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Indian Staffing Federation (ISF), an apex body of leading staffing companies in India, has raised the curtains off its report on Flexi Staffing in the government and the public sector during a National Conclave held on Wednesday (20 August). According to the report, there is a rise in temporisation in the government sector workforce which constituted 43 per cent of total 28.8 million temporary staff of an estimated 49.7 million formal sector workforce in India.It is interesting to note that organised flexi staffing players have made significant contribution towards social security as well as government revenue in the last few years.There are 10.5 million casual workers without any formal job contract, mainly in professions like craft and related trades workers, elementary occupations and plant and machine operators. Out of this, only 1.4 million fixed short term written job contract holders are assigned professions requiring relatively more skill such as teaching associate professionals, office clerks, protective service workers and personal care workers.Rituparna Chakraborty, President, ISF said, "Our study observes that over 43 per cent of those dependent on government for livelihood are in temporary jobs out of which over 10.5 million have no formal job contracts. We believe that various professional flexi-staffing companies can engage closely with the government sector in a transparent and flexible manner to provide formal employment to millions and also providing access to an effective matching platform." Suchita Dutta, Executive Director, ISF, said, "There is a clear trend of India Inc moving towards flexi hiring adopting a blended workforce model by many leading corporates not just the government sector that allows them to monitor cost efficiently without affecting the work. It is relevant more so in an economic slowdown that India is overcoming and organizations are seen opting for project based employment with enthusiastic, adaptable and skilled multitaskers."
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In computers, there is a term, "What You See Is What You Get". It applies to all the aspects of computing but sadly, is limited to it. When it comes to real world products, the reality is a bit different; thanks to our celebrities who endorse a product with such a glibness that thousands of people fall prey to it.The question is: who is responsible for safeguarding the interest of the people? Seems like the government has finally woken up and has demanded time to contemplate action against such celebrities. The government has categorically stated that strict guidelines are on cards to regulate misleading advertisements so that promotion and propagation of fake, spurious and sub-standard products are halted.Making the statement at a Seminar on Best Business Practices for Consumer Welfare, organised under the aegis of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, Keshav Desiraju said, "the government is aware that celebrities and stars, keep endorsing products without checking and examining the efficacy of the products of mass consumption and since such endorsements attract attention of scale from vast number of consumers, the government would need time to develop a mechanism to effectively take on the issue as the prevailing system has no legal support to handle it".Desiraju, however, said that strict guidelines are being evolved in the ministry in consultation with all the right stakeholders to curb and prevent the increasing menace of misleading advertisements, pronouncing false promises and commitments to mislead the public, especially in the field of healthcare, food, tele-marketing, education, real estate and medi-care industry.A Cabinet note would be finalized to suggest amendments in the Consumer Protection Act of 1986 as also Bureau of Indian Standards Act so that host of measures are incorporated in the proposed amendments to ensure that consumers are well guarded.Direct General of Bureau of Indian Standards Sunil Soni in his address said that the regulatory body would also evolve a number of new standards that industry would have to conform to comply with so that products sold off in the markets are made of processes and qualities of world standards to make sure that consumers are not befooled.He also said that hallmarking would be made mandatory for jewellery articles (including diamonds) with government bringing about amendments to the Consumer Protection Act and Bureau of Standards Act.Well, it would take a lot more than just theoritical plans to quell the glut of sub standard products in our country. Government's will, consumer awareness and edified celebrity consciousness is the way ahead.
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Asus on Wednesday (09 July) announced the launch of its much awaited series of smartphone range, Zenfone, in India. There was no word on the pricing before the launch and it seems like Asus had saved best for the last. Keeping in mind the expectations of the Indian consumer, the Asus Zenfone 5 has been priced at Rs 9,999 only! The budget handset, Zenfone 4 will cost you Rs 5,999 while the mid range Asus Zenfone 6 comes at Rs 16,999.Commenting on the launch, Asus CEO Jerry Shen said, "We are very excited to bring this premium luxury to consumers in India. When we set foot on this journey in search of incredible, we aimed to create the most extra-ordinary phone for everyone to enjoy. It fulfills every aspect of our customers."Asus Zenfone 4 is a budget device with a 4 inch display and a 5 MP camera sans flash. The phone is powered up by a dual core Intel Atom Z2520 processor and 1 GB of RAM. The best part is that the Zenfone 4 is available in 5 colours - pearl white, sky blue, cherry red, solar yellow and charcoal black. Zenfone 5 is the second phone in the series and sports a 5 inch HD display. The USP of this phone is that it can be operated with a stylus or while wearing gloves. It is powered up by Intel Atom Z2580 processor and 2 GB of RAM.Coming to the camera of the Zenfone 5, the phone features a 8 MP primary camera with flash and a front facing 2 MP camera. A backside illumination sensor and wide aperture lens allow users to effortlessly capture stunning photographs. Last but not the least, the Asus Zenfone 6 is a mid range offering from the Taiwanese firm. As the name goes, it features a 6 inch HD display, glove-touch and pen-touch technologies. It packs a similar hardware like the Zenfone 5 with the only differentiating factor being the Asus SonicMaster audio technology which offers immersive sound via headphones. The Zenfone 6 comes in 4 different colours - pearl white, cherry red, charcoal black and champagne gold.Apart from the phones, the company also announced a 7 inch tablet - the Asus Fonepad 7. It features a 2X2 Intel Atom processor with hyper-threading technology which makes gaming and multi-tasking a piece of cake. Asus claims that the Fonepad 7 can give 10 hours of video playback or 30 hours of 3G talk-time.Starting Thursday (10 July), all the devices will be made available to the consumers via physical and e-commerce stores.
