Friday, December 19, 2008
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
India's 7 hottest IT destinations
And despite the current slowdown in the United States, Indian companies' overdependence on the American economy, and a weak dollar, the Indian IT juggernaut is on a roll. So where in India has the IT boom really taken off? And which are India's hottest IT spots? Read on. . .
1. Bangalore
Bangalore's (or Bengaluru's) ten-fold growth in quick time can be traced back to the IT boom over the past few years. Bangalore's main activity is information technology and information technology-enabled services. Being the leading contributor to India's IT industry, it has been dubbed the Silicon Valley of India.
Home to many software majors, like Infosys and Wipro, Bangalore accounted for 33 per cent of India's Rs 144,214 crore ($32 billion) IT exports in 2006-07.
A recent study also revealed that the rupee millionaire club in Karnataka's capital is the largest in India.
Bangalore also boasts of having the largest number of households with an annual income of Rs 10 lakh (Rs 1 million) or more. Needless to say, the city owes it all to the IT boom. Little wonder then that Bangalore is the number 1 IT desitnation in India.
Image : Infosys campus in Bangalore.All about the Bengaluru International Airport
It was a project desperately waiting to take off. Finally, after several years of deliberation and dilly dallying, the Bengaluru International Airport is ready.
The official date for the first flight to take off from the newly constructed airport in Bengaluru has been decided as 0001 hours, March 29, 2008.
An international airport was long overdue in Bengaluru, which has a large number of people from the international community visiting it, thanks to the city attaining the status of India's Silicon Valley.
Ironically, all these years, Bengaluru did not have a full-fledged airport and was relying on the services of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited airfield. The government had entered into an understanding with HAL and was making use of their airfield for both domestic and international flights.
However, as the years passed by, it became necessary to have a bigger airport as the number of passengers and flights were on the rise. But it was not an easy task to actually set up the airport.
History
First land was identified at Devanahalli, a village 30 kilometer from Bengaluru. The estimated cost of the project was Rs 1,334 crore (Rs 13.34 billion) with the state government's share being Rs 350 crore (Rs 3.50 billion). However with time the project cost went up to Rs 1,412 crore (Rs 14.12 billion) at the time of signing the concession agreement, and at the time of completion the cost stands at Rs 1,930 crore (Rs 19.30 billion).World's 10 most women-friendly companies
US-based Working Mother magazine has recently evaluated the presence and prominence of coloured women in the US corporate world and has drawn up a list of the best companies. The list has been made primarily on the basis of diversity programmes for such employees.
The companies were chosen mainly on factors like representation, recruitment and retention of women of colour.
The magazine said it noticed a dramatic increase in the number of women of colour, who are senior managers. Also, women of colour represented 13 per cent of all new hires last year, 14 per cent of all employees, and 7 per cent of top 20 per cent earners at the winning firms.
The list includes two big American conglomerates -- PepsiCo and Citigroup.
According to the magazine, PepsiCo has about 10 per cent employees who are 'women of colour', with seven per cent of them being executives/managers.
Vikram Pandit-led Citigroup has a higher representation of women of colour in its ranks, making up 22 per cent of the total employees. However, when it comes to executives or managers, there is only about four per cent of such people.
Noting that nearly 28 per cent of new hires last year at the Citigroup were women of colour, the report said the figure was up from 25 per cent in 2006.
Other prominent names in the '2008 Working Mother Best Companies for Multicultural Women' list include Colgate-Palmolive (13 per cent), Credit Suisse (14 per cent), Deloitte (16 per cent), Ernst & Young (17 per cent), IBM (8 per cent), MetLife (14 per cent), PricewaterhouseCoopers (16 per cent) and Wal-Mart (20 per cent).
To know more about these companies, read on. . . .
Pepsico (10% employees are women with colour)
PepsiCo is a conglomerate that manufactures, markets and sells a wide variety of carbonated and non-carbonated beverages and snacks.
The company is headquartered in Purchase, New York while its research and development headquarters are at Valhalla, New York.
The Pepsi Cola Company began in 1898, but it only became known as PepsiCo when it merged with Frito Lay in 1965.
Indra Nooyi is the conglomerate's chief executive officer since 2006.
PepsiCo owns five different billion-dollar brands. These are Pepsi, Tropicana, Frito-Lay, Quaker, and Gatorade. The company owns many other brands as well.
