’t too fancy or very expensive which is why it has found a place in the ring fingers of a majority of working women.

Halo Pendant– A Diamond Circle Halo Pendant should be your go-to wear to add a dazzling sparkle to your wardrobe. It is an eternal choice for women who look for a pendant that glams up their look and at the same time, goes with tops, dresses, spaghetti, anything. It gets you all the shining attention but is not flashy or off-putting.

Classic Ear Studs– A classic Ear Stud always gets a nod, and rarely gets a no from women. Women have a special form of fixation for earrings but jhumkas or heavy earrings are not the first things we look for when we are getting ready to go to the office. Classic ear studs is an essential in every women’s jewellery box and are a perfect accessory that you can wear for corporate meetings, presentations, or work.

Wrist Mangalsutra– Wrist Mangalsutra is every modern woman’s top choice who wants to carry an assemblage of traditionalism with modernity. It is an expression of love and lifetime union. Over time, wrist mangalsutra has become top-trending jewellery among the working female population, popularised by pop culture icons and then became a commoners’ go-to-fashion choice.

Diamond Bracelets– Diamond Bracelets, with the appealing use of white and yellow diamonds, are a deeply treasured accessory in a woman’s daily wear. Diamond Bracelets are classic options to complete a chic and sophisticated office look. It gauges a minimalistic attraction without looking overtly ostentatious. It is a first-to-grab ornament for your office wear. Whether it’s jeans, body-con dresses or Kurtis, it doesn’t fail to create an impression.

Karnataka Farmers Bag Prestigious Outgrow Kisan Pragati Awards For Innovative Farming Practices, Women Agri-Entrepreneurship and Natural Farming Initiatives

Malur, Karnataka, 29^th August 2022: Working with over one Lakh farmers in South India, Outgrow, an AI based farmer engagement and real-time advisory platform from WayCool Foods today announced the winners of the prestigious Outgrow Kisan Pragati Awards 2022. Established with an aim to identify best practices in the space of agriculture and farming, the award was conferred upon nine farmers from across the state of Karnataka under three categories viz. Farming Innovations, Natural Farming Initiatives and Women Agri-Entrepreneurs.

Commenting on the occasion, Mr. Sendhil Kumar, Head Outgrow & Farmer Engagement said “The Indian agriculture sector has witnessed many innovations led by technology in the recent years that have greatly benefited the ecosystem as a whole. WayCool has been at the forefront of leading this change and Outgrow is one of our platforms that works on ground along with farmers, shoulder-to-shoulder ensuring that they build a profitable and a sustainable future. While we work with a vast expanse of farmer network there are still many hidden innovations that need its due recognition. Kisan Pragati Awards was established with a motto of bringing to light such wonderful practices and also become a peer-to-peer learning platform that will help other farmers adopt similar practices in the space of natural and regenerative farming. I congratulate all the winners and we will work with them to further spread their innovations to benefit many more farmers across India.” 

The call for nomination process received over 500 applications from which the winners were selected by a distinguished panel of Jury comprising Dr. Raghavendra Mesta (University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot and Dr. Y.N. Shivalingaiah Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore.

The winners of Kisan Pragati Awards 2022 from Karnataka are –

Farming Innovations:

• Mr. Ramakanth Ramachandra Hegde
• Mr. Dilip
• Mr. Nanjuda Swamy

Natural Farming Initiatives:

• Mr. Dayananda Murthy
• Mr. Anil Balanja
• Ms. Dhareppa Kittur

Women Agri-Entrperneur:

• Ms. Kavitha Umashankar MIshra
• Ms. Mangala K Nilagunda
• Ms. Swaroopa Rani

Odisha plans MSME parks in every district: Official

Bhubaneswar: A top government official said on Sunday that the Odisha government plans to set up Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) parks in every district of the state.

Speaking at the concluding session of Propack Odisha 2022 and MSME Odisha 2022 organised by the Odisha Assembly of Small and Medium Enterprises (OASME), the chief secretary of Odisha, Mr. Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said, “We are planning to develop MSME Parks in each and every district. Industries will get all infrastructure support there including land, electricity, and water. IDCO has been given more than Rs 450 crore to develop required infrastructure across the state.”

He stated that in the last few years we see 30-40% growth in finance to MSMEs by banks which is encouraging. Hon’ble Odisha CM has also taken two rounds of meeting with bankers of the state in this regard.

Addressing the occasion Shri Pratap Kesari Deb, Minister MSME, Industry and Energy, Odisha said, “Odisha has got the best infrastructure for industries in all terms. Large and heavy industries are coming to Odisha. But what the state requires most is MSME. Industry bodies should come forward and suggest policy changes for better instrialization. The younger generation must take the risk, and should not only look for support from Govt only.”

On this occasion, the Principal Secretary of the Finance Department of Odisha Mr. Vishal Dev asked banks to ensure finance availability for MSMEs. He said, “We see the MSME sector as an important pillar of economic development. But industries in this sector often faced funding problems. We discussed this with Banks in detail about the matter and asked them to ensure the availability of finance for them. We also told them to look after the quality part of finance.”

He said that the government also proactively organizing workshops with the State Bank of India, other banks, and trade platforms on regular basis. Our plan is to add all PSU banks to trade discounting platforms by year-end. It will greatly help MSME. He urged banks to become complacent after achieving set targets. They can lend higher than what is targeted for them.

