Latest news with #Pratham
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Pratham Waghmare, 25, Becomes One of India's Youngest Porsche 911 Owners
At just 25, Pratham Waghmare has become one of the youngest self-made Indians to own a Porsche 911 Carrera S, worth ₹2.5 crore. But for him, the car is less a symbol of arrival and more a marker of progress — a quiet milestone in a much larger journey of innovation, discipline, and execution. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Pratham is the founder of one of India's most successful internet marketing firms, now valued at over ₹170 crore. What makes this all the more remarkable is context: few in India — even among celebrities or athletes — achieve such enterprise value at this age, especially without outside funding or mainstream visibility. Well-regarded in industry circles as India's leading internet marketer, Pratham doesn't follow trends — he creates them. Known for developing original strategies and systems, he consistently pushes the boundaries of client acquisition and digital scale. 'I'm not in the business of optimising — I'm in the business of inventing,' he says. 'If something doesn't exist in the market, I build it myself.' Under his leadership, the company has delivered outstanding results for clients across sectors and continents, using bespoke frameworks, constant iteration, and high-performance execution. There are no gimmicks or celebrity endorsements — just a rigorous, technical approach to creating digital leverage. Pratham is also known for his exceptionally high IQ, reflected in both his business decisions and personal interests. He's an elite speedcuber with multiple medals and official sub-eight-second solves — a hobby that mirrors the precision and mental agility that drive his professional success. The Porsche 911 may attract attention, but for Pratham, it isn't the destination. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It's a reflection of the years spent solving tough problems and building something rare from the ground up. He encourages others to put God first, believing true success in business, health, and life flows from spiritual richness. 'Do not be poor in spirit; let God first make you rich in spirit, and all things will follow' — a principle that defines his view of lasting success.
Time of India
18-05-2025
- General
- Time of India
Hyderabad fire: Man inconsolable as he lights his children's pyres at Puranapul crematorium
Hyderabad: Asha Agarwal, the lone surviving daughter of Prahlad Modi and Munni Bai, was left shattered after her two children Pratham and Pranshi perished in the fire. While Pratham is in class X, Pranshi is in class 1. Asha's husband Rohith performed the final rites of their children at Puranapul graveyard on Sunday evening. Along with Pratham and Pranshi, the final rites of 13 other family members who died in the horrific fire were performed at the same graveyard. A large number of relatives and well-wishers from across the city gathered at the graveyard to mourn their deaths. Of the deceased, three children were buried, while the rest were cremated. A pall of gloom fell as 13 pyres were lit simultaneously by the kin of the deceased persons. The final rites of two other persons who died in the tragedy were performed at ESI and Panjagutta graveyards on Sunday evening. Rohith, a businessman, broke down inconsolably while performing the final rites of his two children, as his family members tried in vain to console him. Prahlad Modi's cousin, Govind Modi, told TOI that their ancestors moved to Hyderabad over a century ago and have since been residing near Charminar. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Incredible: The world's toughest smartwatch designed for the military Indestructible Smartwatch Undo Prahlad Modi took up the family business, and the family spread out in the city as his daughters got married. 'His daughters and their children came here to spend the weekend with the elderly couple and the extended family. The children had a lot of fun till late into the night. But as the day broke, we lost them all,' said a teary-eyed Govind Modi at Osmania mortuary. While Asha is a resident of Moosarambagh, Prahlad Modi's two other daughters, Rajini Agarwal and Sheetal Jain, lived with their families at Sanath Nagar and Yousufguda.