The company's net revenue as on March 22, 2008, stood at $8,333 million as against $7,350 million in March 24, 2007.
World's 10 most expensive pens
The history of pens dates back to 4,000 BC, when people used crude instruments for writing -- consisting of hollow straws or reeds that carried some liquid, says penscollection.com. In 500 BC, people began to make pens from the wing feathers of such birds as geese and swans. The shaft of the feathers was hardened and the tip was shaped and slit to make writing easy. These feather pens were known as quill pens, and they were widely used until the development of steel-nib pens in the 1800s.
By the late 1800s, inventors had perfected an early version of the fountain pen. This pen represented a major improvement over previous pens, because it featured an ink reservoir and a capillary feed. After several modifications, pens attained the current form. Companies across the world started experimenting further to come up with some really pricey ones.
To know about world's 10 most expensive pens, read on...
1. The Limited Edition Mystery Masterpiece
A joint creation between Mont blanc and Van Cleef & Arpels, this is the most expensive writing pen ever created. It costs $730,000!
Each pen has 840 diamonds and more than 20 carats of gemstones set in a Van Cleef & Arpels patented 'Mystery Setting' that conceals the stone settings. There are three variations of the pen, set either with rubies, sapphires or emeralds, and accented by diamonds. Artisans took over 18 months to create this pen.
Image: The Limited Edition Mystery Masterpiece.
World's 10 biggest shopping malls
From Mumbai to Shanghai to California, shopping malls are sprouting up by the dozens every year. And with the retail sector booming, more such swanky shopping plazas are waiting to be built. But all is not as bright as it is projected to be.
While footfalls in most malls are increasing by the day, the volume of actual sale remains more or less static, barring the festive seasons, when sales shoot up. But this too is restricted to select outletss.
However, there is no denying that shopping malls have become an indispensable part of our lives, today.
To know more about the world's 10 biggest shopping malls (area wise), read on...
1. South China Mall
Located in Dongguan, this mall has leasable space for over 1,500 stores in approximately 6.5 million square-feet of total floor area.
It has seven zones modelled on: Amsterdam, Paris, Rome, Venice, Egypt, the Caribbean, and California.
Although the mall opened in 2005, it still suffers from lack of retailers. Much of the retail space remains empty.
Analysts say that the main reason the mall is so far largely unoccupied is that it is located in the suburbs of Dongguan, which is not well connected by China's public transport system.
Image: A view of the South China Mall.
World's 10 most expensive watches
Awatch is a watch after all, you wear it to learn the time. Well, there is no doubt about that, but to some people it's more than just a 'time machine'.
You wear it to make a statement -- about your social and financial status.
Guessing, and quite correctly too, that there is a niche market for obscenely expensive watches, some manufacturers have gone out of their way to design watches that cost many thousand dollars.
To learn more about the most expensive eatches of the world, read on...
1. Zadora Timepieces
Manufacturer: Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof
The latest offering by Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof is a bee of oxidised palladium and micro pave. The bee is adorned with black and canary yellow diamonds, pear-shaped emerald eyes with a baroque south sea pearl in its mouth.
Price: $150,000
Phaneesh Murthy on IT industry, economy & outsourcing
When Phaneesh Murthy took over as the chief executive officer of iGATE Global Solutions in August 2003, it was a loss-making company. Today, iGate has 37 per cent gross margins.
In this interview, Phaneesh Murthy talks about how he managed the turn around, and also about the global economic scenario and the future of outsourcing.
When you took over iGATE, it was a loss-making company. Now it is a profitable one. You took Infosys from $2 mn to $700 mn. What is your success mantra? Any magic wand?
I don�t think there is any magic wand. It is about working hard, staying focussed and the ability to execute well on certain objectives and initiatives.
iGATE was -8%(negative) profits when I took over and it was not in good shape. I took five major transformations. When I look back, I am quite surprised at the courage of taking on five such major transformations at the same time.
Sometimes when you are pushed against the wall, there are no choices; it makes decision-making a lot easier. Sometimes when things are going well, you don�t undertake the transformations because you think it has risks and danger.
What was in your mind when took over at iGATE in 2003?
My own philosophy in life is that you should have varied experiences. The first experience I had was a very clean company and just growth. It�s always good to round off an experience of fixing a broken company. I looked at it as a very different kind of experience.
I am quite pleased with the results and outcome. The fact is that we are now 37 per cent gross margins, which is very close to the best-in-class kind of companies. Our operating margins are also among the best in the mid-size sector. Our multiples are probably among the highest in the mid-sized sector and close to the larger companies.