Addressing the concluding session of Propack Odisha 2022 and MSME Odisha 2022 organised by Odisha Assembly of Small and Medium Enterprises (OASME) at Janata Maidan, Bhubaneswar to celebrate its 36th Foundation Day, He said that we are planning to associate with the industrial association of the state to create awareness and for capacity building of MSMEs to get institutional credit. In next few month, we are going to start this.

Other dignitaries present at the event were Shri Gauri Shankar Dash, Chairman, OASME, P K Gupta, Jt Director & HOO, MSME-DFO, Govt of India, Cuttack, Bibhuti Bhusan Dash, IOFS, Special Secretary, MSME Dept, Satwik Swain, Secretary General, OASME and Sarat Kumar Sahoo, Executive Chairman, OASME.

ADDX launches cash management solution, in tie-up with Lion Global Investors

SINGAPORE, 29 AUGUST 2022 – Asia’s largest private market exchange ADDX has launched a cash management tool that allows investors with excess funds in their wallets to earn interest, instead of letting their cash sit idle. Named ADDX Earn, the solution aims to withstand short-term volatility while preserving capital.

The product line was curated to boost the returns of investors who have deposited money in their ADDX wallets, but have yet to decide on which private market product to take part in. Some of the idle capital may also have come from previous investment earnings on ADDX. Target returns for products under ADDX Earn are designed to be higher than short-term bank deposit rates – which is where many investors otherwise store undeployed capital.

The first two funds to be launched under the ADDX Earn umbrella are by Lion Global Investors, a fund manager that is a part of the OCBC Group.

The LionGlobaI SGD Enhanced Liquidity Fund and LionGlobaI USD Enhanced Liquidity Fund are invested in high-quality portfolios of debt instruments, diversified across a wide range of issuers and tenors while maintaining weighted average credit ratings[i] of “A”. The two funds have weighted average portfolio durations[ii] of less than a year, which gives Lion Global the flexibility to adjust portfolio allocations in response to changing interest rates and market conditions. Investors can redeem their investments through ADDX on a weekly basis. In addition, the funds target low-volatility assets, which are well-suited for the current market environment that has seen increased volatility in other asset classes.

For both funds, interest is accrued daily. As of 31 July 2022[iii], the LionGlobaI SGD Enhanced Liquidity Fund had a weighted average yield to maturity[iv] of 2.22% p.a., while that of the LionGlobaI USD Enhanced Liquidity Fund was 2.38% p.a. These rates change monthly depending on the prevailing interest rate environment and the underlying assets held by the funds.

Gerard Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Lion Global Investors, said: “Our liquidity funds are typically used by financial advisers and more recently by digital players.  We are therefore delighted to have a private market exchange use our liquidity funds to provide a solution for their investors’ excess cash.”

ADDX Chief Executive Officer Oi-Yee Choo said: “Cash should never sit idle. This is especially true at a time when investors are turning to cash cushions as they carefully weigh their investment options amid rising inflation, a volatile market and an uncertain global economic outlook. With ADDX Earn, we are presenting to investors low-risk, money market funds in a format that is liquid and reduces the likelihood of negative returns.”

She added: “ADDX Earn represents an expansion of our product range in our constant effort to improve as a private market exchange through observing and responding to investor behaviour and need. It is an important building block in the financial services ecosystem we are constructing that is designed for investors, and not just for large corporations. We want to offer investors a full shelf of products – ranging from those with a higher risk-return profile such as hedge funds and venture capital, to those with a lower risk-return profile, such as real estate funds, investment grade bonds, as well as cash management solutions at the tail end of the spectrum, such as these two Lion Global funds.”

Founded in 2017, the SGX-backed ADDX currently serves individual accredited investors[v] from 39 countries spanning Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas (except the US). Using blockchain and smart contract technology, ADDX reduces manual interventions in the issuance, custody and distribution of private market products. The resulting efficiency from the use of digital securities allows the platform to fractionalise investments in a scalable and commercially viable manner, bringing minimum investment sizes down from US$1 million to US$10,000 and thereby widening investor access to the private markets. To date, ADDX has listed around 40 deals on its platform involving blue-chip names such as Hamilton Lane, Partners Group, Investcorp, Singtel, UOB, CGS-CIMB, as well as Temasek-owned entities Mapletree, Azalea, SeaTown and Fullerton Fund Management. Asset classes available on ADDX include private equity, hedge funds, venture capital, private credit, real estate, debt and structured products.

[i] This is calculated by weighing the credit rating of each individual debt instrument the fund is invested in based on that instrument’s share in the overall portfolio, thereby producing an average credit rating.

[ii] This is calculated as the sum of weighted modified duration of the portfolio, net of the hedged effect of interest rate futures, if any.

[iii] Latest available figures due to a time lag in calculating rates.

[iv] Weighted average yield to maturity refers to a bond’s internal rate of return if held to maturity, with all payments made as scheduled and reinvested at the same rate. Actual yield may differ slightly due to fund-level management fees and potential defaults from issuers.

[v] The Singapore regulatory regime that ADDX operates under defines an accredited individual investor as an individual whose net personal assets exceed in value S$2 million (or its equivalent in another currency), or whose financial assets (net of any related liabilities) exceed in value S$1 million (or its equivalent in another currency), or whose income in the preceding 12 months is at least S$300,000 (or its equivalent in another currency).