New Delhi, 22 April 2023: Furnish Your Dream, a leading name in the Indian interior design industry has won prestigious India’s Best Kitchen Designer Award at the India Kitchen Congress held at Le Meridien, New Delhi. The award was given by Andre Eckholt, Managing Director of Hettich. The India Kitchen Congress is an annual event that recognizes and felicitates the outstanding contributions of professionals and organizations in the Indian kitchen industry. The awards are highly coveted and sought-after, and winning one is considered a mark of excellence.

Furnish Your Dream was honored with the Best Designer Award for its exceptional work in the Best Design. The company has a reputation for delivering world-class interior design solutions to clients across the country. Their work is known for its attention to detail, innovative use of materials, and aesthetic appeal.

“We are grateful to have won India’s Best Kitchen Designer Award,” said Kushagra Awasthi, Founder, Furnish Your Dream. “This award is a testament to our commitment to delivering exceptional interior design solutions to our clients. We would like to thank the India Kitchen Congress for recognizing our efforts and honoring us with this prestigious award.”

Furnish Your Dream has been in the interior design industry for over a decade and has completed several prestigious projects across the country. They have a team of highly skilled designers and craftsmen who work together to create stunning interior spaces that are both functional and aesthetically pleasing.

India’s Best Kitchen Designer Award is the latest addition to Furnish Your Dream’s long list of accolades. The company has previously won several other awards for its exceptional work in the interior design industry.

Mumbai, 22 April 2023: WinZO, India’s largest social gaming and interactive entertainment technology platform, has announced the launch of its new cyber security challenge program, Code Health and Security Evaluation (CHASE) – (WinZO CHASE) in partnership with the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi (IIT-D), Delhi Technological University (DTU), Netaji Subhash University of Technology (NSUT), and IIID. The program aims to invest in and develop open-source technology and best practices that can be used by businesses, government agencies, and other organizations to protect against cyber actors who exploit vulnerabilities to steal information, and money, and are developing capabilities to disrupt, destroy, or threaten the delivery of essential services. As most solutions are now delivered in a digital environment, it becomes the most important vulnerability and National Security threat.

Through this program, WinZO along with the partnered institutes aims to develop open-source technologies for cyber security: information and event management, endpoint detection & response protocols, security orchestration, encryption, and penetration testing and detection technology. The first phase of the program would also be extending a scholarship of Rs.5 lacs to the winners. Top-performing participants are also eligible for internships and pre-placement interviews at WinZO.

WinZO has a 100 million registered user base and facilitates over four billion micro-transactions per month. In this biggest micro-transaction economy of the country, the safety of transacting users and the integrity of data is most important. Since its launch on 7th April, WinZO has seen over 1000 registrations for the challenge and has already started receiving submissions.

Paavan Nanda, Co-founder of WinZO said: “We aspire to build world-class technology and solutions out of India and extend our solutions to the entire ecosystem to scale the impact, that is the role of any platform business. Preventing attacks or mitigating the spread of an attack as quickly as possible is of utmost importance for a platform that scales across over 100 million users, 20% of which are making their first digital payments. Any cyber-attack, no matter how small, is a threat to our national security and must be identified, managed, and shut down. Young engineers need to develop an early outlook for security threats and solutions that can help organizations stay ahead of emerging threats.”

Launched in early 2018, WinZO hosts over 100 skill-based games in 12 vernacular languages. It has a registered user base of over 100 million, of which around 90% hail from tier II and beyond. The company facilitates over four billion microtransactions and gameplays per month. In addition to the CHASE program, WinZO actively engages the student community across various streams be it technology, business, design, or security. Recently, the company wrapped up the second season of Battle of Super Scholars (BOSS) in IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, and IIM Lucknow which saw participation from more than 1,000 students across campuses. WinZO also conducts a yearly hackathon across college campuses with the most relevant and modern problem statements to encourage the next generation of talent to build large scalable consumer technology companies made in India to solve for the world.