When did you realize that you will be able to turn iGate around?
I always had a lot of confidence in myself. I am one of those eternal optimists. I am one of the kind of people, who, very likely if I fall from a 60-floor building, after 55 floors, I will probably say, �so far so good.�
When I started at iGATE, I was quite confident that I would be able to turn it around. I had severe challenges in the first 6-8 months. From an external point of view, there was a GE contract, which was roughly 45 per cent of revenues, which had to be renewed within three months. That was a big challenge.
Top 10 BPO companies in India
Top 10 BPO companies in India
July 21, 2008
According to Nasscom, the Indian IT-BPO industry (including domestic market) recorded an overall growth of 28 per cent (currency adjusted), clocking revenues of $52 billion in FY07-08 up from $39.6 billion in FY06-07. The BPO exports are up by 30 per cent (in US dollars), registering revenues of $10.9 billion.
So which are India's top 10 BPO companies? Read on to find out. . .
1. Genpact
Genpact was born in 1997 as the India-based business process operations for GE Capital. In 2005, with equity investments from General Atlantic and Oak Hill Capital Partners, it became an independent company and was rebranded Genpact. It is India's No. 1 BPO firm.
Genpact manages business for companies around the world with a network of more than 30 operations centres in nine countries. Genpact offers services in finance and accounting, collections and customer service, insurance, supply chain and procurement, analytics, enterprise application and IT infrastructure.
Headed by Pramod Bhasin, the company had a staff strength of over 34,300 employees as on March 31, 2008. Its revenues for the year 2007 stood at $822.7 million.
Accolades won by Genpact
'No.1 Best Performing BPO' and 'No.3 Leader in Human Capital Development' by Global Services magazine, in 2008Top 10 in IAOP's 'Global Outsourcing 100' list, 2007-08
'Top 10 Employer' distinction, Dalian, China, 2006-08
'No.1 ITeS-BPO Company' in India by NASSCOM, 2005-08
2. WNS Global
July 21, 2008
The Nasdaq-listed company with more than 9,000 professionals was set up in 1996. Neeraj Bhargava is a co-founder of WNS (Holdings) Ltd and group chief executive officer. It posted a quarterly revenue of $116.1 million for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2008, up 4.9 per cent from the corresponding quarter last year. Its revenues stand at $459.9 million, up 30.5 per cent from fiscal 2007.
Accolades won by WNS GlobalNasscom ranking: No. 1 BPO Company for the year 2005
NeoIT Global Survey: No. 1 'Best Performing' BPO Company / No. 1 in Human Capital
3. IBM Daksh
July 21, 2008
IBM Daksh is known for a good leadership, a focussed vision and an undying passion. In April 2004, IBM Corporation acquired Daksh e-Services to serve as a global hub to manage business processes for clients from across the world.
With 14 service delivery centres in India, IBM Daksh has more than 36 centers around the world. Today IBM Daksh employs more than 20,000 people. Pavan Vaish is the chief executive officer of IBM Daksh Business Process Services. A co-founder of Daksh eServices, he has been with the organisation since January 2000.
Accolades for IBM Daksh
Frost & Sullivan Contact Center Outsourcing Vendor of the Year 2007Most Respected BPO Company in India(BusinessWorld)
IBM Daksh tops the 2007 Global Outsourcing 100
Nations with highest per capita income
India's per capita income is almost Rs 40,000 ($950) per year, according to the latest figures released by the World Bank.
This has been calculated using the World Bank Atlas method that employs official exchange rates for conversion.
India's per capita income has more than doubled from $460 in 2000-01 to $950 in 2007 due to strong economic growth.
Finance Minister P Chidambaram had recently stated that India's per capita income could double every 9 years. By 2016-17, the country's per capita would be at $2,000; and by 2025, per capita would be $4,000 if India grows at 9 per cent.
At $950 per capita income per year, India ranks a poor 160th in the world.
According to the World Bank categories: Nations with per capita income (PCI) less than $935 are 'low income;' nations with PCI from $936 to $3,705 are 'lower middle income;' those with PCI from $3,706 to $11,455 are 'upper middle income;' and those with PCI from $11,456 or more are 'high income.'
So which are the world's richest nations, or people, in terms of per capita income? And where do India's neighbours like China and Pakistan stand?'India can surpass Chinese growth'
How does India's rise compare with that of China?
