Tuesday, August 5, 2025
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Yahoo News is no longer available in India; however, Yahoo Mail is still available

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On August 26, the American online services company Yahoo announced the closure of its news operations in India. From Thursday forward, it will not post any new content. Yahoo Mail will not be affected by downtime, according to the company.

“Yahoo India will stop publishing material on August 26, 2021. Your Yahoo Account, Mail, and Search experiences will be unaffected and will continue to function normally. On its India webpage, the web service provider wrote, “We appreciate you for your support and readership.” Yahoo News, Yahoo Cricket, Finance, Entertainment, and MAKERS India are among the content offerings that the closure would disrupt.

The site stated that they did not make this choice lightly but that changes to regulatory rules that prohibit foreign ownership of media firms that operate and produce digital content in India impacted their India operations. The new FDI restrictions for digital media, it said, had an impact on its products.

According to the report, Yahoo Cricket, which is about sports, includes a news component, which is why the new laws have touched it.

“Yahoo has a long history with India, and we’re extremely proud of the premium, local content we’ve offered our consumers over the previous two decades. “Thank you for your continued support and confidence in our brand,” it stated, adding, “Please note: If you use Yahoo Mail, this change has no impact on you.” This development has no impact on our products Yahoo Mail and Yahoo Search, which will continue to serve Indian users in the same manner as before.”

It reaffirmed that Yahoo Mail will continue to work and that users’ email IDs will not change.

“We’ve had a long relationship with India, and we remain open to initiatives that link us to users here,” Yahoo stated.

EASE 4.0 was launched by FM Sitharaman to institutionalise Smart Banking

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the EASE 4.0 – Enhanced Access and Service Excellence – reform agenda for Public Sector Banks (PSBs) for the fiscal year 2021-22 on Wednesday.

The reform agenda aims to make clean and smart banking a reality. EASE 1.0 was released in January 2018, and EASE 3.0 was released in February 2020, to improve the ease of banking across all client experiences through the use of analytics, technology, and alternative data.

EASE is part of a reform agenda based on recommendations made at the PSB Manthan in November 2017, which included top leadership from public sector lenders and government authorities.

FM Sitharaman, who was in Mumbai for a two-day visit, met with PSB executives and reviewed the public sector lenders’ yearly performance. This is the finance minister’s first trip since the COVID-19 outbreak broke out.

FM Sitharaman also instructed banks to regularly communicate with the Federation of Indian Exporters Organisation (FIEO) so that exporters do not have to switch bankers.

FM Sitharaman stated that banks must promote the fintech and other emerging sectors and that she has ordered the PSBs to improve credit flow to the eastern states.

The Cabinet has approved a proposal from a foreign investor to invest Rs 15,000 crore in Anchorage Infrastructure

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The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has accepted an FDI request in Anchorage Infrastructure Investment Holding Ltd for up to Rs 15,000 crore.

Anchorage is an India-based investment holding company focused on infrastructure and construction development projects, such as transportation and logistics, as well as downstream investments in the airport and aviation-related businesses and services.

The transaction also comprises the transfer of Bangalore International Airport Limited’s shares to Anchorage and a Rs 950 crore investment in Anchorage by Ontariao Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of OAC and OMERS administrator, one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans.

According to the finance ministry, the investment will provide a significant boost to the infrastructure and building sectors, as well as the aviation industry. According to the statement, it will bolster the government’s ambition to construct world-class airport and transportation-related infrastructure through private partnerships.

Anchorage is proposing downstream investment in some of the NMP’s covered industries, according to the ministry. Because the areas in which Anchorage proposes to make downstream investments are capital and employment demanding, the investment will also result in direct job creation. During construction and auxiliary activities, it will also provide indirect jobs.

CRISIL reports a 3.62 percent increase in CSR spending in FY21, to Rs 22,000 crore

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In FY21, India Inc’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) expenditures increased by 3.62 per cent to Rs 22,000 crore. According to CRISIL, the majority of the allocations were for pandemic-related purposes. While most firms spent funds through the PM-CARES Fund in the first wave, the second wave saw greater direct support. India Inc. has spent Rs 1 lakh crore on CSR since amendments to the Companies Act made it necessary seven years ago.

