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VICCO director Sanjeev Pendharkar shares his views on ‘Business post COVID-19’
Sanjeev Pendharkar, Director, VICCO, recently participated in three webinars, during which he discussed about the survival strategies needed ‘to keep the businesses afloat’ during the coronavirus-induced challenging phase. The topic of discussion in all these webinars mainly revolved around ?post-crisis scenarios in the business landscape and the game-plan for the same.
Distinguished business heads and industry leaders along with Pendharkar exchanged their views viewpoint on how they need to react to all the shifts and changes that the corona upheaval has triggered and how can all the damage be contained.
All the discussions that Pendharkar engaged in were highly solution-centric and were geared towards providing meaningful and pragmatic tips to safely navigate the post corona business ecosystem once the pandemic is contained.
Out of the three virtual panel engagements, one was organized by a platform called CorpGini, which is a renowned platform for corporates aimed at consistently discovering and embracing disruptive tech solutions and the other two were also planned by very well-known and distinguished organisations.
Each webinar witnessed massive audience participation with over 15000 unique viewers from all across the world and lasted for roughly 2.5 hours.
Talking about the corona impact, Pendharkar said, The ripple effect of the lockdown can already be clearly witnessed as businesses all across the world are severely hit and are struggling to tread the difficult waters. In view of the same, companies need to rethink their business model. Businesses, both small and big, need to revisit their operating model and reposition themselves. As the demand patterns of customers for products and services have been dramatically transformed due to the pandemic, all entrepreneurs proactively need to embrace a new set of rules and relook their business plan to survive this slump.
Embracing the digital is the mantra is how Pendharkar put forth his views. He further expressed, The world post-COVID-19 would be a very different world and going digital is the only way to go for businesses if they want to survive and thrive in it.
Already a significant number of organizations and employees have adopted the work-from-home concept as a substitute for the regular office culture. Remote working has more or less become a norm and applications like Zoom, Skype for business, doodle and Google Meet continue to witness a huge surge in demand. Be it the video conferencing or sharing files, these collaboration apps are geared towards making remote working as effortless as possible and thus their usage has already shot through the roof.
Another significant aspect that Pendharkar spoke about was related to angel investing. He said, The start-ups and businesses that are looking to raise funds should do the same through the equity method as contrary to taking a loan. Doing business on loan is the laziest way to do it.
He further expressed his opinion on how angel investors are looking for businesses and start-ups to empower them during the pandemic. These angel investors are more interested than ever in meeting with agile entrepreneurs and supporting them. On the grounds of this, businesses and start-ups should utilize the opportunity well and go for the equity route?, he said.
To make the subject clearer, he quoted an example of the Jio-Facebook deal where Facebook’s $5.7 billion investment in Reliance Jio has virtually catapulted Facebook to the big leagues of technology investors in India.
Pendharkar also touched upon the other facets of the implications on the economy with the lockdown and said, While they are some industries like aviation and malls that are vulnerable and are enduring the brutal effects of corona outbreak, other sectors like e-commerce have (in a way) received a new lease of life.
Companies like Flipkart, Amazon, Grofers and BigBasket, have witnessed a very clear uptick in terms of orders and continue to see a big spike. Few other sectors that remain unscathed from this hit include ed-tech and digital health.
Stressing upon Inventory Management he said, As things stand now, it is quite essential to keep liquidating the old inventory. Surplus stock occupying your shelf space should be a complete no-go for any business. Keeping track of the inventory data and finding out strategic ways and means to clear excess stock if any is paramount.
All the discussions were concluded by him on a positive note, where he persuaded every attendee to hang on and stay positive. While strongly focusing upon viewing this existential crisis as an opportunity, he said, Despite all the disruption, it’s still not all doom and gloom. As hard as it is to remain positive and calm amidst this pandemic impact, one can still find the silver lining and capitalise on this market shift by devising a proper survival strategy.
All in all, the sessions were a true amalgamation of some of the most ingenious and resourceful industry minds banding together and exchanging dialogues about the subject. The audience was also seen eagerly bringing forward their questions pertaining to the topic.
The three sessions made for some real power-packed and intriguing events, to say the least.
Nagpur News
Nagpur Youth Congress activists stage protest against Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as MP
Members of Youth Congress Nagpur…
Members of Nagpur Youth Congress staged protest against former Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as Member of Parliament from Lok Sabha amid ‘Modi surname’ remark. The protest was held at Chhatrapati Square in the city on Saturday morning where members raised slogans hailing Gandhi.
When we spoke to Secretary, Maharashtra Youth Congress, Abhishek Dhawad, who led the protest, said, “It is an orchestrated attack on the democracy. And, BJP’s attempt to cripple the voice of Opposition by expunging Rahul Gandhiji is a testimony to the fact that the accusations hold weight and thus the BJP government needs to come clean.”