China has a 20-year lead time. Reforms in China started in 1976-78, whereas in India, they started in 1991 - what I call India's Second Independence.
Now, in China, the government runs like a corporation - you can call it a corporate state. India is a democracy - its policies are based on democratic viewpoints.
The speed at which India makes its decisions is slower - it comes only after several rounds of debates. China doesn't allow that, and thus things happen at a faster pace. For instance, infrastructure development in China has been much faster than in India.
But my analysis is that the Chinese economy will start plateauing by 2035, probably sooner. The main reason is that by then China will become very affluent, and its population will be ageing.
Its growth will start slowing down, just as it happened in the case of Japan, Western Europe or even the US. Checking the population growth rate - the one-child policy that it put in place - is going to come in the way.
Our forecast is, that if you extrapolate, presuming things will work out, between now and 2035, India will be able to build infrastructure - which can help add 1.5 to 2 per cent additional GDP, with no inflation.
Infrastructure investment has always been non-inflationary.
'India can surpass Chinese growth'
The 20th century belonged to the advanced economies, but the 21st, economists believe, will be driven by the emerging ones. China and India (or Chindia) will take lead as two of the world's biggest economies.
Many western scholars have shown concern over the duo's rise and impact on the world. In his book, Chindia Rising, renowned scholar on global business, the Charles H Kellstadt Professor of Marketing at Emory University's Goizueta Business School, Jagdish N Sheth, dispels some of the concerns.
Some authors have an alarmist view on China and India's rise. How would their rise benefit the world?
Apprehensions relating to China's rise are primarily because it has been a communist system. These two economies are almost necessities for advanced econo�mies.
The main reason is that advanced economies no longer have growth within their economies. They are affluent, and as it happens with affluent countries, their population is ageing with negative growth.
Thus, they need to look outside for growth. One way obviously could be massive immigration into these countries, but that is difficult because of political reasons.
Even in the US, which is founded on immigrant population, allowing immigrants has been a big issue. So it is emerging economies like China and India where advanced economies will have to look for growth.
All about 3G and what it means for you
On August 1, 2008, India joined the elite list of countries to announce a policy for third generation mobile service that will enable customers to enjoy voice, video, data and downloading facilities on their mobile phones. The much-awaited 3G policy would allow up to 10 players in a service area including foreign companies. India has 60 Mhz of 3G spectrum available. The auction will take place in the 2.1 Ghz band.
The government has set a base price of Rs 2,020 crore (Rs 20.20 billion) for each bid for a pan-India license. Initially, there will be three to five operators to sell the 3G services, including state-run BSNL and MTNL. The state-run telecom firms have an edge to start the 3G services earlier than others as they do not have to bid for the spectrum as they only have to match the highest bid in their respective circles.
'Pension reforms bill likely in Monsoon Session'
NEW DELHI: The pension reforms bill to set up a regulator and give more freedom to subscribers for investing their retirement money is likely to be tabled in the Monsoon Session of Parliament, Finance Ministry sources said on Tuesday.
"Amendments are ready. Hopefully, it would be tabled in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament," the sources said.
The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill (PFRDA) was introduced by Finance Minister P Chidambaram way back in 2005 to replace the ordinance promulgated in 2004 for setting up the regulator.
The bill was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee after the Left parties opposed the legislation. The standing committee recommended the bill with some modifications.
But the amended bill could not be tabled in Parliament due to persistent opposition from the Left.
"Amendments are ready. Hopefully, it would be tabled in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament," the sources said.
The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill (PFRDA) was introduced by Finance Minister P Chidambaram way back in 2005 to replace the ordinance promulgated in 2004 for setting up the regulator.
The bill was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee after the Left parties opposed the legislation. The standing committee recommended the bill with some modifications.
But the amended bill could not be tabled in Parliament due to persistent opposition from the Left.
Toyota to launch hybrid car in India
BANGALORE: Global auto major Toyota Motor Corp plans to introduce its hybrid sedan Prius in India as an answer to soaring fuel prices and growing concerns over emissions, a top official at its Indian joint venture said.
"We are preparing to bring Prius into the Indian market though we have not set any timeline yet," Toyota Kirloskar Motor Ltd vice-chairman Vikram Kirloskar told in an interview.
"In the run-up, we have to develop skills to service it and make spare parts available across the country," he added.