The Hindu
16-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
ASER, NAS, and FLS: What the education surveys broadly reveal and where they fall short
With schools set to reopen next month, understanding how children are actually learning beyond their exam results becomes crucial for parents, teachers and policymakers alike. India currently relies on three major assessments to gauge learning levels: the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), the National Achievement Survey (NAS)–recently revamped as PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan—and the Foundational Learning Study (FLS). Each of these tools offers a different lens into the country's school system, but their findings have raised deeper questions about what's being measured, what's being missed and what must change on the ground. Comparing the three surveys Pioneering the assessment of foundational reading and arithmetic skills in India, ASER was launched in 2005 by the non-profit organisation Pratham. According to Pratham's website, ASER is a household based survey that collects information on children's schooling status and basic learning outcomes in almost every rural district in the country. Covering 600 districts, ASER is predominantly a rural survey with representative data at the district, state and national levels. ASER's reports have been quoted in government reports such as the planning commission report and the economic survey. As it is the only non-government survey in India, it serves as a proper counterpoint. Another important study is the National Achievement Survey (NAS), which the NCERT replaced with the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 last year. NAS focuses on student performance in core subjects and adopts a different methodology from ASER, as it is conducted within schools rather than households. The NAS assesses students in government and government-aided schools across Grades 3, 5, 8 and 10, focusing on subject-wise performance in Language, Math, EVS/Science, and Social Science. In contrast, ASER evaluates foundational reading and arithmetic skills among all children aged 5–16, including those out of school. ASER surveys assess children in their homes rather than in schools, to avoid inflated results or coaching by teachers. However, this method has its own limitations as experts point out that children may feel intimidated in unfamiliar settings and lack the supportive environment they're used to at school. While NAS and ASER are periodic assessments, FLS was a one-time nationwide exercise carried out by NCERT in 2022. It aimed to assess the foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) skills of students in early grades and to set national benchmarks for learning outcomes across different languages. Achievements and limitations of surveys While FLS has been a new survey to gauge its impact, the other two surveys have been commended for acknowledging the gaps in the school education system and also questioned for its very existence. 'It is easy to get the data of enrollment, dropout and retention from the existing school systems. But these surveys indicate how the system is functioning,' said Professor Srinivasan Ramanujam, retired faculty member, Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc), Chennai. These national surveys do not fully expose the systemic challenges within India's educational infrastructure. Recent reports indicate that over 9.8 lakh teaching positions remain vacant across the country, with more than 2.5 lakh vacancies at the secondary level alone. The Right To Education Act mandates nine essential infrastructure parameters under norms and standards for schools, including adequate classrooms, separate toilets for boys and girls, and safe drinking water facilities among other basic needs to create an enabling learning environment. However, a public manifesto by civil society organizations revealed that only 25.5% of Indian schools are fully compliant with these RTE norms. Under such circumstances, can a survey reveal fair results? 'It is like checking for haemoglobin in a person without providing them with basic nutrition,' said Niranjanaradhya V P, development educationist. Questioning the methodology of NAS and ASER, Niranjanaradhya said, 'They are rather unscientific. Teaching and testing should be done by the same people. That is the spirit of continuous and comprehensive evaluation. A survey conducted with volunteers would not yield correct results.' In India, education is a State subject, and each State follows its own pedagogical methods, curricula, and learning outcomes. This raises an important question: can a uniform, nationwide assessment truly reflect the diverse learning realities across states? It is in this context that states like Tamil Nadu are conducting their own assessments tailored to local contexts. 'The national surveys never state the reason for the low or good performance of the students. They never address the issue of equitable access to quality education for all children. This is more of an administrative approach and in a multi-grade school system, how could one expect equitable learning outcomes?' Prince Gajendrababu, an educationist said. The impact of these surveys at the national level has largely been limited. Experts argue that for the surveys to translate into real change, School Management Committees must be made aware of the assessments and their findings. 'Kerala is a rare exception, where community interventions—particularly through active and functional School Management Committees (SMCs)—have helped bridge learning gaps and ensure accountability. In most other states, including Tamil Nadu, SMCs have remained largely dormant. Until 2022, many in Tamil Nadu hadn't even heard of these committees,' said Professor Dr Vasanthi Devi, former Vice-Chancellor of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University 'The poorest of the poor study in government schools. If these surveys are to drive improvements, the community must be involved,' Vasanthi Devi added.
