Bangalore, 28 th April 2023 – CMR University’s School of Management hosted its annual Ethnic Day celebration, Aavishkar on April 26th, 2023 at the OMBR Layout Satellite Campus. This year’s theme was Indian Cinema, and students dressed up in traditional attire representing their favorite celebrities.

The event was a colorful and vibrant celebration of India’s rich cultural heritage and the significant influence of Indian cinema on its people. Students enthusiastically participated in various activities like dance performances, fashion shows, and other cultural programs highlighting the evolution of Indian cinema over the years.

Dr. Mini.T, Head-In-Charge at the School of Management, congratulated the students for their efforts in organizing the event and emphasized the importance of celebrating the diversity and inclusivity of India’s culture.

“CMR University takes pride in providing a platform for our students to showcase their talents and embrace the diversity of our nation,” said Dr. Mini.”

Ethnic day was certainly a memorable day, especially for those who are away from their homes as it was a chance to recollect the memories associated with their states, cultures and traditions. Ethnic day at CMRU gave a chance to relive those moments by remembering and going back to the roots of our diversity, said Mr. Dhanush, Student Coordinator. The event was attended by faculty members, staff, and students from across the university, creating a festive atmosphere on campus.

28 April 2023 For the year ended March 31, 2023, the Company reported net profit after tax of Rs. 1,608 Cr (before non-controlling interest) up 35% y-o-y and Rs 458 Cr (before non-controlling interest) for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, up 43% y-o-y. Profit before tax (PBT) for the year was Rs. 2,113 up 38% y-o-y and Rs. 594 Cr for the quarter, up 42% y-o-y. Loan growth in core products was robust – Gold loans and Home loans AUM grew by 28% and 23% y-o-y respectively. Microfinance grew by 59% while Digital loans and loans against property grew by 33% and 18% y-o-y respectively. Overall core loan portfolio grew by 29% y-o-y and non-core (primarily Construction & real estate finance) portfolio shrunk by 11% y-o-y.

IIFL Finance Limited Consolidated Results Quarterly – Q4FY23

*excluding Fair value changes

1NCI is Non-controlling interest

Mr. Nirmal Jain, Managing Director, IIFL Finance Ltd., remarked on the financial results: “We are pleased to report a robust performance across all core loan products. We ended the year with loan AUM of over ₹64,000 crores and net profit (pre NCI) of over ₹1,600 crores. The demand for affordable home loans and MSME loans is expected to accelerate with revival in the business sentiment. We have expanded the branch network and invested aggressively in technology over the last two years. Having done the hard work, we expect to reap rewards of the investment from the current year.”

Mr. Kapish Jain, Group Chief Financial Officer, IIFL Finance Ltd., commented on the financial results: “The consistency in our financial performance confirms the robustness of our business model and our asset light strategy driven in partnership with banks and financial institutions.”

 Financial performance review

The company’s annualized ROE and ROA for Q4FY23 stood at 19.3% and 3.6% respectively. Pre-provision operating profit stood at Rs. 766 Cr. for the quarter up 17% y-o-y. Average borrowing costs for the quarter increased 38 bps q-o-q and 14 bps y-o-y to 8.9%.

95% of our loans are retail in nature and 67% of our retail loans (excluding gold loans which are not classified as PSL loans) are PSL compliant. The assigned loan book, currently at Rs 16,979 Cr. Besides, there are securitized assets of Rs 736 Cr. Apart from securitization and assignment, co-lending book is at Rs 7,557 Cr.

GNPA stood at 1.8% down from 2.1% q-o-q and NNPA stood at 1.1% steady q-o-q, as at March 31, 2023. With implementation of Expected Credit Loss under Ind AS, provision coverage on NPAs stands at 167%.

Total CRAR² stood at 20.4% as of March 31, 2023, as against minimum regulatory requirement of 15%.

The total presence of branches stood at 4,267 at the end of quarter, spanning the length and breadth of the country.

Business segment review

Home Loans: At the end of the quarter, retail home loan assets grew by 23% y-o-y and 7% q-o-q to Rs 21,800 Cr. The primary focus in this segment is on affordable and non-metro housing loans. Over 73,000 customers benefitted with a subsidy of more than Rs 1,750 Cr under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme.