According to the CRISIL study, corporations donated just Rs 85 crore to PM-CARES in the second wave, which ran from March to June 2021, and Rs 831 crore to “others.” Corporations donated Rs 4,316 crore to PM-CARES and Rs 3,221 crore to others during the first wave, which ran from March to May 2020.

According to the study, support in the second wave primarily took the form of helping the healthcare infrastructure with equipment such as ventilators, oxygen concentrators, cylinders, testing kits, and food/ration donations for which a precise monetary value could not be assigned.

Companies would have spent Rs 22,000 crore on CSR in FY21, compared to Rs 21,231 crore in FY20, assuming that expenditure was around the statutory 2% of average earnings over the previous three fiscals.

According to the research, 1,700 publicly traded firms would have contributed Rs 14,986 crore, while unlisted companies would have spent Rs 7,072 crore. It says that real expenditure for the two fiscal years can only be verified after yearly reports for the previous fiscal year are obtained and analysed.

More than 40% of spending occurred in only the previous two fiscal years. With the coming third wave, more money for pandemic-related causes is expected to arrive.

“The successive waves of COVID-19 have been a litmus test of corporate altruism, with firms needing to reconcile employee well-being programmes, commercial imperatives, and their social contract,” said Maya Vengurlekar, Chief Operating Officer of Crisil Foundation. Given the likelihood of a third wave, it appears that more monies will be diverted during this fiscal year.”

Maruti Suzuki will only enter the electric vehicle market if it is feasible: RC Bhargava

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Chairman RC Bhargava informed shareholders at the company’s 40th annual general meeting that Maruti Suzuki will only enter the electric vehicle market if it is viable to sell a significant number of units. He also stated that the government’s current focus is on the electrification of two-wheelers.

According to Bhargava, a few manufacturers have introduced electric vehicles in the passenger vehicle sector, but the sales volume is small and has little influence on Maruti Suzuki’s market share. At the same time, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra are currently working on a range of pure battery-electric vehicles for the Indian market until 2025.

According to Bhargava, Maruti Suzuki aims to be a pioneer in electric vehicles, who also stated that EV penetration will only occur in India when conditions are favourable for people to purchase EVs. In the short term, he added that Maruti Suzuki would focus on CNG and hybrid versions until it is time to build up EV operations.

On the other hand, Suzuki, Denso, and Toshiba are already working with vendors to localize lithium-ion batteries. Suzuki’s parent business stated that India-specific electric vehicles might be available by 2025.

The Chairman also stated that India must stick to its own pace and not be forced by more industrialized nations’ deadlines for climate change, zero-emission, and carbon neutrality.

How to evaluate your startup idea?

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All good ideas, they say, have been thought of before. But, before you throw out your company strategy, remember that the execution and people behind it are far more crucial than the idea itself.

So often see founders become extremely fixated on their product, creating blind spots for other success factors. They believe that the market will adopt a good product and entice investors and the general public to go onboard.

There are questions they often forget to ask:

  • Is this a viable business concept? 
  • Is it a lifestyle business or one with the potential for rapid growth and a significant exit? 
  • Will it be aided by seed funding or perhaps crowdfunding?

The real reason investors analyze a startup company is to see if it can develop quickly. Watch the video to evaluate your startup idea.

Interview: Dr. Raina Khatri Tandon. Founder, Right2Rise

Dr. Raina Khatri Tandon, International Speaker Mentor n Educator, Breakthrough Transformation Coach, dynamic trainer, change strategist, author, and an enterprising entrepreneur.

She is also a “certified corporate trainer” from the IATD Mumbai chapter and is a competent career coach. As a trainer, Raina has more than 20 years of experience and touched the lives of around 18000 fantastic people and helped them to improve their life, resolve their issues, induce the CHANGE, and develop a strong self-belief and utilizing their INNER POTENTIAL.

