The Most Bribed city in India

Bangalore is the most bribed city in India!!

According to statistics released by iPaidabribe.com, Bangalore comes out on top as the most bribed city in India. This is quite a surprising statistic, as one may have thought it would be either of the two metros, Delhi or Mumbai, who would witness maximum amount of corruption!

iPaidabribe.com, is an initiative by Janagraha, encourages Indians to disclose the bribes they pay to anyone. One of the reasons why the finding may be skewed is because it is prepared based on the what people from various cities have disclosed on the website. Bangalore being an IT hub, maximum number of people have made entries from that city and hence the number 1 position. Bangaloreans are at the forefront when it comes to paying bribe to evade a challan for illegal parking; On an average, Bangaloreans pay Rs 378 as bribe to evade an illegal parking ticket. Delhi came second with Rs 350.

Although, the city statistic may be skewed, the report has some interesting finding about the Government departments that lead in taking bribes – Police is by far the most bribed department. Over Rs. 3 Crore of bribes were accepted by Police officials in 5705 instances. Police department was followed by registrations, Municipal Corporations & Vehicle as the next 3 departments who accepted maximum bribes.

You can check out the entire interactive report by ipadabribe.com . Also, if you have paid a bribe, do not hesitate to send a sms or go to their website to disclose the same.

Here is a question to readers, which city do you think is the most bribed city in India – My vote would go to Chennai, what about you?

Media & Entertainment

Introduction

The Indian M&E sector is making significant space for itself on global canvas owing to which many international production houses and business conglomerates are venturing into the country. For instance, Disney’s big stake buy in UTV Software Communications majorly drove the foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2011-12 in the sector, which stood at Rs 32.64 billion (US$ 588.95 million) 72 per cent higher than Rs 18.87 billion (US$ 340.86 million) received in 2010-11.

Television

Healthy advertisement spends coupled with increased penetration in rural and semi-urban areas are propelling the growth of the television sector in India. Emergence of direct-to-home (DTH) technology in a big way has made the television industry mark a value of US$ 7.1 billion by the end of 2011, which was 14 per cent higher than that in 2010.

A report prepared by KPMG, along with an industry body, has stated that while the current level of penetration is estimated at around 60 per cent, there is still a room for expansion in the Indian TV landscape. The report estimates that pay-TV subscription revenue will increase from 65 per cent in 2011 to 69 per cent by 2016.

Radio

While TV is a captive medium, radio allows freedom of movement. Other than being a popular medium with the youth, radio has far-reaching impact on people in remote places.

Recently, Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU) has launched an interactive live web-radio from its campus studio in Nashik, Maharashtra. Through this technology, the university intends to connect students from anywhere in the world to experts of various subjects and enable them to listen to lectures, hold discussions and interviews.

Online and Mobile Entertainment

Internet has emerged as one of the strongest mediums to reach out to people, due to better broadband speeds, easy availability and reasonable pricing of internet-enabled devices and awareness among today’s youth. The online viewership of video content is on an upsurge – be it for news or for entertainment (social networking, shopping, et al). Due to this increased popularity, mobile phones have become the second most-viewed screen for Indian consumers. About two crore internet users in India are opting for the service over their mobile phones, according to a study by online audience and ad measurement platform Vizisense.

Social networking sites have also gained a lot of attention over past few years. They reach to about 82 per cent of the world’s online population and the numbers are increasing day by day. India’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are also looking to capitalise this medium as social media in the country is growing at 100 per cent and 129.3 million Indians are anticipated to join the forums. SMEs are looking forward to reach and develop a strong consumer base through social networking sites. An industry body has even joined hands with Facebook to organise road shows to spread awareness among SMEs about the benefits of using social media for business transformation.

Films

The Indian film fraternity will complete its century in 2013. The industry is anticipated to grow by 9 per cent per annum till 2015 to reach US$ 2.8 billion, according to Deloitte.

In an effort to make India a hub for international films, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) is contemplating to establish a Film Commission that will initially act as a single-window clearance agency to grant permits for shooting. If the initiative gets materialised, international production houses will save a lot of time and energy which are currently diverted in seeking multiple approvals.

Investments

The Indian advertising industry clocked revenues worth Rs 25,594 crore (US$ 4.62 billion) in 2011, which were 8 per cent higher than the figures achieved in 2010, according to a report by Pitch Madison India.

