VARINDIA IT MAGAZINE

COVID-19 accelerates mobile wallet adoption across Asia-Pacific:  Mobile wallet adoption and usage is poised for major growth in the next few years in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, and thereby displace traditional payments such as cash and cards. The   COVID-19 pandemic   has accelerated the trend as mobile payment has emerged as one of the few areas in the whole payments industry that has seen a positive impact from the pandemic, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.   APAC markets like China and India have been aggressively promoting mobile wallets, putting them in place far ahead than their Western counterparts. Other markets within the region are also catching up with countries like Thailand and Vietnam now emerging as the top adopters of mobile wallets globally... Read More

“The collaboration we have with our vendors, helps us deliver quality performance”:  In a chat with VARINDIA,   ABHISHEK RUNGTA, PROPRIETOR, COMPUTEK   discusses about the business model and the growth opportunities, differentiating factors from competitors, challenges faced post COVID and much more   Please give us a little brief about yourself and the company . Computek  started on a modest scale when the IT sector was evolving in Hyderabad. Today, the city has become ‘Cyberabad’- a hub for major hardware and software solutions. We have been associated with Lenovo for more than 12 years now. Started our journey with retail and today we provide complete end to end customized services & solutions. In order to cater to the growing needs of several prestigious enterprises in the city, the company has expanded the scale and agility of its business. As a leading service provider in this sector, we have been instrumental in the digital transformation of our clients. We also offer severa

Guruprasad Mohapatra DPIIT Secretary took his last breath:  Guruprasad Mohapatra , the Secretary in the   Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)   died. He was being treated at   AIIMS, New Delhi   for covid-related complications.   PM Narendra Modi  tweeted, “Saddened by the demise of Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra, DPIIT Secretary. I had worked with him extensively in Gujarat and at the Centre. He had a great understanding of administrative issues and was known for his innovative zeal. Condolences to his family and friends. Om Shanti."   Piyush Goyal  tweeted, “Extremely saddened to hear about the loss of Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra, Secretary DPIIT. His long-standing service and dedication to the Nation have left a lasting impact. I convey my deepest sympathies to his family and friends."   At DPIIT, Guruprasad was instrumental in formulating the production linked incentive schemes. He was also actively working on reducing compliance burden on the industry.

Mushroom growth of edtech start-ups brings potential risk for the children's:  The   edtech market   is estimated to grow 4X in the next five years, from $2.8 Bn (2020) to $10.4 Bn (2025). With growing adoption during the lockdown months, edtech services and products are expected to have an addressable base of 37 Mn-plus paid users by 2025.   India has the world’s largest population of school-going children - 265 million. That number will rise substantially if higher education is thrown into the mix. With schools and colleges shut because of the  coronavirus  outbreak, online education companies are stepping in to fill the breach. It’s an opportunity worth billions.   With the outbreak of Covid-19 in India, followed by lesser state-specific and local lockdowns in 2021, though, private and public schools have struggled to facilitate classes with the limited number of online resources available. The Education sector is now one of the biggest targets for cyber attacks, particularly si

Global PC market to grow 8% in 2021 despite worsening component shortages:  The global PC market   (including desktops, notebooks and tablets) will grow 8% in 2021, on top of what was a blockbuster year for the industry in 2020. Total shipments in 2021 are expected to hit 496.8 million units, with all categories enjoying growth. Backlogs on device orders from last year are being boosted by continued demand from workers and students still affected by COVID-19 restrictions. But supply issues will persist throughout this year and be the main restriction on higher growth levels. Growth in 2021 is expected to be frontloaded in the first half of the year, with shipments up 54% in Q1 and 7% in Q2. Chromebooks and tablets will be bright spots for the industry in 2021, achieving growth of 30% and 8% respectively.     “Following the boom in 2020, the PC industry is set to grow for years to come,” said   Canalys Research Director Rushabh Doshi . “Order backlogs and ongoing strong demand present a