Mumbai, April 22, 2023: There is new evidence that upskilling courses lend learners an upper hand in their careers, as the Emeritus India Impact Survey reveals that an overwhelming majority of 96 per cent of professionals surveyed witnessed the positive impact of Leadership Programmes on their jobs within a year of undertaking them. The survey was conducted by Emeritus, a global leader in world-class professional education, to understand how professionals stay future-ready with the help of professional programmes from Emeritus.

Interestingly, the number of professionals who undertook programmes on leadership belonged primarily to the software and IT services, as well as, manufacturing sectors in the job roles of human resources and talent, as well as, operations. Leadership programmes also enabled 63% of the surveyed learners to advance in their careers and leapfrog others in the profession.

As per McKinsey & Company’s report in 2021, most companies worldwide – at least 87 per cent – are “aware that they either already have a skill gap among their workforce or will have one within a few years”. In this backdrop, the Emeritus India Impact Survey revealed that professionals also felt confident of contributing to team improvement and technical improvement organisationally as a result of professional upskilling programmes in leadership. While every 2 out of 3 participants admitted that the programmes provided them with necessary skills and training needed to advance in their career, about 63% said they saw a team improvement owing to the leadership programmes they were a part of.

Upskilling programmes were particularly valuable in imparting the much-needed tools and strategies which could be immediately applied to their work, reported 71% of the professionals who took up such leadership programmes. Nearly 68% of them also said the programmes helped them be more efficient and effective in their jobs. In addition, about 72% agreed that professional leadership programmes empowered them with access to the latest thinking from world-renowned experts and thought leaders, and thereby be able to compete with their peers.

Showcasing the long-term impact of upskilling courses, about 71% of the professionals also said they could inculcate a lifelong learning mentality within themselves and being inspired to pursue career-related dreams, drawing from the leadership programmes they attended.

Commenting on the Emeritus India Impact Survey findings, Mr. Mohan Kannegal, CEO, India and APAC, Emeritus, said, “In the fast-changing job landscape, it is important for organisations and individuals to be conscious of the skill gaps that exist among professionals and actively address them through upskilling. At Emeritus, we are driven to bridge this skill gap through high-quality, life-changing and accessible education, curated in partnership with some of the world’s leading educational institutions which help us deliver impact for learners. Through programmes with top B-Schools in India and globally, we are offering programmes for CXOs to upskill in growing niches such as CDO, CTO and COO. It is extremely heartening to see the findings from the Emeritus India Impact Survey 2022 point not only to short-term results of our programmes, such as being more efficient at jobs with the knowledge of latest world-class tools, strategies and thinking, but also empowering the workforce with a lifelong learning mentality. We are glad to inspire the next-generation of leaders through our programmes, who are taking shape by learning from world-renowned experts.”

This recently released India Impact Survey was conducted in September 2022, with learners who completed Emeritus professional education programmes through its partner schools before June 2022.

Emeritus connects learners through global virtual classrooms, partnering with over 60 top universities to offer online and app-based learning in formats including courses, certificates, online degrees, boot camps, etc. The company has a truly global reach – serving more than 250,000 learners across 160 countries, with programmes offered in a variety of languages.

India, 22 April 2023- ASUS India has launched its latest campaign “ incredible” – Crafted for the Incredible to announce its new ZenBook Vivobook series0020laptops in India.

The “ incredible” campaign emerges from ASUS brand tagline – In Search of Incredible, here the brand is communicating its engineering design prowess, enabling a 1cm & 1Kg notebook calling the effort as “Thincredible”

The slimmest Zenbook from ASUS is termed “Thincredible” as ASUS has added an OLED Display, a larger battery & all essential ports including an HDMI in Just 1 cm & Kg, which is an “Incredible” feat to achieve making it an world’s slimmest OLED ultraportable laptop.

The latest ZenBook and Vivo book lineups are equipped with stunning new ASUS Lumina OLED displays, ASUS Ice Cool technology, and unique and durable designs, empowering users with outstanding sustainable performance and purposeful innovations.

The campaign will be showcased on Connected TV, Digital media, Print as well as on its social media platforms. ASUS claims to emphasize the fact that every product by the brand is an outcome built on thoughtful innovations that are more portable, more powerful, more sustainable, and more colorful.