• The fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector has numerous brands and categories to offer to consumers. The sector players keep introducing new products and hence, seek sales-support with ads and promos. The industry segment contributes more than half to TV advertising and 9 per cent to the print media.
• In order to target multi-tasking and busy viewers, M&E industry major Zee Entertainment Enterprises has launched its over-the-top (OTT) distribution platform called Ditto TV. The new service, which facilitates live TV channels and on-demand video content to users on their mobile phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, entertainment boxes and connected TVs, was launched in Februry 2012 and also offers features such as adaptive streaming, an electronic program guide and a content recommendation application.
• Aegis Group has acquired Communicate 2 to merge it with its iProspect global network. Communicate 2 is a specialist performance marketing firm that counts search marketing, digital strategy consulting, social media and digital content production as its forte.
• Getit, pioneer of the concept of Yellow Pages in India, has appointed Aidem ventures to handle its corporate advertising sales for next 5 years. Getit has upgraded itself into a digital media firm that specialises in local search and classifieds. It is India’s leading ‘directional media’ service provider that facilitates quality prospects to businesses and brands across the categories. Aidem is an independent media consulting, marketing and advertising, sales company.

Government Initiatives

Apart from setting up a Film Commission, the Ministry of I&B is also working on an incentive package in co-operation with the Ministry of Tourism wherein they would promote film tourism.

Ms Ambika Soni, Minister for I&B, India and her counterpart, the Poland Minister for Culture and National Heritage, Mr B Zdrojewski, will sign an audio-visual co-production agreement. The two ministries would also hold discussions on how to preserve film heritage at the National Film Archives of Poland.

Road Ahead

Indian animation industry is at a very nascent stage and is expected to grow in the recent future. Indian players are majorly acting as ‘service providers’ wherein they are involved with labour-intensive production and post-production activities. However, they are increasingly adapting to international animation standards and are learning modern techniques to come at par. Industry experts, considering the potential in Indian participants, expect the country’s animation industry to grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 23 per cent to reach US$ 961 million by 2013.

Exchange Rate Used: INR 1 = US$ 0.01805 as on September 13, 2012

References: Media Reports, Press Releases, Deloitte Report

India's pharmaceutical sector - A Complete Study

India's pharmaceutical sector is gaining its position as a global leader. The pharma market in India is expected to touch US$ 74 billion in sales by 2020 from the current US$ 11 billion, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report.

Growth of Indian pharma companies will be driven by the fastest growing molecules in the diabetes, skincare and eye care segment, as per a report by research firm, Credit Suisse. The market share of a drug company is directly related to the number of fast growing molecules in the company's pipeline, the report highlighted.

The Indian pharmaceutical market is poised to grow to US$ 55 billion by 2020 from the 2009 levels of US$ 12.6 billion, as per a McKinsey & Company report titled "India Pharma 2020: Propelling access and acceptance realising true potential". The industry further holds potential to reach US$ 70 billion, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17 per cent.

Sector Structure/ Market Size

The Indian pharmaceutical market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.3 per cent during 2011-12 to 2013-14, according to a Barclays Capital Equity Research report on India Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals.

The outlook on the Indian pharmaceutical industry remains favourable, according to a report by ICRA and Moody's. Domestic formulation market stood at Rs 58,300 crore (US$ 10.54 billion) and has been ranked third in terms of volume and tenth in terms of value, globally. From 2011, trends are changing, MNCs are focusing on chronics, branded generics and launching patented products, besides expanding their field force and focusing on tier-II as well as tier-IV towns. Domestic market grew at 15 per cent, while pharma multinational companies (MNCs) revenue grew at 18.7 per cent.

Exports

India's exports of drugs, pharmaceutical and fine chemicals grew by 27 per cent to Rs 60,000 crore (US$ 10.85 billion) for the year ended March 2012, according to data compiled by Pharmaceutical Exports Council of India (Pharmexcil). Moreover, the size of the Indian formulations market, which currently stands at around Rs 62,000 crore (US$ 11.21 billion), is growing at 15-20 per cent annually.

"India-Brazil health and pharmaceutical collaboration holds the potential of being key contributor for assuring affordable healthcare for our people," as per Mr Anand Sharma, Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles. Mr Sharma further called for better understanding between the pharmaceutical regulatory regimes in the two countries.

The Export-Import (Exim) Bank of India has agreed to provide loans to fund the setting up of common infrastructure facilities at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, which will help boost exports of medicine products from India.

Growth

India will see the largest number of merger and acquisitions (M&As) in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector, according to consulting firm Grant Thornton. A survey conducted across 100 companies has revealed that one-fourth of the respondents were optimistic about acquisitions in the pharmaceutical sector.

The cumulative drugs and pharmaceuticals sector attracted foreign direct investments (FDI) worth US$ 9,596 million between April 2000 to May 2012, according to the latest data published by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

Generics

India tops the world in exporting generic medicines worth US$ 11 billion. Currently, the Indian pharmaceutical industry is one of the world's largest and most developed, according to Mr Srikant Kumar Jena, Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers.