The 2008 version of Prius has been adjudged the most fuel-efficient midsize car in the US. Sold in over 40 countries across regions, the hybrid variant has also been rated as the third least carbon dioxide emitting vehicle in Britain.
Kirloskar described Prius as a "great car" but admitted it was "expensive upfront".
"In the long-run, it is economical, with higher mileage and lower maintenance cost. We are confident of its acceptability in the Indian market as it runs both on electricity and fuel."
Positioned between Toyota's Corolla and Camry in the luxury segment, Prius uses an all-electric compressor for cooling. Classified as a super ultra low emission vehicle, the eco-friendly car can be propelled by either petrol or electric power.
"We are aware that Honda is launching its hybrid variant in the Indian market soon despite high import tariff. We can also do it with due preparation. As I said earlier, we have to gear up to service such a premium car by training our personnel and stocking enough spare parts with the dealer network," Kirloskar said.
As the first commercially mass-produced gas-electric hybrid, one million Prius vehicles were sold by April worldwide, including 592,000 units in the US and 315,000 units in Japan.
In India, Toyota Kirloskar already markets Corolla and Camry in the premium segment, besides Innova in the multi-utility and Prado in the sports utility segments.
Corolla and Innova are manufactured at its Bidadi plant, about 40km from India's technology hub of Bangalore, while Camry and Prado are shipped from Toyota's production facilities in Japan in completely knocked down form and assembled here.
"Though we entered the Indian market over a decade ago, we chose to be in niche and premium segments. As a marketing strategy, we first introduced Qualis, which was a run-away success in the multi-utility segment," Kirloskar said.
"We launched Innova by discontinuing Qualis and yet maintained market leadership in the segment. In the second-hand or used car market, Toyota brands commands highest price even today because of their value and durability," he said.
Denying that Toyota "missed the bus" or lost market space to global rivals such as Honda, Hyundai, Suzuki, Ford and General Motors by not being present across segments in India, especially in the dominant compact segment, Kirloskar said there was enough room to grow in a developing country where the automobile industry was maturing.
In the passenger car segment, the combined installed capacity of Indian automobile sector is about two mn as against Toyota's annual worldwide capacity of 10 mn units.
"With the Indian economy poised to grow over eight-nine percent, we see immense potential to grow, thanks to increasing purchasing power, higher aspirations among the generation next, better road connectivity and migrant-driven urbanization," Kirloskar said.
Toyota Kirloskar is setting up a second plant with an upfront investment of Rs 14 bn ($329 mn) at Bidadi to manufacture a range of models, including its long-awaited compact car to take on dominant players like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Tata Motors.
With an installed capacity of 100,000 units per annum, the new modular multi-platform plant is set to commence production in 2010.
The small car will be different from Toyota's existing models in the same segment, as it is being designed exclusively for the Indian market, Kirloskar said.
"We are preparing to bring Prius into the Indian market though we have not set any timeline yet," Toyota Kirloskar Motor Ltd vice-chairman Vikram Kirloskar told in an interview.
"In the run-up, we have to develop skills to service it and make spare parts available across the country," he added.
The 2008 version of Prius has been adjudged the most fuel-efficient midsize car in the US. Sold in over 40 countries across regions, the hybrid variant has also been rated as the third least carbon dioxide emitting vehicle in Britain.
Kirloskar described Prius as a "great car" but admitted it was "expensive upfront".
"In the long-run, it is economical, with higher mileage and lower maintenance cost. We are confident of its acceptability in the Indian market as it runs both on electricity and fuel."
Positioned between Toyota's Corolla and Camry in the luxury segment, Prius uses an all-electric compressor for cooling. Classified as a super ultra low emission vehicle, the eco-friendly car can be propelled by either petrol or electric power.
"We are aware that Honda is launching its hybrid variant in the Indian market soon despite high import tariff. We can also do it with due preparation. As I said earlier, we have to gear up to service such a premium car by training our personnel and stocking enough spare parts with the dealer network," Kirloskar said.
As the first commercially mass-produced gas-electric hybrid, one million Prius vehicles were sold by April worldwide, including 592,000 units in the US and 315,000 units in Japan.
In India, Toyota Kirloskar already markets Corolla and Camry in the premium segment, besides Innova in the multi-utility and Prado in the sports utility segments.