ASUS is driven by innovation that resonates with the changing needs of content creators, Paramjeet Singh, Head of Marketing, Consumer PC- Systems Group ASUS India, said. “Through this campaign, we want to further fortify the brand ASUS as the enabler of delivering a 1cm Thincredible experience to our consumers. Thus, keeping up to the brand promise, we will keep pursuing our search of the incredible ideas and experiences.

With our New Thincredible – Crafted for the Incredible campaign we want to highlight and showcase that these thin credible laptops are built on meaningful innovations that has incredible design incredible visual experience, incredible performance helping for sustaining a better future, he also added

New Delhi, 22 April, 2023: Square Yards, India’s largest integrated real estate platform, announced today that it has clocked a GAAP revenue of Rs 670cr in FY23 with 70% Y-o-Y growth over the last financial year. The Gross Transaction Value (GTV) stood at INR 22,870 Cr, up 67% Y-o-Y while the number of transactions doubled during the year.

The company outperformed its FY23 forecast by 11%, achieving its fastest growth year and most profitable quarter ever. Q4, FY23 revenue stood at Rs 236.6cr, up 58% Y-o-Y as it marked the 6th consecutive 50%+ Y-o-Y growth quarter for the company. Annualized revenues (annualizing Q4), stood just under Rs 1000 Cr, a significant milestone for the company which has grown 2.6 times in revenue in 2 years from Rs 255 Cr in FY21.

“We had a sensational finish to the year with aggressive growth & strong profitability. Our focus on providing integrated solutions across the real estate ecosystem and our investments in expanding our capacity should continue to drive operating leverage over the next couple of years. As we rejoice a phenomenal year, we are buckling up for an ambitious target of INR1000+ Cr revenue and full FY profitability in FY24”, said Tanuj Shori, Founder and CEO, Square Yards.

Real estate services and financial services remain the largest contributors to the overall revenue, with approximately 87% of the overall revenue. Both segments combined delivered a contribution margin of 11% and were profitable at the EBITDA level. New businesses like Home renovations, Property management, Fractional real estate & Metaverse solutions also witnessed strong growth and are poised to evolve into very large businesses in FY24. Square Yards’ search and discovery portal squareyards.com continued to gain market share with 8mn visitors/month.

Square Yards’ impressive results in FY23 are a testament to its leadership, innovation, and focus on customer satisfaction. With a strong track record of growth, the company is well-positioned to change the behavior and economics of the largest fragmented and unorganized sector opportunity in the world.

Bengaluru, 22 April 2023: Adding another feather to the road safety initiative, Rapido – India’s leading auto-tech aggregator – is introducing a nationwide safety campaign, #RapidoSafetyFirst. The campaign aims to raise awareness about road safety, promoting Rapido’s daily ride safety features nationwide.

As part of its campaign, Rapido is equipping auto-rickshaws in Bengaluru with seatbelts to reduce the risk of accidents, fatalities and injuries during sudden stops or collisions. The company has also ensured rider safety by implementing a four-step background verification process for its captains. Additionally, it uses a unique information-masking feature to protect the privacy and identity of female riders. Rapido also offers live ride tracking with access to granular latitudinal and longitudinal data and 24/7 on-ground support for shared rides.

Speaking at the launch, Pavan Guntupalli, Co-founder of Rapido Auto, emphasized the importance of road safety and Rapido’s commitment to promoting awareness and minimizing accidents and fatalities. “Being a responsible service provider, we truly believe that road safety is an important concern today, so running an awareness campaign to taking strict training sessions for captains is part of our policy from day one. The #RapidoSafetyFirst campaign covers seatbelts and 360-degree solutions for customer data and safety. The Rapido app’s safety features ensure passengers feel safe, secure and well-protected throughout their ride. Since road accidents in India have startling statistics, Rapido’s initiative seeks to reduce fatalities and injuries,” said Guntupalli.