Generics will continue to dominate the market while patent-protected products are likely to constitute 10 per cent of the pie till 2015, according to McKinsey report 'India Pharma 2015 - Unlocking the potential of Indian Pharmaceuticals market'. Hyderabad-based generic drug maker, Natco Pharma Ltd has launched a cheaper generic version of Bristol Myers Squibb's blood cancer drug Sprycel at a fraction of the innovator pricing. Natco launched Dasatinib at a pricing of Rs 9,000 (US$ 162.75) for a month's supply against Bristol pricing of around Rs 160,000 (US$ 2,893.31).

Multinational drug companies are showing a healthy growth in the Indian market setting a new trend. Out of 25 top medicine brands by sales last year, 13 were global drug major such as Pfizer, GSK and Novartis. Brand-building exercise is fast becoming more evident in a predominantly generic Indian medicine market, as per a market research entity AIOCD AWACS' report.

Diagnostics Outsourcing/ Clinical Trials

"The Indian healthcare devices market is part of our focus on emerging markets. The Hyderabad centre will enable us to improve product time to market and create valued-innovation," highlighted Robert Frechette, Vice-President (Engineering Services), Covidien. The value of the Indian medical devices market is estimated at US$ 4 billion, and is clocking a growth rate of 15 per cent annually, he added.

The Indian pharmaceutical companies can be of immense value in providing affordable healthcare, especially in countries such as Japan. India also has a vast pool of trained pharmaceutical scientists, doctors and researchers, which opens up avenues for joint collaborative research for new drug discoveries along with joint intellectual property rights (IPRs).

The clinical pharmacology unit of GVK Biosciences at Ahmedabad has cleared an audit conducted by US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The facility carries out important scientific studies related to drug development for pharma customers (drug companies, research institutes, etc).

Investments

• Suven Life Sciences Ltd has got four product patents one each from Australia, Canada, Korea and New Zealand for their new drug molecules (New Chemical Entities). The new drug molecules are used for disorder treatment related to Neuro-degenerative diseases
• Aurobindo Pharma has received USFDA approval to manufacture and market montelukast sodium tablets and montelukast sodium chewable tablets for treatment of asthma in the US market
• US-based drug development player, CritiTech Inc has joined hands with Hyderabad-based formulation development services company, Finoso Pharma Pvt Ltd to set up a 50:50 joint venture (JV) - Finotech Pharma. The JV company is being set up with an initial investment of US$ 1 million
• Venus Remedies has secured its third US patent for its novel antibiotic product Potentox. The new drug is an antibiotic adjuvant entity and is considered effective in case of hospital acquired pneumonia and febrile neutropenia infections
• Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Procter & Gamble (P&G) plan to enter India through a joint venture (JV) by setting up their first manufacturing facility at Sanand, Gujarat, with an initial investment of Rs 250 crore (US$ 45.21 million)
• Onco Therapies, a wholly owned subsidiary of Strides Arcolab, has received two USFDA approvals for 'Fluorouracil Injection USP'. Fluorouracil is a chemotherapy drug which interferes with cells making DNA and RNA, and stops the growth of cancer cells
• Mankind Pharma Ltd is set for a major turnaround over the next two to three years. "We are planning to launch 15-16 products in the chronic therapy segment this financial year", as per R C Juneja, CEO and Chairman, Mankind Pharma
• Venus Remedies Ltd has launched a nanotechnology based 'ready-to-use' single vial Docetaxel in the domestic market. The medicine will be an important tool in the cancer drug industry

Government Initiatives

The Union Budget for 2012-13 was announced by Mr Pranab Mukherjee, the Union Finance Minister. Highlights of Union Budget 2012-13:

• It is proposed to extend concessional basic customs duty of 5 per cent with full exemption from excise duty/CVD to six specified life-saving drugs/ vaccines. These are used for the treatment or prevention of ailments such as HIV-AIDS, renal cancer, etc
• Probiotics are a cost-effective means of combating bacterial infections. It is proposed to reduce the basic customs duty on this item from 10 per cent to 5 per cent
• Basic customs duty and excise duty reduced on Soya products to address protein deficiency among women and children. Basic customs duty and excise duty reduced on Iodine

Furthermore, a 'Pharma Vision 2020' has been prepared by the Department of Pharmaceuticals, for making India one of the leading destinations for end-to-end drug discovery and innovation and for that purpose, the department will provide requisite support by way of world class infrastructure, internationally competitive scientific manpower for pharma research and development (R&D), venture fund for research in the public and private domain and such other measures.

Road Ahead

On the back of increasing middle-class population base, improvements in medical infrastructure and the establishment of IP rights, the Indian pharma industry is estimated to grow manifolds.

