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Time of India
3 days ago
- General
- Time of India
Timely disposal of people's complaints my top priority: Gaya's new DM
Gaya: Aimed at ensuring effective and timely resolution of public grievances, Gaya district magistrate, Shashank Shubhankar, on Wednesday said that a portal was being developed for monitoring complaints of people coming at the Janata durbar. "I have instructed officials concerned to upload all the complaints on a portal. Regular monitoring regarding disposal of the complaints will be done through the portal. In case of inaction, responsibility will be fixed on the official concerned," the DM said in his first interaction with the mediapersons after he assumed charge on Tuesday. The DM said, "Apart from implementation of ongoing or the upcoming development projects, redressal of public grievances will be on his top priority. Now, people having any complaint can come to meet me in the office on any working day of the week from 11am onwards." He further said, "Flying squads will be constituted to conduct surprise inspections to monitor regular and timely attendance of officials and employees at district, block, circle and panchayat level govt offices. Instructions have also been given to officials of different departments like public health and engineering, public works, Pul Nirman Nigam and others to meet people at least twice a week and ensure redressal of their complaints. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Gentle Japanese hair growth method for men and women's scalp Hair's Rich Learn More Undo " The DM also instructed sadar SDO and the traffic DSP to chalk out a plan to ease traffic congestion. In view of Nirjala Ekadashi on Friday, the DM and the SSP Anand Kumar conducted inspection of Deo ghat near Vishnupad temple on Wednesday. He instructed to ensure all arrangements for the expected large gathering of devotees to offer puja at the Vishnupad temple early in the morning on Friday. The arrangements include making available pure and cold drinking water, cleanliness in toilets at Deo ghat, light at all dark spots around the temple area, and deployment of medical team with availability of ambulance for the devotees.
Time of India
30-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Uno Minda introduces UnoMindaKart: A platform for online access to automotive solutions
Uno Minda , a major automotive supplier in India, has launched UnoMindaKart , a direct-to-consumer platform, to provide customers with easy access to auto components. This initiative marks Uno Minda as the first aftermarket brand in India to offer products online through its own platform, aiming to transform the way customers purchase automotive parts. The platform offers over 5,000 SKUs across 30 categories, including spare parts and car accessories, and incorporates tools like the 'Add My Vehicle' feature and a 3D Visualizer to enhance the customer experience. Uno Minda's new D2C platform, UnoMindaKart, is designed to revolutionize how customers in the Indian aftermarket access automotive components. The platform offers a wide array of products for various automotive segments, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers, cars, commercial vehicles, tractors, and off-road vehicles. The website boasts a comprehensive selection of over 5,000 SKUs, categorized into more than 30 segments. These include over 24 categories of spare parts and 10 categories of car accessories, catering to diverse automotive needs. Anand Kumar , Head of Strategy & Product, Uno Minda Aftermarket , said "We are thrilled to introduce our new D2C platform, which embodies our commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction. UnoMindaKart offers automotive solutions for all major segments in the Indian automotive industry, i.e., 2W, 3W, Car, Commercial, tractor & Offroad." Features -A key feature of the UnoMindaKart website is the 'Add My Vehicle' tool. This feature allows customers to input their vehicle details and receive personalized product recommendations, ensuring a precise fit. -The platform also includes a 3D Visualizer, providing an augmented reality experience. This allows users to see Uno Minda components in their actual fitment locations. -Additionally, the Wheelz Visualizer enables customers to virtually explore and test various Uno Minda alloy wheels. This feature allows them to see how different styles would look on their vehicles before making a purchase. -To further assist customers, Uno Minda has integrated a web bot. This acts as a personal assistant to help in buying decisions and ensure customer satisfaction. Customers can now purchase Uno Minda products directly from the website. The website address is .