Rapido Auto has also implemented several safety measures to facilitate safe travel for riders and passengers. These include mandatory safety training for riders, regular vehicle maintenance checks, and real-time tracking of rides to monitor safety compliance. Furthermore, all Rapido Captains must complete a Learning Module System and Training Exercise learning customer-appropriate behavior, road safety training, and operational training.

Moreover, Rapido Auto has conducted safety awareness programs in collaboration with city traffic police departments across India. These initiatives involved CPR and basic life support training for their captains and a mime program to demonstrate the criticality of road safety at heavy traffic junctions in cities such as Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bengaluru, Vijayawada, and Madurai. Rapido will continue collaborating with the police and allied stakeholders to develop a comprehensive road safety program that transforms road safety norms.

As road safety remains a monumental challenge pan-India, initiatives such as these are the need of the hour for minimizing accidents and fatalities. The #RapidoSafetyFirst campaign intends to boost Rapido’s Safety-First approach nationwide with multiple initiatives.

April 22, 2023: A name now synonymous with pan-Asian gastronomy in the city, Yazu is now opening yet another outlet at one of the city’s most premium locations, South Mumbai, which is also touted to be its flagship outlet. A sumptuous 6,000-square-foot expanse has been sculpted into a lively biophilic outdoor space and an invitingly earthy indoor dining space. After being a hit in Andheri and taking over Goa, Yazu is all set to put you in a state of gastronomic bliss with dishes that have a delicate balance of tradition and modernity. So if you are anywhere near Lower Parel, make sure to make your way to Yazu and treat yourself to an immersive Asian culinary experience brought to you by the highest standards of quality and service.

The thought behind Yazu was to create a place that resonated with the present and its demands, be it the global look and feel of the place, the food, or the service. This is exactly what made the trio of Ranbir Nagpal, Gurmeet Arora, and Atul Chopra come up with a space that lets one relish exotic Asian flavours to the fullest. “Yazu’s expansion to Lower Parel is the result of extensive research and confidence in our product. With a significant market for Pan Asian cuisine, we successfully established our brand in the western suburbs and now aim to target south Mumbai with the opening of Yazu Lower Parel,” says Ranbir Nagpal, CEO of Indus Hospitality which runs Yazu.

While the Yazu name is one that is recognized in the suburbs and weekenders who visit Goa, the look, feel, vibe, and menu at each outlet are distinct and unique and have something different to offer.

“Yazu, Lower Parel will have its own distinct ambiance and decor, tailored to fit the unique character of the area. Additionally, we will be offering a new and expanded menu that incorporates some innovative and exciting dishes. Our team of chefs has been working hard to create new culinary delights that showcase the diversity and richness of Asian cuisine,” says Gurmeet Arora, partner at Yazu.

“At Yazu, we pride ourselves on providing authentic flavours and culinary experiences from across Asia, with a focus on quality ingredients and traditional cooking techniques. Besides this, we also incorporate modern twists and innovations to create new and exciting dishes that appeal to a wide range of customers. We believe that high-quality ingredients and meticulous preparation are essential to creating great food. We source the freshest ingredients and use the most precise cooking methods to ensure that every dish is delicious and satisfying,” says Atul Chopra, partner at Yazu.

Designed, developed, and executed by ace restaurant designer Sumessh Menon, the complete design of the space centres around the curation of carefully planned visual experiences. “As soon as one enters, their attention is caught by the fascinating custom light installation that spans the entire ceiling of the restaurant. Custom-made in natural wood and jute fabric with floral motifs, the sculptural light feature stands as the focal point of the whole space. The flooring is an in-situ concrete custom design done with floral imprints and inlays to mirror the patterns in the ceiling above,” says Menon.