When asked about Gandhi’s accusation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi siding with business tycoon Gautam Adani, Dhawad quipped, “Adani’s meteoric rise couldn’t have happened without the former being hand in glove with the Centre. It’s the biggest scam in the history of mankind!”
Senior Congress leader and former Corporator Praful Gudadhe Patil, Nagpur District Secretary Mangesh Kamone, etc., marked their presence during the protest.
Gandhi, on Friday, was disqualified as Lok Sabha MP, a day after a Surat Court convicted him in a defamation case regarding Modi surname remark. The notification disqualifying the Wayanad MP was issued hours after Gandhi attended the morning session of Lok Sabha.
Gandhi, in 2019, had remarked, “Why all the thieves, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi have Modi in their names.”
Also read: Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as MP bars him from contesting LS polls for 8 years?
Rare conjunction of Moon and Venus
A rare celestial event occurred on Friday evening when Moon and the brightest planet in our solar system Venus aligned in conjunction. The alignment was observed in various parts of the world, including Hyderabad, Chandrapur, Nagpur to name a few.
This conjunction is a relatively uncommon occurrence that happens when the two celestial bodies appear close to each other in the sky. The occurrence is particularly rare when the two are at their brightest.
By March-end this year, an alignment of five planets (Jupiter, Mercury, Venus, Uranus, and Mars) in the skies will be witnessed, as seen from Earth. Five planets are set to align between March 25 to March 30 as Earth enters the equinox.
While all five planets continue to roam around each other in the final days of March, you will be able to see them the clearest on March 28.
Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as MP bars him from contesting LS polls for 8 years?
Also read: Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as MP bars him from contesting LS polls for 8 years?
Congress Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi was on Friday disqualified as Lok Sabha MP, a day after a Surat Court convicted him in a defamation case. The notification disqualifying the Wayanad MP was issued hours after Gandhi attended the morning session of Lok Sabha.
What does the notification read?
“Consequent upon his conviction by the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Surat… Rahul Gandhi, Member of Lok Sabha representing the Wayanad Parliamentary Constituency in Kerala stands disqualified from the membership of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction… in terms of the provisions of Article 102(!)(e) of the Constitution read with Section of the Representation of the People Act, 1951,” the notification read.
Gandhi barred from contesting LS polls for 8 years?
As per law and legal experts, Gandhi’s disqualification came into ‘immediate and automatic’ effect upon his conviction and sentencing despite the grant of bail.
Former Congress leader and Union law minister Kapil Sibal told NDTV that Rahul stands automatically disqualified as an MP with his two-year jail sentence. He said, “If it (the court) only suspends the sentence that’s not enough. There has to be a suspension or stay of conviction. He (Rahul Gandhi) can stay on as a member of parliament only if there is a stay on the conviction.”
Sibal added, “For a statement made in respect of certain individuals, for him to be convicted for two years — it is totally bizarre.”
What does the law say?
The Representation of the People Act, 1951, (RPA) directs immediate disqualification of any lawmaker who is ‘convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years.’ The law also states that if one is convicted in any offence for two years then the seat will be vacant immediately.
Lawyer and senior BJP MP Mahesh Jethmalani told NDTV, “By the operation of the law, he (Gandhi) stands disqualified, but the decision has to be communicated to the Speaker. But as of today, he stands disqualified.”
How can Gandhi avoid disqualification?
Gandhi will have to secure an order from a higher court suspending the conviction. The RPA states, “A person convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years [other than any offence referred to in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2)] shall be disqualified from the date of such conviction and shall continue to be disqualified for a further period of six years since his release.”
It means, that apart from his jail term, Gandhi will not be able to contest polls for subsequent six more years.
Why the disqualification?
Surat Court, on Thursday, awarded two-year jail term to Gandhi in a defamation case for his ‘all thieves have Modi surname’ remark. The case was filed against Gandhi for his alleged ‘how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?’ remarks on a complaint lodged by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi.
The Court also imposed a fine of ₹15,000 after finding him guilty under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (dealing with defamation). However, he secured a bail in the same case.
Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Verma heard the final arguments regarding Gandhi’s 2019 remark, “Why all the thieves, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi have Modi in their names.” Gandhi’s counsel Kirit Panwala said, “We will today send a message to Rahul Gandhi to remain present on March 23 in Surat district court. Most probably, he would be present in the court. We will get confirmation on Saturday.”
Gandhi made the alleged remarks while addressing a rally at Kolar in Karnataka ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Also read: Rahul Gandhi sentenced to 2 years in jail in Modi surname defamation case
Nagpur Youth Congress activists stage protest against Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as MP
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