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
How New Zealand inspired a leading vaccine maker in India
Dr Anand Kumar is managing director of Indian Immunologicals in Hyderabad, India. Photo: Supplied / Anand Kumar In the quiet rural town of Dargaville in Northland, a biotechnology facility extracts a pale gold serum from cattle blood - a key ingredient in some of the world's most widely distributed animal vaccines. Each year, several hundred tonnes of the serum are shipped to laboratories in Hyderabad, India, where hundreds of scientists use it to manufacture vaccines for foot-and-mouth disease and human rabies on a massive scale. The Northland facility, Pristine Biologicals, is the brainchild of Dr Anand Kumar, managing director of parent company Indian Immunologicals. Dr Anand Kumar opened Pristine Biologicals in Dargaville in 2015. Photo: Supplied / Anand Kumar Kumar has quickly cemented his place as a leading figure in India's vaccine industry. What's lesser known is that between 1996 and 2003, he spent many of his formative years in healthcare technology living and working in New Zealand. Across seven years in Auckland and Wellington, Kumar worked in the fields of microbiology, virology and vaccine research. It was here that Kumar observed the disease-free status of cattle and realised the potential for developing animal vaccines back in India. "Serum is nothing but the liquid of blood. If you remove all the red blood cells then the straw-coloured liquid left over is the serum, which has very rich growth promotion properties. "In New Zealand, there's virgin serum because those animals have never seen diseases like foot-and-mouth." Dr Anand Kumar spent many of his formative years in healthcare technology living and working in New Zealand. Photo: Supplied / Anand Kumar Indian Immunologicals had sourced serum from New Zealand and Australia for many years with the help of various vendors. However, rising costs and insufficient quantities meant it was time for the company to take matters into its own hands. In 2015, a year before taking on the role of managing director, Kumar decided to establish the company's own manufacturing facility in Dargaville near Silver Fern Farms. "Our consumption of serum is roughly 500 metric tonnes a year, which is a very large quantity, and to get it from one or two vendors is very difficult. What we did [is] called backward integration, where if a company's making a product and there are certain key raw materials being used in the product, it gives us absolute access and control. "The method is that we get blood from Silver Fern Farms that's brought into our facility, then we process it and ship the serum in minus 20 degrees (Celsius), frozen, to India, and use it for various vaccine manufacturing, whether it be for use in foot-and-mouth disease or in a human rabies vaccine." One of Indian Immunologicals' biggest goals was to protect India's fragile milk economy from devastating livestock diseases. Photo: Supplied / Anand Kumar Indian Immunologicals was born out of India's dairy revolution in 1982 after being established under the National Dairy Development Board. Kumar says one of the company's biggest goals was to protect India's fragile milk economy from devastating livestock diseases. "Years ago, when India was deficient in milk and we had to import from outside, there was a desire to make India self-sufficient in the production of milk," he says. "Our founding fathers realised very early that if you want to increase the production of milk, then you have to control diseases. It's very well-known that vaccines are the most cost-effective intervention to prevent infectious diseases." Animal vaccines in India were sold by multinational companies at the time, making them very expensive and far beyond the reach of the average dairy farmer. Indian Immunologicals was established out of a desire to set up local manufacturing in India. "Unlike in the West, where you have herds of some 200 cows on a farm, here it's about two or three animals per household, so it's very fragmented," Kumar says. "We got technology from the UK and established a very small plant on the outskirts of Hyderabad then, and now it's the most happening place in the city." Dr Anand Kumar meets with dairy farmers in Jodhpur in 2015. Photo: Supplied / Anand Kumar Indian Immunologicals began with a single vaccine for foot-and-mouth disease, and then ventured into making several vaccines for livestock, predominantly cattle, and then sheep and goats, before entering the companion animal space. The company also runs community-focused initiatives that reflect its roots in public health - a Gift Milk Programme, where nearly 7000 children studying in government schools are given flavoured, fortified milk to drink every day. "In rural areas many parents do field work, so there's no proper breakfast," Kumar says. "In India we do have a noon meal scheme, but there's no breakfast, so they can't stand until lunch period. So as soon as they come to school, we give them milk and they can pay attention in class." In 1998, everything changed when the Indian government requested the purely veterinary vaccine company to produce a human rabies vaccine. "Rabies is a big problem in India with many dog bite cases, and there was a very crude vaccine derived from sheep brain back in the day. You had to have 14 injections for 14 days, and again, it was very expensive," Kumar says. "Normally the people who get bitten by dogs are street vendors, they're very poor, so the government asked if we could make a safe vaccine for humans. "There was a lot of ridicule at the time about how a vaccine for humans will be made by a veterinary vaccine company. Now I'm happy to say we're the largest producer of the human rabies vaccine in the world." Pristine Biologicals received two Indian Newslink awards for business excellence in marketing and international trade in 2024. Photo: Supplied / Anand Kumar In 2024, at a ceremony in Auckland, Pristine Immunologicals was presented with two Indian Newslink awards for business excellence in marketing and international trade, with Kumar receiving an additional commemorative award from Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. Kumar is aware of New Zealand's pursuit of a free trade agreement with India but says the chance of a boost is looking slim for vaccine trade. "Indian Immunologicals doesn't supply any vaccines to New Zealand currently and I don't think anything will change," he says. He says New Zealand is not currently on the radar of Indian vaccine manufacturers because of its small market size compared to other Western nations. "Vaccines are dependent on population, and New Zealand is a very small market. You need to have a reasonably sized market because you're competing with Australia." * Jogai Bhatt travelled to India with support from the Asia New Zealand Foundation.