Corolla and Innova are manufactured at its Bidadi plant, about 40km from India's technology hub of Bangalore, while Camry and Prado are shipped from Toyota's production facilities in Japan in completely knocked down form and assembled here.
"Though we entered the Indian market over a decade ago, we chose to be in niche and premium segments. As a marketing strategy, we first introduced Qualis, which was a run-away success in the multi-utility segment," Kirloskar said.
"We launched Innova by discontinuing Qualis and yet maintained market leadership in the segment. In the second-hand or used car market, Toyota brands commands highest price even today because of their value and durability," he said.
Denying that Toyota "missed the bus" or lost market space to global rivals such as Honda, Hyundai, Suzuki, Ford and General Motors by not being present across segments in India, especially in the dominant compact segment, Kirloskar said there was enough room to grow in a developing country where the automobile industry was maturing.
In the passenger car segment, the combined installed capacity of Indian automobile sector is about two mn as against Toyota's annual worldwide capacity of 10 mn units.
"With the Indian economy poised to grow over eight-nine percent, we see immense potential to grow, thanks to increasing purchasing power, higher aspirations among the generation next, better road connectivity and migrant-driven urbanization," Kirloskar said.
Toyota Kirloskar is setting up a second plant with an upfront investment of Rs 14 bn ($329 mn) at Bidadi to manufacture a range of models, including its long-awaited compact car to take on dominant players like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Tata Motors.
With an installed capacity of 100,000 units per annum, the new modular multi-platform plant is set to commence production in 2010.
The small car will be different from Toyota's existing models in the same segment, as it is being designed exclusively for the Indian market, Kirloskar said.
Tata Cap may buy credit card business of parent
MUMBAI: Tata Capital, the one year-old financial services company may take over the credit card business of the Tata group, in a bid to boost its product portfolio targeted at retail and institutional customers.
The Tata card, the country's first white label credit card was launched in February 2006, in association with SBI, that marked the group's re-entry into plastic money business. In 2003, Tata group company —Tata Finance — sold its credit-card business to ICICI Bank, which is now the country's largest credit card issuer with over 8 million customers.
A Tata group executive said that Tata Capital's possibility of managing the credit card venture from Tata Son's couldn't be ruled out in future, as it is more synergic to Tata Capitals retail finance operations which offers personal, car and home loans.
Though the exact cardholder base of the Tata card couldn’t be ascertained, the card was targeted to tap the huge employee and customer base of the Tata group by rewarding them each time they buy a Tata Indica car to Titan watch to Voltas air conditioner. In a white label card, the logo of the issuer doesn’t feature on it as against a co-branded credit card, which bears the logos of the alliance partners. The group employs around 3.50 lakh people worldwide.
SBI card is learnt to have a base of around 3 million cardholders. The top players in this segment are ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Citibank, SBI, HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank. The credit card base has grown to 27 million from 17 million in 2006.
The Tata card, the country's first white label credit card was launched in February 2006, in association with SBI, that marked the group's re-entry into plastic money business. In 2003, Tata group company —Tata Finance — sold its credit-card business to ICICI Bank, which is now the country's largest credit card issuer with over 8 million customers.
A Tata group executive said that Tata Capital's possibility of managing the credit card venture from Tata Son's couldn't be ruled out in future, as it is more synergic to Tata Capitals retail finance operations which offers personal, car and home loans.
Though the exact cardholder base of the Tata card couldn’t be ascertained, the card was targeted to tap the huge employee and customer base of the Tata group by rewarding them each time they buy a Tata Indica car to Titan watch to Voltas air conditioner. In a white label card, the logo of the issuer doesn’t feature on it as against a co-branded credit card, which bears the logos of the alliance partners. The group employs around 3.50 lakh people worldwide.
SBI card is learnt to have a base of around 3 million cardholders. The top players in this segment are ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Citibank, SBI, HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank. The credit card base has grown to 27 million from 17 million in 2006.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Not so nano – the Tata Nano (the 1-lakh car)
Seldom do we see cars that rewrite the history books even before they are seen running around on the roads. And hardly ever do we see cars that vow to put the nation on four wheels. The Tata Nano is one such car – a car that has been in the news for quite a few years, for reasons good and evil. Nano is a car which has breathed into life due to one man. Give credit to Mr. Ratan Tata for his determination to build a low cost family car that has come true, finally! Took long it did, but the Nano came in a beautiful form. Touted as world’s cheapest car by a far cry, Nano has been the talk of the town around the globe. Head honchos of big organizations have been pouring in by numbers to have a look at this engineering masterpiece. We bring you some interesting bits.