A signature design element of Sumessh Menon as well as the brand, a hand-carved wooden feature wall stands as a backdrop to a long seating space wrapped in a warm textural blend of cane and deep red leather. The iconic vertical bottle display is touted as one of the largest ones done and admittedly the most stunning one. Larger-than-life sculptural lamps feature in one of the indoor corners, and the columns are all treated to look like sculpted stone pillars. Each spatial corner and design elements are the result of carefully researched social and cultural contexts that exude the warmth and vibrance of Asian culture, whether it is the earthy mix of materials like natural stone, wood, cane, and jute or the rich, deep tones of greys, browns, and burgundy mixed with intriguing elements of floral artwork and Asian-inspired sculptures. The complete outdoor space was visualized by Sumessh to look like a conservatory outdoor dining space and is wrapped in a biophilic enhanced metal enclosure module, which both defines the space as well as creates the perfect outdoor ambience! The interiors are consciously designed as a sublime poetic ode to Asian culture that will undoubtedly enhance the immersive experience of its culinary delights.

Apart from the impressive interiors, Yazu has a lot more to offer with its extensive menu. The person behind it is Yazu’s Korean-Russian head chef, Vadim, who realised this was the path meant for him in 2009. By then, he had already spent four years in the hospitality industry, and he knew that this was exactly what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Since then, he has been unstoppable and has honed his culinary skills to the fullest. He is best known for his outstanding culinary skills in making sushi.

“We have gone the extra mile in ensuring that people are able to relish the very essence of Asian cuisine to the fullest. Now with our new outlet, we are looking forward to winning over a new audience with our food and making them fall in love with Yazu,” says Chef Vadim.

Some of their must-have delicacies include the Asian Pizza-San which is a delicious fusion of Asian flavours, featuring a crispy crust and unique toppings, Japanese Carpaccio served with Ponzu dressing, Baos which are a beloved Taiwanese street food that have taken the culinary world by storm, with their soft, pillowy steamed buns filled with delicious ingredients, Cheung Fung, a traditional Cantonese dim sum dish made of delicate rice noodle rolls filled with meat/seafood or vegetables, a classic Japanese dish called Nigiri Sushi consisting of a small ball of vinegared rice topped with a slice of fresh, high-quality raw fish or seafood, Sashimi, Maki Sushi, and Poke Bowl which is a traditional Hawaiian dish consisting of a base of rice or greens, topped with marinated raw fish and a variety of colourful and nutritious toppings, among others. The restaurant also has separate Jain and keto menus as well. As for the desserts, some of their best ones include Berry Blossom Cheesecake, Salted Caramel Tart, Pull me up Tiramisu, Coconut Panna Cotta, and more.

Yazu has an impressive bar menu that features some of its signature cocktails, spirits, and tonics. There is a range of cocktails called ‘The Silk Route,’ which beautifully combines the flavours, traditions, and techniques of the Asian Continent. Then there’s another range called ‘A Trip in Time,’ which is an Asian take on some of our all-time favourite cocktails, such as Martini, Negroni, Whiskey Sour, and more. Besides this, the restaurant also makes homemade tonic water, which has a subtle, natural sweetness and pairs incredibly well with a variety of spirits. Opening its doors next week, you are sure to be in for a visual and gastronomic treat at Yazu, with their impeccable food, ambience, and service. So get ready to lose yourself in the land of Yazu and all the magic it has to offer.

22 April 2023, Mumbai: Tricog, one of the world’s largest Heart Health AI firms, has raised 8.5 million USD in a Series B2 funding round from OMRON HEALTHCARE, Japan, and Sony Innovation Fund, Japan. Existing investors UTEC – The University of Tokyo Edge Capital, Japan, Inventus Partners LLP, and SG Innovate, Singapore, participated in this round.

The round marks a total raise of USD 30M. Tricog’s AI platform, backed by medical experts, has touched the lives of more than 12 Million patients globally, enabling half a million patients added to the care pathway due to critical diseases. Tricog aims to make cardiac diagnosis and management accessible and affordable by deepening partnerships with government and large private healthcare networks and building state-of-the-art technology for next-generation products, enabling wider reach in patient populations and disease conditions.