Time of India
16-05-2025
- Time of India
Ratu road flyover likely to be ready by May-end
1 2 Ranchi: The much-awaited Ratu Road flyover is in its final phase of construction, with the 4.17 km elevated corridor expected to be completed by the end of this month, according to officials from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). NHAI site engineer Anand Kumar said that except for some painting work, major construction was already over. "The pending work is expected to be finished by the end of May if the weather does not ruin the plan. However, the inauguration date of the flyover is not finalised yet. The flyover, which has two diversions, will connect the NH 75 on one side and the NH 23 on the other," the NHAI engineer added on Friday. The project, which commenced in 2021, is expected to alleviate chronic traffic congestion in the city, particularly along the busy Ratu Road corridor. The flyover will connect the Kutchery Chowk and Piska More. The construction began at a cost of Rs 291.10 crore. Once the flyover is completed, it will also facilitate hassle-free movement for the people of the nearby districts. In a first-of-its-kind safety measure in the city's flyovers, bulletproof view cutters-cum-noise barriers have also been installed on the flyover to enhance safety for the commuters on the flyover. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Villas For Sale in Dubai Might Surprise You Villas In Dubai | Search Ads Get Quote Undo The around eight-foot-high bullet-proof shields have been installed on one side of the 4.17 km flyover. "The bullet-proof view cutters have been installed on the Raj Bhavan side of the flyover, keeping in mind the safety and security of the governor. While on the other side of the flyover, noise-proof view cutters have been installed so that the people under the flyover and the residents residing in adjacent buildings of the flyover do not get disturbed by the vehicular noise," the NHAI official said. Inspecting the construction at the flyover last year, Ranchi MP Sanjay Seth directed NHAI officials to ensure that the space under the flyover is developed as a play area, so that it can supplement the lack of playgrounds in the city and help children's physical activities. However, the NHAI official refrained from commenting on the play area development plans.
Time of India
09-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
ICAI postpones May 2025 CA exams amid security concerns
Pune: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) decided to postpone the remaining papers of the earlier scheduled for May 2025, considering the security concerns in the remaining papers of the CA Final, Intermediate and Post-Qualification Course (International Taxation Assessment Test - INTT AT) scheduled from May 9 to May 14, 2025, were secretary (examinations) Anand Kumar stated in a statement issued by ICAI, "In partial modification of the 'Institute's Important Announcement' dated Jan 13, 2025, it is announced that in view of the tense and security situation in the country, the remaining papers of Chartered Accountants, May 9, 2025, to May 14, 2025, stand postponed. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The revised dates will be announced in due course."Candidates registered for the CA exam can visit the ICAI website to check the official notification. According to the previous schedule, the ICAI CA May 2025 exam dates were planned between May 2 and May 14. In the CA Intermediate exam, Group 1 papers were to be held on May 3, 5, and 7, while Group 2 exams were scheduled for May 9, 11, and 14. Similarly, in the CA Final exam, Group 1 papers were to be conducted on May 2, 4, and 6, and Group 2 papers on May 8, 10, and 13, intermediate exams were to take place daily from 2pm to 5pm. For the final course exams, the timing for papers 1 to 5 was from 2pm to 5pm, while paper 6 was scheduled from 2pm to 6pm. Pune: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) decided to postpone the remaining papers of the chartered accountancy exams earlier scheduled for May 2025, considering the security concerns in the remaining papers of the CA Final, Intermediate and Post-Qualification Course (International Taxation Assessment Test - INTT AT) scheduled from May 9 to May 14, 2025, were secretary (examinations) Anand Kumar stated in a statement issued by ICAI, "In partial modification of the 'Institute's Important Announcement' dated Jan 13, 2025, it is announced that in view of the tense and security situation in the country, the remaining papers of Chartered Accountants, May 9, 2025, to May 14, 2025, stand postponed. The revised dates will be announced in due course."Candidates registered for the CA exam can visit the ICAI website to check the official notification. According to the previous schedule, the ICAI CA May 2025 exam dates were planned between May 2 and May 14. In the CA Intermediate exam, Group 1 papers were to be held on May 3, 5, and 7, while Group 2 exams were scheduled for May 9, 11, and 14. Similarly, in the CA Final exam, Group 1 papers were to be conducted on May 2, 4, and 6, and Group 2 papers on May 8, 10, and 13, intermediate exams were to take place daily from 2pm to 5pm. For the final course exams, the timing for papers 1 to 5 was from 2pm to 5pm, while paper 6 was scheduled from 2pm to 6pm.