Dr. Tandon is the Founder of Right2Rise, India’s first and only ISO 21001, 17024- accredited certified POSH organisation private limited company and a registered trademarked copyrighted, a part of ITF Global Pvt. Ltd.

Through her role as a certified POSH compliance expert, Raina is an external member of many companies across India. She has been a speaker at various global conferences to advocate women leadership and gender equality and a two-time TEDx speaker at Gateway. Raina is a multiple award-winning entrepreneur and was bestowed with the Nobel Asian Award (2018), the Global Dignitary Award (2018), and the Ph.D. Chakra Award (2018), among various others. She received her BEng in Electronics and Communication Engineering from SRM University (Mumbai) and her MS in Computer Hardware Engineering from the University of Westminster, London, a PhD from Brazil University, Certified Human rights professional From EDX Harvard CHR  and currently Pursuing Advocacy from Maharashtra Law university. 

Vandana Luthra – A businesswoman who redefined Beauty and Fitness

We are all familiar with the name VLCC. This brand’s beauty and healthcare goods are noted for their authenticity and high quality. People may not be aware of Vandana Luthra, the woman behind VLCC’s success. Her abilities and mastery are responsible for the company’s current success. She is not just a fantastic businesswoman but also a lovely wife and mother.

Vandana Luthra was born in Delhi on July 12, 1956, to a literate family. Her father was a successful mechanical engineer, and her mother was an ayurvedic doctor who ran the Amar Jyoti charity foundation. Vandana travelled extensively throughout Europe after getting a graduate degree from the Polytechnic for Women in New Delhi. She aspired to increase her appearance, food and nutrition, and skincare knowledge. She has two beautiful daughters with Mukesh Luthra, whom she has been married to since 1988.

The urge to begin a business dawned upon Vandana Luthra when she had given birth to her second daughter. For many people in 1989, the concept of a woman launching her own business could have appeared ridiculous. Women were supposed to stay at home and care for their children and household responsibilities under patriarchal culture. Many of them were not even provided with adequate education, let alone stable employment. Vandana’s efforts to realise her ambition were heavily criticised by society. They frequently attempted to bring her down and cause her to fail in her undertakings. She, on the other hand, was not ready to give up.

Vandana’s desire to make other people’s life easier inspired the creation of VLCC. This is a trait she may have received from her father and mother. During her childhood, her family invited many people from their community to watch TV from their homes. Only a few houses in the neighbourhood had televisions in the past, and Vandana’s was one of them. Besides, her mom was a warm social butterfly and had helped many people through her trust, Amar Jyoti. Furthermore, her mother’s charity foundation was the first of its type, dedicated to educating children in kindergarten through seventh grade.

Vandana intended to improve the health and welfare of the neighbourhood where her family lived when she got married. She had discovered that only a few people were concerned about their well-being, nutrition, food, or health. She founded the Vandana Luthra Curls and Curves Company (VLCC) out of a desire to remedy this problem. In addition, her enthusiasm for planning exciting hairdos and trying different things with new styles was also included with VLCC’s services. This business expanded over time into a progressive organisation that is now well-known to everyone.

Vandana Luthra also focused on providing dietary plans and weight control schemes for the customers. VLCC is now widely recognised both in our country and around the world. Slimming, aesthetic treatments, laser, hair transplant, and various other services are currently available through the organisation. VLCC has established itself as one of India’s most dynamic beauty and well-being administration organisations. The organisation’s offices are located in 326 locations in 153 cities in 13 countries.

Vandana Luthra has employed over 5000 people through VLCC, including clinical professionals, nutritionists, cosmetologists, and beauty professionals. They’ve also established manufacturing facilities in India, and Singapore. The organisation manufactures and sells a variety of skin, body, and hair care products. These commodities are also sold in 100,000 retail locations in India and more than 10,000 shops across the United Arab Emirates and Africa.