Gold Loans: As of March 31, 2023, the gold loan AUM grew to Rs. 20,733 Cr, showing strong growth of 28% y-o-y and 13% q-o-q. Gold loans are provided through our widespread presence in 1,439 cities across 22 states and 4 Union Territories to salaried, self-employed, and MSME customer segments.

2CRAR is Capital adequacy ratio

Microfinance: The microfinance loan AUM stood at Rs. 9,786 Cr, up 59% y-o-y and 25% q-o-q, as at March 31, 2023. The microfinance customer base stood at 23.5 lakh customers.

Loan against property: Loan against property AUM grew by 18% y-o-y and 8% q-o-q to Rs. 6,671 as at March 31, 2023.

Digital loans: Digital loans AUM grew by 33% y-o-y to Rs. 2,512 as at March 31, 2023.

Construction and Real Estate: Construction and real estate AUM stood at Rs. 2,694 Cr, down 7% y-o-y as at March 31, 2023.

Liquidity position

Cash and cash equivalents and committed credit lines from banks and institutions of Rs 9,356 Cr were available as on March 31, 2023. During the quarter, we raised Rs 5,880 Cr through term loans, bonds and refinance. Additionally, Rs 3,981 Cr was raised through direct assignment of loans.

International credit rating upgrade by Moody’s

On April 6, Moody’s upgraded IIFL Finance’s credit rating from B2 to B1, retaining ‘stable’ outlook on the company which also includes the MTNs. Moody’s said the upgrade has been driven by factors such as higher share of off-balance sheet loans; further fortifying its asset-light business model and improvement in the company’s key metrics of funding, profitability.

Fully repaid maiden dollar bonds

IIFL Finance fully repaid its maiden dollar bonds issue due April 2023 along with interest upon maturity. IIFL Finance, which is one of India’s largest retail-focused NBFCs had raised $400 million through a medium-term note (MTN) program in February 2020. This is a demonstration of strong treasury management capabilities and financial strength of IIFL Finance group. This has also established a strong track record for the company in international bond market.”

Secured $100 million in long-term funding jointly from EDC and Deutsche Bank

IIFL Finance secured $100 million in long-term funding, jointly, from Export Development Canada (EDC) and Deutsche Bank. IIFL Finance secured $50 million from EDC and $50 million from Deutsche Bank, respectively. The deal was structured under the aegis of Deutsche Bank as mandated lead arranger, book runner and co-financier. This would also be IIFL’s second loan from EDC. It had previously secured funding of $100 million from EDC in 2019.

Appointment of Mr. Bharat Aggarwal as Business Head – Unsecured Lending

• Mr. Bharat Aggarwal has joined us as Business Head – Unsecured Lending. He is a post-graduate from IIM Lucknow with engineering from IIT Delhi. He comes with 15+ years of experience in FinTech, NBFC & Banking Industry. Prior to joining us, he was associated with Poonawalla Fincorp, handling Unsecured lending, partnerships & digital lending. Also, he has worked with brands like Lendingkart, Bajaj Firv & HSBC

Awards and Accolades

• IIFL Finance received ‘Most Innovative Fintech Product Award’ at National Awards for Excellence in BFSI Award
• IIFL Finance received ‘Customer Services Excellence Award’ at the Asia Awards for Excellence in BFSI Award
• IIFL Finance received ‘Marketing Campaign of the Year Award at Global Brand Excellence Awards
• IIFL Finance received the ‘Best Sustainability Initiative Award’ for at World BFSI Congress & Awards
• IIFL Foundation received the ‘CSR Leadership Award’ at Asia’s Best CSR Practices Awards
• IIFL Finance received ‘Best Leading Tech of the Year Award at World BFSI Congress & Awards

No wonder, kids always share a special bond with their toys. Toys, that end up being their best friends, toys, with whom their bond gets so inextricable that with them, it also binds memories for our kids to cherish them when the time seems to fly away, as fast as flamingos.

