BR Shetty’s Controversy Ridden Jog Fall Project Scrapped by Karnataka Cabinet

Bengaluru, September 5, 2020: 

In a big announcement, the Karnataka state cabinet scrapped an agreement with BR Shetty Ventures to develop Jog Falls, on the plea that
there was no progress in the project. Owned by Dubai-based businessman BR Shetty,
the agreement had been signed in 2016 at a cost of Rs 450 crore. This comes soon
after debt-stricken BR Shetty, founder of Dubai based NMC healthcare has been
alleged to have misrepresented his shareholdings in the company and is definitely a
reflection of Shetty fast losing his credibility in the eyes of Indian government.
The agreement had been in the eye of the storm ever since the Cabinet gave its nod to
the project. With no financial commitment on the part of the state government, the state
Cabinet decided to allow Shetty’s firm to invest on its own and facilitate tourist flow to
the falls. While Shetty’s firm agreed to all the terms and conditions set by the state
government such as getting the necessary clearances and not setting up a resort
around it, what really whipped a controversy was the fact that despite promising such a
huge investment, the businessman really did not ask for anything else in return.

Punjab National Bank “salutes Teachers on the Teacher’s Day”

 

 

Bengaluru, 5^th September 2020 : Teachers’ Day is about celebrating the vital role of teachers in crafting young minds, guiding, nurturing, and shaping a progressive future. The objective is also to express gratitude, respect, and appreciation through recognition of the efforts of these architects of the nation. Punjab National Bank, India’s second largest bank today awardedteachers nationwide for their exemplary and distinguished services in the field of education.  

 

PNB officials across the country invited teachers, principals and retired teachers from the government schools, universities, and various educational institutions. In an initiative to honor their role and contribution, PNB’s senior officials across 13000 branches felicitated teachers with shawls and teaching materials like whiteboards and stationery items. The gesture aimed to acknowledge them for improving the quality of education and instilling integrity, imparting knowledge, and discipline in young minds.  

 

Teachers are also one of the warrior groups of Covid-19. As a responsible bank, PNB continuous to encourage and support, to those who are instrumental and dedicated to social and societal reforms.  

 

Below are the details of the activity:  

1. Felicitation of Vice chancellor, Ranchi University on auspicious occasion of Teacher's Day by Circle Head, Ranchi North, Sri Rati Kant Tripathi & Chief Manager, Sri Sanjay Kumar. (photo 1) 
2. Felicitation of a retired Headmaster of Nimpur ME School Jagatpur Cuttack by CH Cuttack Sri Bhanja & LK Mishra Head of GBB & CAC ZO Bhubaneswar at Bo-CDABIDANASI Cuttack (photo 2) 
3. PNB senior officials of Srinagar zone felicitating teachers (photo 3) 
4. PNB senior officials of Odisha, Baleshwar felicitating teachers (photo 4) 
5. PNB senior officials of Bhopal felicitating teachers (photo 5) 
6. PNB senior officials of Delhi felicitating teachers (Photo 6) 
7. PNB officials felicitating college director and senior teachers of SGSITS College Indore (Photo 7) 
8. PNB senior officials of Guwahati felicitating teachers (Photo 8) 

 

Website: https://www.pnbindia.in/ 

 

WINZO CLOSES SERIES B; BRINGS GLOBAL GAMING INVESTORS TO INDIA FOR THE FIRST TIME

Bengaluru, 3rd September 2020 : With the goal of disrupting Bharat’s vernacular entertainment, WinZO has announced its $18MM Series B investment round led by global interactive entertainment fund, Makers Fund based in Singapore, and New York based Courtside Ventures. Both funds are making their first ever investment in India through WinZO. WinZO plans to strengthen its content pipeline, captivate mobile-first consumers and their gaming needs, and become the go-to gaming app in India. The company’s revenue has grown 1500% and acquired 20MM users in the last 12 months, on the back of a strong word of mouth,product market fit with players who spend more than 45 minutes everyday on WinZO’s platform. WinZO has achieved this on the back of their dense network of vernacular micro influencers and 30+ partner Game Developers through which it strives to become the go-to Gaming platform for Bharat. Makers Fund is a global interactive entertainment focused venture capital fund based out of Singapore with over 30 investments across North America, Europe, and Asia; this is Makers' first investment in India. Regarding the investment, Michael Cheung, Partner at Makers Fund shared, “WinZO is at the heart of India’s gaming evolution, a geography we’ve been tracking for some time. Paavan and Saumya’s success through a hyper-focus on their player ecosystem is evident, and a clear asset as they accelerate their growth.” Kalaari Capital, which first invested in WinZO in 2018 and led the company's Series A in 2019, also participated in the round. WinZO is Kalaari’s second largest bet in gaming after Dream11. “Mobile gaming is a large opportunity in India, and in a short span of time, WinZO has built a high quality vernacular gaming platform for the masses. We are really proud of their progress & their superior metrics (retention, time spent, etc.) that are a true reflection of customer experience. We are very excited to partner with Makers and Courtside in the next leg of WinZO's journey and bring superior entertainment to the next 200M gamers,” said Rahul Garg, Principal at Kalaari Capital. Paavan Nanda, one of WinZO’s co-founders said, “With Series B funding, we are thrilled and humbled to welcome like-minded business partners into our WinZO family. Along with their network, support and fresh financing, we are confident we can propel WinZO even further as a business and become an even more lovable product for our customers. It’s time to put all the learnings and experiences of the past toward building something huge!" Revant Bhate, FinAdvantage, Indigo Edge -exclusive advisor to WinZO, and Co-founder Paavan Nanda and Saumya Singh Rathore also joined the round 