Vandana Luthra also runs the VLCC Institute of Beauty and Nutrition, a career training programme under VLCC. Today, the business has established itself as one of the most promising professional teaching institutes for beauty and wellness education. The organisation is not for profit, and its goal is to make these skills available to women who otherwise would not be able to afford them. Vandana Luthra is the administrator at BWSSC (Beauty & Wellness Sector Skill Council). The Institute has opened such vast numbers of aptitude courses for those who aspire to excel in this field.

When she is not busy with her entrepreneurial works, Vandana Luthra likes to contribute to her nation in any way that she can. She is the founder of a foundation that provides financial assistance in the form of scholarships to physically challenged and impoverished people. She also runs Khushii, a non-profit organisation that works on various philanthropic causes. It educates around 3000 students, provides them with a free lunch, and runs vocational coaching programmes and telemedicine centres.

Vandana Luthra has a membership in the Steering Committee of India’s Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship on the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana. Currently, the Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust has started two schools with more than 800 students. With her expertise on healthcare and fitness, Vandara Luthra has authored two amazing books. “A complete fitness program” was the first book she wrote which was published in 2011. Later in 2013, she published A Good Life: The VLCC way.

From Vandana’s journey, she could be personified as a determined and courageous woman. The road to success is indeed difficult, but with self-determination, anything is achievable.

Mallika Srinivasan: Setting trailblazing standards in a tradition-bound business

Entrepreneurship is still viewed as a male-dominated sector, and changing this perception may be difficult. In addition to coping with the popular stereotype, female entrepreneurs face several challenges in their companies. This is the story of a well-known Indian entrepreneur who was voted Businesswoman of the Year by the Economic Times in 2006. She has always tried her hardest to reach for the stars yet always kept her foot firmly planted on the earth. She is a strong-willed woman who is in charge of a company that engages in manly activities. Yet, she has been able to climb above the competition and establish a name for herself in today’s competitive corporate world. She is Mallika Srinivasan, director of the Rs 3040 crore Amalgamations Group – Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (TAFE). Mallika Srinivasan is one of India’s most successful women CEOs.

Over the course of 25 years, she has steadily grown this company into the world’s third-largest tractor maker. Massey Ferguson and Eicher are two of the company’s most popular trademarks among Indian farmers. It operates in over 100 countries.

Mallika Srinivasan also boosted TAFE’s collaboration with AGCO, an American agricultural equipment producer, to help both organisations develop. Under her leadership, TAFE achieved revenue of INR 93 billion in 2014-15, establishing the company as one of the world’s most profitable tractor firms.

Mallika Srinivasan was born in Alwarkurichi, Tamil Nadu, on November 19, 1959. She was the family’s eldest daughter and a gifted student. From very early on in her life, business studies interested Mallika Srinivasan the most, especially Economics. This is why she earned a Master’s degree in Econometrics from Madras University and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.

When she joined TAFE, the leadership abilities and commercial acumen at Madras University and the Wharton School of Business came in handy. As a result, she was able to improve the company’s competitiveness. As a result, Mallika Srinivasan is now one of the country’s most successful female CEOs.

Mallika Srinivasan has received numerous accolades and prizes throughout the years, reflecting volumes about her leadership talents, insight, and passion for achieving. Ernst & Young recognised Mallika Srinivasan Entrepreneur of the Year in 2011. In addition, she was named one of the Top 50 Asian Power Businesswomen by Forbes Asia. But, more crucially, the Indian government honoured her with the Padma Shri for Trade and Industry.

It is often said that a successful leader ensures the success of their company and considers society’s welfare, and one of them is Mallika Srinivasan. Despite her hectic schedule, she makes it a point to volunteer. She is a supporter of the Sankara Nethralaya, the Chennai Cancer Hospital, and a number of educational and healthcare facilities in Tirunelveli. In addition, she promotes and maintains Carnatic music’s musical lineage through the Indira Sivasailam Endowment Fund.