To maintain the cycle of this bond, here are the best Toy Brands that are on top of their game already, that ensure to be your kid’s best friend.

Avengers Sling Puck by Skoodle:

Avengers Sling Puck by Skoodle is a fun board game that includes one solid and smooth wooden frame board with lightweight 10 wooden pieces which induces your kids to increase their concentration with a dash of learning, creativity and fun. With an affordable price range, it has the additional advantage of being portable and flexible.

Available at: https://www.skoodleplay.com/skoodle-avengers-sling-puck

Double Decker by Funskool:

Double Decker by Funskool is one creative way to enhance your child’s skills. The product offers 4 boxes of dough with different colours to elevate the crafting skills of kids and enables them to create different shapes, forms, structures of their preference.

Available at: https://www.funskoolindia.com/age_product/5-8/4

Wooden Spinning Tops by Desi Toys:

These wooden Spinning toys are surely here to bring back those good old days when this game in the 90s was a household name and routine for every child. Unlike other modern, advanced toys,these wooden spinning tops need no batteries and cells to function but the charm of old school sources of joy from your kid’s pocket.

 Available at: https://www.desitoys.in/products/desi-toys-spinning-top-windup-top-pack-of-2

3D DIY Paper craft kit by Toiing:

DIY paper craft kit by Toiing is an ideal source of learning along with fun for your kids. The product certainly holds the potential to broaden the horizon of your child’s imagination and creative skills with a dash of fun and joy with every fold of the paper.

Available at: https://toiing.com/products/craftoi-santa-3d-diy-indian-paper-craft-kit-toy-pack-of-2

Tile-O-Board by Eduedge:

Tile-O-Board by Eduedge is a puzzle game with 54 colourful titles which develops strategic & articulative skills along with curiosity among children of above 3 years of age. The product enhances the creative as well as intellectual potential within your kids to redefine the concept of learning & fun.

Available at: https://eduedge.net.in/products/eduedge-tile-o-board

Kolkata, 27 April 2023: Ricky Kej, India’s three-time Grammy award-winning music composer and the man behind the signature caller tune of Prabha Khaitan Foundation (PKF), has once again curated twelve unique pieces of music to be used by the Foundation as its `Music of the Month’ across all the events, social media platforms and as communications pan-India and overseas.

It has always been an honored association for PKF with the three-time Grammy Award winner whose passion for music and environmental consciousness inspires millions and brings happiness to countless aficionados.

The cherished association – that started with the signature caller tune followed Prabha Khaitan Foundation’s joint initiative for the ReWear4Earth campaign – has gone up a notch higher with his magical compositions based on Nature, Earth, Environment, World and its People, and Spiritual Consciousness.

Ricky Kej said, “I am very proud of this latest collaboration with Prabha Khaitan Foundation. It is always an honor to associate with such a great organization that has culture, art, artists and India at its core. All communications and video invites of the Prabha Khaitan Foundation are innovative and I love receiving them. So it is great to have my music associated with it for the next year.”

Prabha Khaitan Foundation has used classical musical pieces or Indian ragas – like Bagheshri, Brindabani Sarang, to name a couple -as background to all video invites. It’s a welcome change for us to incorporate Ricky Kej’s brilliant musical pieces across social media platforms and in video invites for events.

Each piece of music is a gem created by a man whose music speaks about nature and environmental consciousness. His music raises awareness for climate change and the urgency to step up in sustainability measures in every sphere of our lives.

The range of his 12 songs is kaleidoscopic. His pure music encompasses River Ganga, River Cauvery, the mighty Himalayas, Mother Earth, Mahatma Gandhi, the official Land Anthem of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, spirituality, and the golden philosophy of co-existence- ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ which means ‘The World is One Family’. All his songs are a celebration of our Nature, our planet, pure unadulterated love in a land that is untouched by time, and our uniqueness, diversity, and differences.

“Ricky Kej’s music is like a breath of fresh air which is sure to add an edge to our social media activities and video invites created for literary and cultural events in India and abroad. It will help us weave the spirit of universal environmental consciousness in all our endeavours,” said Manisha Jain, Branding & Communication Chief, Prabha Khaitan Foundation.