Union Budget 2021: Focus on vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Start-ups:  The Union Budget turns out to be an excellent budget but not a transformational budget as was made out to be. It has adopted a brilliant strategy of large scale infrastructure rollout, funded by asset monetization of existing road, power lines, gas pipelines and railway assets.   The budget also covers funding of New Education Policy which is what I have been asking for as it will provide the human resources needed for growth in this decade. Adequate provisions have been made for health, education, agriculture, MSME's and startups. Hope there is removal of GST on digital payments and removal of Angel tax as a followup of the budget.   The Union budget 2021 has brought relief for a lot of industries and is poised to take India to greater heights. For start-ups and entrepreneurs, one key highlight from the budget is the capital gains exemption for one more year to 31 March 2022, and secondly they will be eligib

“All COVAXIN recipients to be tracked, monitored as if they’re in trial”: Health Minister answers to critics:  Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan   responded to opposition’s criticism on the   Drugs Controller General of India’s (DCGI)   approval for emergency use of the two Indian   COVID-19 vaccines - Covaxin   and   Covishield   through a tweet.   "For those spreading rumours let it be known that EUA (Emergency Use Approval) for COVAXIN is differently conditional – in clinical trial mode,” Dr Vardhan tweeted. He also added, "EUA for COVAXIN is different from COVISHIELD because its use will be in clinical trial mode. All COVAXIN recipients to be tracked, monitored as if they’re in trial.”   "COVAXIN approval is ‘Monitored Approval’ with strict follow-up & rolling review. This approval ensures India has an additional vaccine shield in its arsenal esp against potential mutant strains in a dynamic pandemic situation - A strategic decision for our vaccine security (sic),

Serum waits for India’s green signal for COVID-19 vaccine use:  Serum Institute of India , which is also manufacturing the   Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine in India , said that it expected the government to approve the shot for emergency use in a few days.   The company has already made 40 million to 50 million doses of the vaccine and will be able to ramp up capacity to around 100 million a month by March when a new facility comes online.   "We have 40-50 million doses of Covishield stockpiled. Once we get regulatory approvals in a few days, it'll be down to the government to decide how much they can take and how fast,"  Serum Chief Executive Adar Poonawalla  said.   "All data on Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID19 vaccine submitted in India and UK. There are no concerns, regulators are closely reviewing documents and data," informed Serum CEO. Poonawalla also told the reporters that India is a part of 'COVAX' and hence, the company will keep giving 50%

The department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade issued a press note 3 (2020 series) stating that foreign investments from countries with which India shares land border shall be under approval route. Also, transfer of ownership of any existing or future FDI in an entity in India, directly or indirectly, resulting in beneficial ownership falling within this restriction will require government approval. The move comes close on the heels of market regulator Sebi asking custodian banks to disclose details of `ultimate beneficial owners’ of  foreign portfolio investors  (FPIs) based in China and Hong Kong. The press note states that this review is for curbing opportunistic takeovers or acquisitions of Indian companies due to current Covid 19 pandemic. The move is likely to have implications for future investments by venture capital funds and the startup segment that had seen rise in Chinese investments over last few years and may have deals inked for future infusion fr

Amid  Coronavirus , people are also being advised to refrain from touching their face, as it may put them at the risk of contracting coronavirus pandemic. As known, the virus, which is primarily transmitted from human contact, can get on to your hands from contaminated surfaces and move into your respiratory system, eventually making you sick. The device buzzes to stop you from touching your face (or even bringing your hand close to it). Slightly Robot, a US based start up,  modified its Immutouch, smart band to work as a face-touch detector. Here how it works: Once the user calibrate the band to detect hand-to-face gestures, its accelerometer starts working with a personalized algorithm to track the position of the hand. It senses hand movement about 10 times per second and starts vibrating (a signal of hazardous action) as soon as one touches his/her face or come close to touching. As the buzzer rings every time user brings his/her hand to the face, the