India Today
08-05-2025
- Health
- India Today
Teen finally meets donor who helped cure his genetic blood disorder
Pratham, a 12-year-old boy from Bikaner, who underwent a stem cell transplant to treat thalassemia, met his donor, 35-year-old Rohit from Kanpur for the first is a genetic blood disorder that reduces the body's ability to produce haemoglobin. It requires frequent blood transfusions and can cause long-term complications. A stem cell transplant offers the only known cure, by replacing the faulty blood-forming cells with healthy ones from a matching was diagnosed with thalassemia at six months of age and underwent regular transfusions for several years. His family had been looking for a matching donor for nearly seven years. It was only after watching the film "The Sky Is Pink" that Rohit, a pharmaceutical management consultant, registered as a donor with DKMS Foundation India, a non-profit organisation that fights against blood cancer and other blood disorders, during the Covid-19 completed the process through a home cheek swab kit.A successful match from such a registration can lead to a stem cell transplant, the only treatment that can potentially cure thalassemia by replacing the patient's faulty blood cells with healthy ones."Thalassemia places an immense physical and emotional burden on children and their families, especially in India, where the incidence remains among the highest globally," said Dr. Esha Kaul, director of hematology at Max Super Speciality blood transfusions are a temporary solution, stem cell transplantation offers the only curative path forward. For many patients without a matching sibling, a matched unrelated donor transplant becomes their only lifeline. The challenge, however, lies in finding that one-in-a-million match. 12-year-old thalassemia survivor found his genetic match in Rohit. (Photo: DKMS Foundation) Pratham's transplant was carried out after Rohit was identified as a suitable unrelated match through DKMS. His treating doctor, Dr Vikram Mathews from Christian Medical College, Vellore, said a transplant was necessary after other treatments could only offer temporary relief."When Pratham first came to us, he was very young and playful. We gave him all the support and treatment, but a stem cell transplant was his only curative option. Luckily, he found a matched unrelated donor, and we could proceed with the stem cell transplant," said Dr. reports over 10,000 new cases of thalassemia every year. While blood transfusions are common, only a transplant can fully cure the disease. However, finding a matching donor is difficult, particularly for Indian patients, due to a lack of registered donors from similar ethnic and affordability remain major barriers to curative treatment. We aim to improve outcomes for more patients by bridging these gaps," said Patrick Paul, Chairman of DKMS India."Pratham's story is a powerful reminder that thalassemia can be effectively managed with early diagnosis and the proper medical interventions," added Dr. Watch
Time of India
06-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
10-yr-old meets stem cell donor who helped him beat thalassemia
New Delhi: A poignant reunion unfolded on Tuesday as 10-year-old Pratham Tulsiyani, who triumphed over thalassemia after battling it for years, came face-to-face with his saviour. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The young boy from Bikaner met 35-year-old Rohit Lakhmani from Kanpur, whose stem cell donation gave him a new lease of life. The meeting was marked by profound gratitude and a deep connection that transcended verbal expression. Pratham regards Rohit not just as his saviour, but his "super hero" too, as he no longer requires blood transfusions and can now actively engage in cricket, an activity he previously found too exhausting. Lakhmani, employed as a pharmaceutical management consultant, enlisted with DKMS Foundation India after watching the film "The Sky is Pink", which depicts a family's struggles with their child's serious medical condition. DKMS Foundation India operates as a non-profit organisation dedicated to fighting blood cancer and related disorders. Thalassemia, an inherited blood disorder, causes insufficient haemoglobin production, resulting in anaemia, fatigue and serious health issues. Stem cell transplantation offers thalassemia patients a potential cure by replacing defective blood-forming cells with healthy ones from donors. Pratham's mother Pinky told TOI that he was diagnosed with thalassemia when he was seven months old. His symptoms included a white shining face and fever. Initial medical consultation indicated anaemia, but when conditions persisted, further testing revealed his 'thalassemia major' status. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The parents also discovered their 'thalassemia minor' condition during these tests. Pinky said she was unaware of their condition, especially since her two elder sons, now 22 and 20, were healthy. Pratham's father Vijay, a businessman, said his son endured regular blood transfusions early in life. They spent seven years searching for a suitable stem cell donor , maintaining their optimism. Their breakthrough came on Pinky's birthday in 2022, when the couple learned about a perfect match through DKMS Foundation India. Pinky called it her "best birthday present". "The stem cell transplant took place in Sept that year, with positive results," she said. Rohit said he was inspired by a film featuring information about DKMS and registered during the Covid-19 pandemic. After online registration and submitting a home swab kit, he was identified as Pratham's match eight months later. "Seeing Pratham smile in person was overwhelming," Rohit said after meeting him in Delhi. "I feel proud to have helped in this small but meaningful way." Dr Mithun Abraham Prakash, assistant professor, department of haematology, Christian Medical College, Vellore, who treated Pratham, said thalassemia management improves with early diagnosis and appropriate medical care. Dr Esha Kaul, director of hematology, hemato-oncology, BMT at Max Super Specialty Hospital, Vaishali, explained that while blood transfusions provide temporary relief, stem cell transplantation offers a permanent solution. She noted Pratham's blood group changed from A positive to O positive after the transplant. Patrick Paul, chairman, DKMS India, said their registry includes more than 2 lakh donors, with 185 successful stem cell donations. He said potential donors must be healthy adults aged 18-55. Registration involves completing a consent form and providing cheek swabs for HLA testing. Approved donors join an international database anonymously. Interested individuals can request home swab kits through the website to participate in the life-saving initiative.