Mallika Srinivasan is an inspiration to all of us. She is a mother, a wife, and a successful businesswoman. Her unwavering commitment to her career has earned her prominence, fortune, and comfortable existence. Her life has been full of ups and downs, but an entrepreneur’s life is full of them. She possesses excellent abilities that have aided her in scaling new ladders throughout her career.

In the business world, she has given her peers tough competition. Her life has been full of ups and downs, but an entrepreneur’s life is full of them, yet with her excellent abilities, she managed to scale new ladders throughout her career.

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw – India’s first female Billionaire Entrepreneur

There is no force more powerful than a woman destined to rise”

A woman of courage, a woman of vision, a woman of desire, a woman who defeated all odds to become India’s First Female Billionaire Entrepreneur. An inspiration to all the young aspiring woman entrepreneurs – she is Kiran Mazumdar Shaw; the owner of India’s no. 1 Biotech company – Biocon technology and the chairman of Indian Institute of Management(IIM), Bangalore. Kiran was born on 23rd March 1953 in Bangalore, India. She completed her schooling at Bishop Cotton girl’s high school in 1968 and graduated with a degree in BSC (Zoology) from Bangalore University in 1973. She further went on to complete Post-Graduate Diploma in Malting and Brewing from Ballarat Institute of Advanced Education, Melbourne, Australia, in 1975. She married Scotsman John Shaw in 1988, who is currently serving as the vice-president of Biocon.

During the initial years of her career, she worked as a trainee in Carlton and United Breweries in 1974 and as a trainee maltster at Barrett Brothers and Burston, Australia. After returning to India, she worked in Jupiter Breweries Limited as a technical consultant and later worked at Standard Maltings Corporation as a technical manager. Kiran, then agreed to collaborate with Leslie Ochenklas, founder of Ireland-based Biocon Biochemical Limited, who was looking for an Indian entrepreneur to help him establish an Indian subsidiary of his company. Thus Kiran started the company Biocon Biochemicals in the year 1978 in a small garage in Bangalore. But this ought to be the most challenging phase of her life. The concept of ‘Biotechnology’ wasn’t as popular in India then as it is now. She faced many hardships as getting loans approved from banks was very difficult, and it wasn’t easy to convince people to join this startup. It was a tedious job to arrange sterile labs, efficient workers, research equipment, and other scientific skills. However, this did not stop her determination to work. She overcame all obstacles and successfully set up her factory. Within a few years, the company expanded and became a fully integrated pharmaceutical company.

Kiran shares some life lessons and personal experiences which helped her become a successful entrepreneur; stated as follows-

  • Kiran feels that the entrepreneurial world is male-dominated and needs to populate the business landscape with more women as gender diversity is fundamental in the way business grows in the country.
  • To be successful as an entrepreneur, one needs to be passionate and dedicated to fixing the problems one faces. 
  • Kiran guides all young aspiring women entrepreneurs to be confident, understand their competence, capabilities, and above all, to have a strong determination and will to succeed in whatever they are doing. She believes every woman should have a sense of purpose and self-belief.
  • Kiran always believes in differentiation and challenging the status quo and has a deep sense of admiration for people who do that.
  • Kiran proudly calls herself a philanthropist. She believes money is not a currency to buy favors with but a currency with which you can make a difference. 

Kiran is doing many things for the welfare of society, like bringing cutting-edge cell therapy for cancer patients, which could treat cancer at a meagre cost and addressing unmet medical needs. Her focus is on providing sustainable and affordable healthcare for marginalized communities. Her prime goal is to deliver affordable and world-class cancer care facilities to every patient regardless of their social & economic status.

She owns a corporate social responsibility wing called the Biocon Foundation, which focuses on sustainable solutions to address the developmental changes in India.

Kiran has many awards and recognitions under her name. She was honoured as the businesswoman of the year by the Economic Times in 2004. In 2005, Mazumdar-Shaw also received the Padma Bhushan Award, one of India’s highest civilian honors, for her pioneering work in industrial biotechnology. She was named among TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in the year 2010. She is on the 2011 Financial Times’ top 50 women in business list. In 2015, she was listed as the 85th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.