27 April 2023  Employees are the backbone of an organization. With the passage of time and the growth of technology, various platforms have emerged to assist organizations in celebrating and appreciating their employees’ efforts. The ultimate goal is to create a culture of continuous appreciation in which employees feel valued and excited to come to work every day.

Employee recognition can enhance company culture and here we have curated a list of top apps that helps in creating a unique rewarding culture for employees and makes them feel more connected to their team members.

Here are some of the employee engagement platforms to watch out for in 2023 and beyond:

Advantage Club: Advantage Club is a global employee engagement platform with benefits like perks and rewards on a single platform. It aims to provide end- to-end solutions to facilitate employee engagement through exclusive privileges and rewards by the brand partners, allowing them to reach out to targeted customer segments too. The platform provides a scalable, customizable, cost-effective program to take employee engagement to the next level and brings a wide variety of recognition programs including milestones, real-time spot bonus, automated incentives, peer-to-peer appreciation, quarterly and annual performance awards and perk programs. The platform aims to help organizations keep their employees engaged and driven. The platform is set to revolutionize the industry by making a direct impact on employee recruitment and retention through an exhaustive employee benefits management tool. Advantage Club has over 3 million users, a presence in over 100+ countries, 1000+ clients and 10,000+ brand partners. It has an impressive client portfolio featuring Concentrix, Teleperformance, Hexaware, EY, Target, Accenture, BCG, Lafarge, Resort World Sentosa and many more.

Refyne: Refyne partners with organizations to help build their staff’s financial resilience and nurture a productive and happy workforce. Established in December 2020 Refyne has developed a mobile-first Earned Wage Access (EWA) platform that enables companies to allow their employees to acquire their real-time income any time before their monthly salary is due. Refyne partners with enterprises with more than 1,000 employees to deploy its plug and play solution, which integrates with any existing payroll or HRMS. It fronts the risk with the earned salary withdrawal by employees, without impacting the status of the employers’ working capital. Refyne’s one-stop platform enables your employee base to build financial resilience and nurture a favorable work culture. With plug and play technology, employees can see and withdraw their earned salary instead of opting for exploitative payday loans or other high-interest credit schemes.

Early Salary: Early Salary boasts of the largest consumer lending application for salaried individuals. The app while working with an instant decision-making system allows borrowing in minutes. It helps salaried people with an easy line of credit, instant cash loans, and salary advances. It provides different loan categories like shopping, travel, medical emergencies, or education. Early Salary is bringing financial independence to the customers, liberating them from financial restrictions, allowing them to manage credit with ease, whenever they need it, wherever they need it.

Inspirus: Inspirus believe organizations that focus on culture and well-being deliver on the promise of employee fulfillment and organizational success. Employees make up the foundation of culture, which is shaped and evolved through everyday workplace experiences. Inspirus delivers high-value integrated solutions to help our clients elevate the employee experience throughout the entire employee journey. Through bringing joy to work, the platform strives to reinforce Sodexo’s broader mission to improve the quality of life. The services of Inspirus includes integrated rewards offering, learning courses, communication tools, and analytics into a single platform spanning the following areas: Everyday recognition, Health and well-being, Social interaction, Staying safe, Milestones, Knowledge and development.

Emplus: Emplus by Xoxoday helps leaders make data-driven decisions on employee engagement activities, identify areas of improvement and build the right kind of cultural engagement with the organization. The platform offers various features like Employee Surveys, Engagement Surveys, Employee lifecycle and many more which helps the organization to seek constructive feedback from their employees.

By Dr. Sunil Kumar Prabhu, Senior Consultant Dermatologist and Aesthetic Physician, Aster RV Hospital

Stretch marks (striae) are indented streaks that appear on the abdomen, breasts, hips, buttocks or other places on the body. They’re common in pregnant women, especially during the last trimester. They also occur during adolescent growth spurt and by dieting or by putting on weight in adults and children. Stretch marks aren’t painful or harmful, but some people don’t like the way they make their skin look.

Do stretch marks go away?