About WinZO: WinZO is the largest vernacular gaming platform in India, launched in early 2018. The company partners with third party game studios to host their games on their Android app, creating a Netflix-like experience for users, who can enjoy multiplayer formats with their friends or strangers in a localized fashion. The platform is available in 12 languages with over 25+ million registered users. Clocking over 1 billion micro-transactions per month, WinZO offers 70+ games across various multiplayer formats. This vernacular social gaming platform focuses on building a community of gamers and game influencers in Tier 2 – Tier 5 cities of India. WinZO is designed to deliver strong positive unit economics in the Indian gaming ecosystem, which experiences one of the highest engagements globally, through a unique micro-transaction led model. WinZO was founded by Paavan Nanda, a second time entrepreneur, and Saumya Singh Rathore. It boasts a team of 40 members, making it one of the leanest startups to raise Series B financing of this order. 

About Makers Fund: Makers Fund is a venture capital fund dedicated to furthering the growth and innovation in the global interactive entertainment industry. It supports founders by combining deep industry experience globally with multi-stage investment across seed to series B. About Courtside Ventures: Courtside Ventures is a New York based venture capital fund backing founders that are transforming the intersection of sports, technology, and media. Built on the backs of highly specialized sports and media entrepreneurs and investors, Courtside Ventures look to utilize their industry networks and deep domain knowledge to bring value to their companies

Sportz Village aims to make screen time more productive for children with its “Active Club program”

 

 

Bengaluru, 1^st September 2020 – We all are well aware of the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has not only had a major impact on the global economy but also has tremendously disrupted our lifestyle. Children are no different; they have been confined within their homes. A survey has revealed that there has been a 100 percent increase in the amount of time children spend in front of screens because of the lockdown.  

 

It has being observed that children who spend a large amount of time in front of the screens may be at a risk of developing myopia or becoming overweight, due to the lack of sufficient physical activity. Parents, at present, are worried about the fact that majority of the screen time consumed by children is unproductive and they have been seeking various avenues to ensure that their child’s screen time is utilized more productively.  

 

Keeping in mind the above concerns, Sportz Village, India’s largest youth sports platform has developed a special program called Active Club, for children between the ages of 4 to 19 years. Through this engaging fitness and skill-based program, Sportz Village aims to keep children physically active in the comfort of their own homes and nuture their sports journey. The Active Club program has garnered the trust of more than 1,200 parents in a short span of time.  

 

With schools being closed for an extended period, a shift has been observed from offline to online space as far as academics is concerned. However, the same transition has been slower with regards to sports and physical education for children. COVID or No COVID children still need to play for their health, immunity as well as happiness and make their home, their new playground.  

 

Benefits of Active Club Program:  Better Physical Health  Better Mental Health  Opportunity to Interact with Peers

The Active club program intends to bridge this gap and include sports and fitness as a part of a child’s daily routine. The Active Club program not only ensures that children get to play and have fun but also lay a foundation towards their sports journey. The instructor-led program revolves around getting children and parents to subscribe to different online training modules wherein certified trainers would train the children on various age-appropriate, sports-specific and fitness activities.  

 

Moreover, since the child would be performing the physical activities at a particular distance from the screen, the probability of straining one's eyes is reduced.  

 

John Gloster, who has been associated with international cricket for the last 22 years, most notably as physiotherapist to the Indian Cricket Team from 2004 – 2008, and Saumil Majmudar, Co-Founder, CEO and Managing Director, Sportz Village, have been instrumental in the development of the Active Club program.  

 

Speaking on the fitness aspect and his association with the Active Club program, John Gloster, Chief Quality and Performance Officer, Board Advisor, Sportz Village India said, “I am glad to be a part of the Active Club program. It is an innovative way of engaging with children.  

 

 

 

As a professional trainer, I feel that children at a young age should inculcate the habit of engaging in different sports and physical activities. Sports not only ensures a disciplined lifestyle but also helps to inculcate several social-emotional skills in children such as teamwork, leadership and confidence.” 

 

Speaking about the Active Club program, Saumil Majmudar, Co-founder, CEO and Managing Director, Sportz Village said, “We aim to revolutionize the way fitness and sports can be implemented in a child’s routine. With children spending most of their time in front of the screens, it is important to make sure that they utilize their screen time productively. Children’s h 

ealth and fitness have always been a prime focus for us, and we have ensured that the best set of fitness experts and trainers are involved so that a child can engage with as well as enjoy the sessions. Our objective is to motivate the children to stay fit and active COVID or No COVID.”  

For more Details:- https://www.sportzvillage.com/   or  https://www.activeclub.in/