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Micromax, world's 10th largest mobile manufacturer, on Monday (16 June) showcased its Canvas Win series with the launch of two Windows OS based phones - Canvas Win W121 and Canvas Win W092. The USP of this launch is that it has brought together Microsoft (American software giant), Qualcomm (American global semiconductor company)and Micromax (Indian electronics manufacturer), the three pioneers who have been leveraging their technology as an enabler for the masses.Commenting on the launch, Mr. Sanjay Kapoor, Chairman, Micromax said, "With our vision to democratize technology and belief in providing consumers with choice of platforms, we are pleased to introduce a new range of Windows based phones. I am pleased that Micromax is the only Indian mobile phone brand to be present across the two most popular operating platforms in the world.""I congratulate Micromax on the launch of their first Windows Phone today. The Micromax Canvas Win will be available both in India and other emerging markets. Our deep engagement with local OEMs is one of the engines of growth for Windows Phone and we are proud of our partnership with Micromax." said Bhaskar Pramanik, Chairman, Microsoft India."We are excited to collaborate with Microsoft and Micromax, through the Qualcomm Reference Design Program by Qualcomm Technologies, to introduce one of the first Windows Phone 8.1 smartphones by an Indian brand, Canvas Win W121, powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor," said Avneesh Agrawal, President, Qualcomm India and South Asia. Powered by the new Windows Phone 8.1 operating system and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor, the Canvas Win W121 and Canvas Win W092 come with a 5 inch and a 4 inch display respectively. The dual-SIM Micromax Canvas Win 121 has a battery capacity of 2000 mAh battery. Users can capture all their favourite moments with the 8MP rear camera with flash and connect with their friends and family over Skype using the 2MP front camera. The internal storage of 8 GB is expandable upto 32 GB. The smaller phone, Canvas Win W092, is equipped with a 5MP rear camera with flash and 0.3MP front camera. With a 1GB RAM and 8GB ROM, users can store all their music, videos, images and documents. Both smartphones support Bluetooth version 4.0 and Wi-Fi, ensuring full time connectivity for the social media buffs. Microsoft's cloud storage tool OneDrive adds many other capabilities such as Bing, Skype, Xbox Games, Office 365 and more to give consumers added value.The two phones differ only in terms of build quality, screen size and battery life and of course, pricing!The Canvas Win W121 and Canvas Win W092 priced at Rs 9,500 and Rs 6,500 respectively, will be available across retail stores and e-commerce portals starting early July 2014.
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Motorola Mobility on Tuesday (13 May) launched its latest smartphone - Moto E in India. The interesting part is that India is the first market where the phone is launhced. This was followed up with simultaneous launch events in 5 other countries. Magnus Ahlqvist, Corporate Vice President, EMEA and APAC, Motorola Mobility said, "Moto E is an incredible powerful smartphone designed for buyers who are price sensitive and those eho have not been able to experience the internet on their feature phones. We have been succesful in packing spectacular features at a price which we believe would be affordable for buyers in india and other emerging markets. We are focussed on bringing smart solutions for real consumer problems."Motorola Moto E sports a 4.3 inch qHD display and is powered up by a dual core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and 1 GB of RAM. The screen is smudge free and is protected by Corning Gorilla 3 protection. The phone can support dual SIM cards. The internal memory of 4 GB can be expanded to a maximum of 32 GB via a micro SD card. Motorola Moto E features a 5 MP primary camera sans flash. The cost cutting has been done in the camera department and it is further visible with the absence of a front camera. Motorola has put in a 1980 mAh battery to keep the phone up and running. Moto E is available in black and white colour options with the option of coloured back plates. Users can purchase the debvice exclusively through Flipkart starting tonight at 00:00 hours.