Stretch marks fade with time; however, treatment may make them less noticeable more quickly. A stretch mark is a type of scar that develops when our skin stretches or shrinks quickly. The abrupt change causes the collagen and elastin, which support our skin, to rupture. As the skin heals, stretch marks may appear.

How do I get rid of my stretch marks?

Most stretch marks will fade on their own over time. They may become less noticeable after fading. Medical treatments for stretch marks are

Scar lightening creams and Lotions
Laser therapy. Lasers deliver focused light to the skin. …
Microdermabrasion. …
Micro-needling. …
Radiofrequency therapy. …
Chemical peel.
Are stretch marks unhealthy?

If you have stretch marks, you probably wish they’d go away. These grooves or lines in your skin aren’t harmful to your health, but they aren’t great to look at, either. And even though they’ll never really go away, they might fade over time or with help from certain products and procedures.

What are the main causes of stretch marks?

The cause of stretch marks is stretching of the skin. Their severity is affected by several factors, including your genetics and the degree of stress on the skin. Your level of the hormone cortisol also might play a role. Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands.

Effect on mental health

While stretch marks are commonly associated with pregnancy, the permanency of the skin lesions causes pregnant women and pregnant individuals substantial embarrassment that can negatively impact pregnancy and their quality of life. Sometimes it tends to affect self-esteem and clothing choices.

Stretch marks and the concerns for developing them may be contributing factors for depression or anxiety in the perinatal period, which affect up to one in seven women during pregnancy and postpartum. If uncontrolled or untreated, perinatal depression can lead to adverse pregnancy or neonatal outcomes. Bringing attention to the emotional and psychological impacts of stretch marks on patients can hopefully help in the identification and treatment of mental health disorders during pregnancy and in the postpartum period.

The young mind is like a sponge. With their curiosity and intrigue, they are constantly observing the world and the people around them. They instinctively and instantly learn from us through our lenses of beauty. Children don’t know beauty is in the eye of the beholder. They form their attitudes and opinions on beauty from their interactions with adults, peers, TV shows, movies, newspapers, and social media. Even subtle signs of compliments that are given to others or them on their beauty make them believe only that is beautiful. They also learn from their parents and adults about their own insecurities with their bodies and soon start to express the same.

It does not take long for them to internalize our ideas of beauty as their own and use it as a barometer of what is beautiful. From peers, they learn to know who is receiving more attention and recognition for their beauty and receive popularity for it. They learn to hold beauty against themselves and start to internalize their frustration at themselves for not receiving admiration and learn that being beautiful helps in receiving admiration and positive regard from others. It makes it hard for a child to love oneself and form a sense of self that is not based on appearance.

While body image concerns affect both boys and girls, research suggests that girls are more likely to be dissatisfied with their appearance and their weight than boys. Statistics today prove that children as young as six are concerned about body image and receive feedback on this from family, peers, and society. In fact, 8 in 10 girls say they compare the way they look to other people on social media, and 50% of them are aware and say idealized beauty content and unrealistic filters on social media are damaging to their self-esteem. Poor body image may also prevent young people from engaging in healthy behaviors and they are less likely to take part in physical activities. Among adolescents, research has found that those with greater body appreciation are less likely to diet or use alcohol or cigarettes. Body dissatisfaction and pressure to be thin have been linked to depressive symptoms and symptoms of anxiety disorders such as social anxiety or panic disorder, particularly in those children who do not match societal views of the ‘ideal body’. Cyberbullying and policing on social media can cause mental health problems and identity crises in adolescents.

Children need to be taught that beauty is more on the inside and that the focus should be more on character building and humanness. And parents and family members can use open conversations on flawed beauty standards to help children be comfortable in their own skin. When looks do come up, parents, teachers, and other adults can make a point to highlight all different types of beauty, creating a more inclusive definition for children. This will lead to children accepting themselves and increasing their confidence. Adults should also use more compliments to children which are not based on outward appearance but on their choice of actions to help them understand beauty doesn’t mean happiness or success in life.

Chennai, 27.04.2023: We For You, a non-profit organization committed to enhancing the lives of children, has launched a new initiative – The Children Wall Art Program. The program is designed to provide children with a creative outlet while fostering their artistic abilities. The program is free of charge and open to all children in the community.