Founded in 2015 by Dr. Charit Bhograj, Dr. Zainul Charbiwala, and Dr. Udayan Dasgupta, Tricog aims to help doctors save more lives by providing a system for fast and accurate diagnosis and management of heart disease powered by AI and medical experts. Tricog’s platform has been deployed in over 5000 Cath Labs, Hospitals, Clinics and Diagnostic Centres to help diagnose and manage patients with critical cardiac diseases, including heart attacks. The platform is deployed across five state governments and numerous private healthcare networks, significantly reducing mortality and morbidity.

Dr. Charit Bhograj, Founder & CEO, Tricog Health said, “The last five years have witnessed tremendous advancements in our AI and technology platform that have allowed us to serve millions of patients across multiple continents. With this round, we are committed to expanding our reach to Asia and Africa and our footprint in the US healthcare market. In addition, our strategic partnerships will allow us, for the first time, to address the needs of heart patients at home, the direction where healthcare will be.”

Tricog has recently developed the TriCare platform, an integrated solution for chronic disease management. The first focus will address the global healthcare challenge of Heart Failure within the US healthcare system and Asia. The TriCare platform enables remote management of heart disease using medical data from connected devices at home and wearable devices such as the Apple Watch. The TriCare platform addresses a growing $110B market segment opportunity.

According to Tetsuya Yamada, Head, of OMRON Healthcare India, “With this funding, OMRON Healthcare, the leading player in the home healthcare monitoring segment, aims to create value in the cardiovascular space by enabling people to detect the risk of heart diseases early and prevent aggravation by using OMRON’s home ECG & BP recording device, Tricog’s AI, and telemedicine & consultation services by cardiologists.”

Noriaki Sakamoto, Partner and Board Director, UTEC, Japan, said, “Tricog is a stellar example of the transformative potential of AI and Doctors working together to tackle a large global unmet need. As lead investors of Tricog since 2018, we at UTEC take immense pride in Tricog’s evolution from an India-focused ECG product into a full-stack cardiac diagnosis platform and are honored to foster their alliance with top-tier Japanese Health-tech giants such as Omron and Sony to profoundly impact millions of lives worldwide.”

Hsien-Hui Tong, Executive Director, Investments, SGInnovate added, “SGInnovate was an early partner of Tricog’s and is delighted to see them continue to grow as a company. Their predictive models are filling a vast unmet need in the remote healthcare space, and we look forward to supporting their expansion into more markets across Asia and Africa.”

Gen Tsuchikawa, CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Sony Ventures Corporation, said, “Tricog’s AI based ECG interpretation and real time reporting is transforming the way healthcare is delivered to millions who don’t have immediate access to cardiac care. We look forward to supporting the team as they expand their product offerings of remote patient monitoring to further accelerate growth.”

Inventus Capital the earliest investor in Tricog. Parag Dhol, Managing Director, Inventus Capital, “Cardiovascular diseases account for the highest mortality rates in India. Increasing prosperity and enhanced proclivity -compared with other ethnic groups- compound the problem. We are proud to be associated with Tricog, which has impacted over half-a-million critical cases. This funding round should help them achieve similar results in Asia & Africa.”

Kaatman named Director of Enterprise Development for growing insurance alliance.

(St. Louis, Mo., April 22, 2023) Valley Insurance Agency Alliance (VIAA), a cohesive family of more than 160 independent insurance agencies in Missouri and Illinois, recently promoted Bill Kaatman to Director of Enterprise Development.

Kaatman’s responsibilities include overseeing new member recruitment and onboarding, as well as pursuing strategic partnerships to further the alliance’s growth. He will also serve on the company’s development team to assist alliance members with implementing new technology and digital tools that can be utilized to advance their own insurance agencies.

Kaatman has 17 years of insurance industry experience that includes holding a variety of positions in both agency management and direct-to-consumer insurance sales. Prior to his promotion, he served as VIAA’s Digital Agency Coach where he helped members with online sales strategies, improving their digital presence, and strategic business planning. Kaatman joined VIAA with nine years of experience as a partner and principal sales leader in a local independent insurance agency that was within the VIAA family of agencies.

“Bill’s background as both an entrepreneur and a seasoned communication specialist will directly benefit our alliance member agencies,” said VIAA’s co-founder Henry Powers. “He is tech-savvy and solution-oriented when it comes to providing the best service possible, and we look forward to all Bill will accomplish in his new position.”