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Sony India on Thursday (08 May) launched its much awaited smartphone, Xperia Z2, in India. The phone comes with a premium built and a design whose architecture is based on its predecessor - Xperia Z1. The phone will be available in the Indian market from May 12, 2014 onwards and will cost the end user Rs 49,990. Mr Kenichiro Hibi, Managing Director, Sony India, said, "We are very excited to launch Xperia Z2, the flagship phone from Sony for 2014. Our focus on smartphones segment was renewed last year with the launch of Xperia range of smartphones in India which received a tremendous response from our customers, helping us achieve a 10 per cent share in the smartphone business. We will continue to make an aggressive pitch in this category in India, and are targeting sales of Rs 5,500 crore in FY14."Xperia Z2 offers good value to the consumers, as it comes bundled with the Sony SmartBand SWR10 and a premium Sony case, in a limited period offer. Available in white, black and purple colour options, Xperia Z2 is powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 quad core processor clocked at 2.3 GHz, supported by 3GB RAM and a decent 3,200 mAh battery in an 8.2mm slim chassis. Not only this, Sony Xperia customers can stream and download XSCAPE, an album by the internationally acclaimed music icon and King of Pop - Michael Jackson for free through the Sony Music Jive application.The SmartBand SWR10 is a wearable device that talks to Lifelog app and your Android smartphone via Bluetooth and NFC connection. The Lifelog app keeps a close track of body movements, from counting steps to calculating speed and calories. It monitors sleep patterns including details of deep sleep and light sleep and automatically wakes you up once you’ve slept enough according to sleep cycle. The Lifelog app perfectly manages your entertainment as it collects all the camera and music activities and compiles all the data in an animated infographic to let you see photos you took, music you have listened and games you have played. It also allows tracking the information on how much you communicated with friends. By pressing the Life Bookmark key, one can capture everything going around on that very moment and all the details will be stored in the SmartBand forever.Sony SmartBand SWR10 is priced at Rs 5,990 and would hit the market in third week of May. Not to forget, Sony will give it to you for free if you purchase their Xperia Z2 phone!
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Dolby Laboratories on Thursday (01 May) announced the arrival of its latest audio technology, Dolby Atmos, in Delhi. Delite Cinemas, situated in Daryaganj, will be the first cinema in the city to offer the new technology to cinema lovers, starting May 1, 2014. Dolby Atmos unleashes the potential of sound in storytelling by giving filmmakers the creative freedom to easily place or move sounds anywhere in the movie theatre to create a lifelike, virtual reality of sound and the most powerful cinema experience ever.Commenting on the launch, Shashank Raizada, owner of Delite Cinemas, said, “I believe Dolby Atmos will prove to be a major differentiator for the movie-watching audiences in New Delhi. It provides greater definition and dimension to movies with its unique approach to sound. With this achievement, we reinforce our mission to be the best in entertaining people by offering state-of-the-art technology and exceptional facilities.”Dolby Atmos has quickly become the preferred choice for next-generation sound in the cinema, with major studios, award-winning filmmakers, and exhibitors from around the world embracing its approach. Unlike traditional channel-based sound systems like 5.1, 7.1, and 11.1, which require filmmakers to think about the number and location of speakers, Dolby Atmos allows them to simply designate where in the cinema space each sound should be placed or moved to make audiences experience the film as if they were within its world.“We look forward to working with Delite Cinemas to bring the ultimate cinematic entertainment experience to moviegoers in New Delhi. With Dolby Atmos, you feel as if you are in the movie, not merely watching it. We are confident that moviegoers will be captivated by the remarkable clarity and dimension of the sound and will keep coming back to Delite Cinemas to get this amazing experience that Dolby Atmos provides,” said Mr. Ashim Mathur, Marketing Head, Dolby Laboratories India.
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HTC on Monday (21 April) launched its latest flagship - HTC One (M8) with a full alumiunium body and a fresh version of HTC Sense in the Indian market. The phone would be available from May 7 at a price of Rs 49,990. The new HTC One (M8), boasts of a smart sensor hub that anticipates your needs and uses motion launch controls to make everyday tasks easier. New duo camera technology delivers creative, professional-looking photos and amazing effects, and HTC BoomSound again sets new standards for audio quality on a smartphone. Jack Yang, President, HTC South Asia said: "In 2013 we introduced the best smartphone in the world, but we never stopped challenging ourselves and the status quo in this category. As pioneers in mobile innovation, we continue to design and build devices that will dazzle, inspire and transform the smartphone industry. Today I am proud to launch the most stunning, intuitive and advanced handset that the industry has seen to date, the new HTC One (M8)." Supported by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor and running Android 4.4, KitKat, the latest version of the Android OS, the HTC One (M8) features the all-new HTC Sense 6, available on the device and as an upgrade from the Google Play store. Completely redesigned with a cleaner, more striking visual style, HTC Sense 6 features bold, customisable colour themes and delivers a more intuitive, personalised user experience. For those who prefer the stock Android experience, the HTC One (M8) Google Play edition will be available for purchase on the Google Play store in the coming weeks.Apart from HTC One (M8), the Taiwanese firm also launched a couple of other smartphones - HTC Desire 210 and HTC Desire 816. HTC Desire 816The HTC Desire 210 comes with a 4 inch display, 512 MB of RAM and a dual core processor. It has a 5 MP rear camera and a front facing VGA camera. This is a budget offering from HTC and has been given a price tag of Rs 8,700. It would make it to the markets by the end of May, 2014.Last but not the least, the HTC Desire 816 is a mid range handset with a massive 5.5 inch screen and HTC Boomsound which is found on the flagship One (M8) phone as well. The best thing about the Desire 816 is the 13 MP rear camera with HTC Zoe and a front facing 5 MP camera. This too would be available by May end and would cost Rs 23,990."The HTC Desire 816 is the start of the mid-tier performance smartphone," said Jack Yang. "Taking the best technology and putting it into the Desire 816 challenges everything that people will expect from a mid-tier smartphone with performance."
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