Looks:
Numbers first. Length – 3100mmWidth – 1500mmHeight – 1600mmWheelbase – 2230mm. Ground Clearance – 180mm
You will be wondering why I am talking about the dimensions of the Nano, since all of you know that it is a rather compact and tiny machine. It is because I have good reason to talk about the dimensions. You see, the Nano is going to be faced with Maruti 800 as its main rival. But you could throw in the Alto and Zen Estilo to mark out some design and packaging aspects. Just to get things in perspective, Nano is over 230mm shorter than 800 in overall length but the wheelbase advantage of 155mm over the offering from Maruti makes sure that the Nano is more accommodating than the 800. Tata has managed to squeeze out a 60mm advantage in width and Maruti 800 falls short of about 100mm in height. So in essence, you get more legroom, better shoulder room and room more than enough for a turban, if you wear one! But before you enter inside, you are bound to gape in admiration at the beautifully crafted curves of this micro car. I personally feel that the front has a lot of Zen Estilo written on it, but manages to look really funky and cool.
The mono-volume design establishes a sea of change from the two-box layout of the 800. What it ensures the Nano with is extremely short overhangs and tight packaging. For a car of this size and image, the Nano is an extremely sexy looking car with futuristic design cues. The bonnet line is steep and unites together with the bumper in a seamless way. Though there is no ‘grille’ per se, the front has a smiling look which accentuates the ‘happy’ feeling. The fog lamps are incorporated in the bumper which has a distinct air dam running across in between them. In profile, the Nano resembles Mitsubishi’s latest small car ‘i’. The rear of the Nano is somewhat recognizable. The tail lamps are inspired from elder sister, Indica. So this is a very compact hatchback, yes? No my friend, you are massively wrong. Even I was dumbfounded when I discovered that the Nano cannot be called a hatchback – a word so true to the way the small cars are. The reason for this is because it does not have a hatch! The tail gate cannot be opened owing to it being joined together with the boot sill. This makes accessing the engine a pain in the bottom. But a hatchback it will be called still. The back side of the Nano is made attractive by the mid mounted exhaust pipe which peeps out of the aggressively designed bumper.
Looks:
Numbers first. Length – 3100mmWidth – 1500mmHeight – 1600mmWheelbase – 2230mm. Ground Clearance – 180mm
You will be wondering why I am talking about the dimensions of the Nano, since all of you know that it is a rather compact and tiny machine. It is because I have good reason to talk about the dimensions. You see, the Nano is going to be faced with Maruti 800 as its main rival. But you could throw in the Alto and Zen Estilo to mark out some design and packaging aspects. Just to get things in perspective, Nano is over 230mm shorter than 800 in overall length but the wheelbase advantage of 155mm over the offering from Maruti makes sure that the Nano is more accommodating than the 800. Tata has managed to squeeze out a 60mm advantage in width and Maruti 800 falls short of about 100mm in height. So in essence, you get more legroom, better shoulder room and room more than enough for a turban, if you wear one! But before you enter inside, you are bound to gape in admiration at the beautifully crafted curves of this micro car. I personally feel that the front has a lot of Zen Estilo written on it, but manages to look really funky and cool.
The mono-volume design establishes a sea of change from the two-box layout of the 800. What it ensures the Nano with is extremely short overhangs and tight packaging. For a car of this size and image, the Nano is an extremely sexy looking car with futuristic design cues. The bonnet line is steep and unites together with the bumper in a seamless way. Though there is no ‘grille’ per se, the front has a smiling look which accentuates the ‘happy’ feeling. The fog lamps are incorporated in the bumper which has a distinct air dam running across in between them. In profile, the Nano resembles Mitsubishi’s latest small car ‘i’. The rear of the Nano is somewhat recognizable. The tail lamps are inspired from elder sister, Indica. So this is a very compact hatchback, yes? No my friend, you are massively wrong. Even I was dumbfounded when I discovered that the Nano cannot be called a hatchback – a word so true to the way the small cars are. The reason for this is because it does not have a hatch! The tail gate cannot be opened owing to it being joined together with the boot sill. This makes accessing the engine a pain in the bottom. But a hatchback it will be called still. The back side of the Nano is made attractive by the mid mounted exhaust pipe which peeps out of the aggressively designed bumper.
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