Founded in 2006, sister company Valley Insurance Agency Alliance generates more than $600 million in written premium and is the regional founding member for the Strategic Insurance Agency Alliance (SIAA), a $11 billion national alliance. Founded in 1991, Powers Insurance & Risk Management provides personal and business insurance, surety, risk management, and employee benefits. The companies are headquartered at 6825 Clayton Ave. For more information, call (314) 725-1414 or visit www.viaa4u.com.

London / Mumbai, April 22, 2023: The overall Construction industry in the United Kingdom is forecast to increase to revenue of 476.6 billion British pounds until 2027. With 239.4 billion British pounds, the construction of buildings is forecast to remain the biggest segment in the UK market, according to industry reports.

On the other hand, the UK’s construction industry has been continuously facing numerous skills shortages. According to the Shortage Occupation List created by the UK’s Chartered Institute of Building, between December 2022 and February 2023, there were 41,000 job vacancies. Considering the shortage of manpower in the sector, the UK is emerging as a bright spot for Indian skilled real estate and construction workers who may witness huge immigration opportunities.

Opening on the prospects for Indian immigrants searching for opportunities in the UK’s construction industry, Yash Dubal, the UK visa and immigration expert and Director of the UK immigration law firm A Y & J Solicitors said, “In my professional opinion, the UK realty sector continues to thrive, especially in house building, as the Government has committed to build 300,000 new homes per year by the mid-decade. However, Brexit has caused a shortage of labour in the industry, as builders from Europe, particularly Eastern European countries, could previously work freely in the UK.”

Mr Dubal added, “With the recent addition of new trades to the shortage occupation list, I predict that we may witness more European workers entering the UK realty development industry. While it is possible that skilled workers from India and other countries may find opportunities in the UK’s realty industry. I remain interested to observe if this route will be utilised by Indian construction workers and to see how they may contribute to the UK construction sector.”

NAREDCO, an apex body of India’s real estate developers, which also undertakes skilling trainings for over one lakh industry workers annually, affirmed the fact that with India’s strong expertise and potential to produce skilled and efficient real estate and construction workforce, it can become a major supplier of skilled workforce for the global real estate and construction sector including the UK.

Rajan Bandelkar, National President, NAREDCO said, “With the likely free trade agreement of India with the UK and structural changes in the UK’s visa framework, the immigration prospects for the skilled real estate workforce exploring employment opportunities in the UK might increase in the near future. The UK’s real estate industry has a deficit of skilled personnel and India has a large skilled workforce; both in construction and management sides of the real estate industry. If the UK gives a smooth access to skilled real estate workforce through visa relaxations to address its manpower challenges, it would pave the way for skilled Indian workforce in the construction sector to bridge this deficit and seek the UK as a preferred immigration destination.”

Bandelkar added, “India’s real estate industry is far more evolved globally with a massive base of skilled labour and managerial talent with ample expertise. The Indian real estate and construction industry’s workforce draws its expertise from large scale real estate and construction projects being undertaken by the real estate professionals in the country with due support from the Government and industry bodies like NAREDCO, which has been training over one lakh workers annually for the real estate industry. India is set to become a global hub to supply skilled manpower in the real estate and construction industry.”

The number of new construction is predicted to grow significantly, reaching 200,000 new private housing starts in 2027.

In response to five occupations being added to the Shortage Occupation list, a spokesman for the Chartered Institute of Building, said: “We are pleased that today’s budget states that the Government has accepted the MAC interim recommendations to initially add five construction occupations to the Shortage Occupation List.”

“The construction industry continues to face numerous skills shortages, resulting from a mixture of lack of new entrants, to skilled professionals reaching retirement age.”

“This is why migration continues to be a necessity for construction, helping dampen the harmful effects of having a volatile labour market.”

James M. Butcher, Director of Policy at the National Federation of Builders, said, “Construction faces a vacancy rate higher than the all-industry average; so it is fair to say we are in a worse position than many other industries.”