The Children’s Wall Art Program will be conducted weekly by professional artists, who will guide the children in various forms of art. Special workshops and events, such as art exhibitions and artist talks will be organized by the NGO.

This aims to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children to express themselves creatively. This will provide children with a sense of accomplishment and pride, as well as the opportunity to showcase their work to the wider community.

Mr. Rajan, We for You, commented, “Introducing children to art at an early age can have lifelong benefits, fostering a lifelong appreciation for creativity and the arts. We hope that this program will not only foster creativity and artistic ability but also build confidence and self-esteem in the children who participate”

The Children Wall Art Program is part of We For You]’s commitment to supporting the development of children in the community.

Bengaluru, April 27, 2023: Ampere, the flagship electric two-wheeler brand of Greaves Electric Mobility Private Limited (“GEMPL”), and Royal Challengers Bangalore showcase their unique and purpose-driven cheer squad – the “Ampere Take Charge Squad” (Cheer Squad) at a meet and greet session. Organized at the RCB Café, Bangalore was attended by Mr. Rajesh Menon, VP & Head of RCB, Mr. Sanjay Bangar, Head Coach of RCB, and Mr. Sanjay Behl, CEO & Executive Director of Greaves Electric Mobility (GEM). During the event, they engaged in an interactive session discussing their joint vision of prioritizing sustainability and taking action for the betterment of the planet.

At the event, Mr. Sanjay Bangar highlighted the significance of sustainability. He emphasized that as climate change and environmental degradation pose significant challenges, it is crucial to adopt sustainable practices to build a better world for both current and future generations.

The Ampere Take Charge Squad is a one-of-a-kind cheer squad that embodies sustainability through its attire and musical instruments made from upcycled, recycled, and scrap materials. Additionally, the Cheer Squad performed live music using musical instruments made from broken instruments, pieces of wood, metal, buckets, plastic, and scrapped petrol vehicle parts.

This collaboration demonstrates their commitment to sustainability and appeals to the values of environmentally conscious Gen Z and Millennial consumers. The Company has also launched a limited edition RCB-themed Ampere Primus electric scooter.

Mumbai, 27th April 2023: Manu Kaushish, President of Create Music Group India, has been featured once again on the prestigious Billboard International Power Players List. This is the second year in a row in which Manu has been recognized for his outstanding contribution to the music industry in India and on the global stage.

Manu’s recognition in Billboard’s 9th annual list, alongside other influential industry leaders from across the globe, cements his position as a seasoned veteran of the music industry. With over two decades of experience in digital content monetization and distribution, Manu has been instrumental in bringing music from India into the digital world. He made history by entering into the first major digital monetization deal for Indian content on RealNetworks, paving the way for Indian music to be heard by audiences across the globe.

Subsequently, he built companies that brought music from India to platforms including Apple and Spotify and entered into one of the first major video monetization deals for Indian content on YouTube. He has built and sold 3 media companies and has been an investor and advisor in the technology, media, and private equity space.

Speaking on the accolade received, Manu Kaushish, President, Create Music Group India, said “It’s truly an honour to be featured on Billboard’s International Power Players List two years in a row. As the music industry evolves and Indian music becomes more mainstream globally, we look forward to releasing more iconic cross-border music collaborations between our US and South Asian artists in 2023.”.

Alexandre Williams, Co-founder and COO of Create Music Group said “With an unwavering dedication to understanding the intricacies of the market and harnessing the power of analytics, Manu has proven that success in music can be driven by science and creativity”.

Create Music Group is a data-driven media and technology company that was founded in 2015. In 2020, the company was named #2 on the INC 5000 list of the Fastest Growing Companies in the US. Create works with some of the world’s most prominent artists, including Jennifer Lopez, Snoop Dogg and Tory Lanez. The company also owns several media properties, including Flighthouse, the #1 channel on TikTok, The Nations network of influencer channels and numerous top Instagram channels, comprising an audience of over 400 million global followers. With such a strong foundation, Create is well-positioned to continue revolutionizing the music industry and breaking new ground in the years to come.