"India is a unique market, always very intriguing. India presents challenging paradigms and gives tremendous opportunities. I see the healthcare sector as one of the biggest business opportunities," as per Terri Bresenham, President and CEO, GE Healthcare India, and MD, Wipro GE Healthcare. India is the first country to have a large number of multinational healthcare providers, added Bresenham.

Pharmaceutical companies such as Cipla, Ranbaxy, Dr Reddy's Labs and Lupin might soon be part of the government's ambitious 'Jan Aushadhi' project. In an attempt to commercialise the project, the government is likely to rope in the private sector to bulk-procure generic drugs from them. There are 117 Jan Aushadhi stores across the country and the plan is to expand to at least 600 in the next two years and 3,000 by 2016.

Exchange rate used INR 1= US$ 0.01808 as on August, 2012

References: Consolidated FDI Policy, Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), Press Information Bureau (PIB), Media Reports, McKinsey Report, Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council

Indian Agriculture Industry

Introduction

Agriculture is the dominant sector of the Indian economy, which determines the growth and sustainability of the country too. India is the second-largest producer of food in the world and holds the potential of being the biggest on global food and agriculture canvas, according to a Corporate Catalyst India (CCI) survey. About 65 per cent of the population still relies on agriculture for employment and livelihood. The sector contributes approximately 16 per cent of total gross domestic product (GDP) and 10 per cent of export earnings.

During 2012-13, the agriculture sector is expected to witness a growth of 2.4 per cent, according to the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER). The Gross Capital Formation (GCF) in agriculture and allied sectors was Rs 142254 crore (US$ 25.68 billion) in 2010-11 as compared to Rs 76,096 crore (US$ 13.71 billion) in 2004-05, as per the Annual Report 2011-12 of the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation.

The green revolution transformed India from a food deficient stage to a surplus food market. In a span of three decades, India has become a net exporter of food grains. The transformations in the sector are due to factors such as new and improved technologies, easy credit facilities, interest of the organised sector, rapid growth of contract farming, and investor friendly Government policies.

Market Dynamics

Exports of agricultural products are expected to cross US$ 22 billion mark by 2014 and account for 5 per cent of the world's agriculture exports, according to the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).

Sugar output in India grew 13 per cent during October 2011-March 2012, to touch 23.2 million tonnes (MT) as compared to 20.45 MT in the same period last year, according to the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA).

Further, cotton yarn exports have increased by 15 per cent during 2011-12, due to rising demand in the foreign markets. During the last financial year, 872.68 million kg of cotton yarn were exported, as compared to 720 million kg in 2010-11, according to the data compiled by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT).

Meanwhile, oil meal exports from the country has registered 8 per cent growth in volume and touched a figure of 5.5 MT in the financial year 2011-12 as compared to 5.1 MT in 2010-11.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide a loan of US$ 67 million to Bihar for expanding agriculture value chain and to facilitate linkages for small farmers with food processors, agribusiness entrepreneurs and service providers in Mazaffarpur, Patna and Nalanda districts.

Major Developments and Investments

The total planned expenditure for the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation is increased by 18 per cent from Rs 17,123 crore (US$ 3.08 billion) in 2011-12 to Rs 20,208 crore (US$ 3.64 billion) in 2012-13. The outlay for Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) is being increased from Rs 7,860 crore (US$ 1.42 billion) in 2011-12 to Rs 9,217 crore (US$ 1.66 billion) in 2012-13. Further, the amount of Rs 10 billion (US$ 180.10 million) has been allocated for "Bringing Green Revolution to Eastern India" initiative, compared to Rs 4.0 billion (US$ 72.04 million) in 2011-12.

The sector attracted foreign direct investments (FDI) worth Rs 93.18 crore (US$ 16.78 million) in the month of May 2012 as compared to Rs 29.58 crore (US$ 5.33 million) during the corresponding month in 2011.

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has increased financial assistance in Gujarat by 50 per cent in 2011-12, to Rs 4,340 crore (US$ 781.63 million) as compared to Rs 2,894 crore (US$ 521.21 million) in the previous fiscal. The assistance is provided mainly for supporting agriculture, rural development and rural infrastructure development in Gujarat.

Government Initiatives

The Government of India has allowed 100 per cent FDI in the agriculture services under automatic route covering horticulture, floriculture, development of seeds, animal husbandry, pisciculture, aquaculture, cultivation of vegetables, mushroom and services related to agro and allied sectors.

Some of the initiatives taken by the Government of India are:

• The Government has taken various policy measures to increase availability of institutional credit to farmers. The annual agriculture target for the financial year 2012-13 is fixed at Rs 5,75,000 crore (US$ 103.56 billion) against the target of Rs 4,75,000 crore (US$ 85.55 billion) in 2011-12
• The Union Cabinet has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Research and Education for the establishing the Indian Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology at Ranchi (Jharkhand) at a cost of Rs. 287.50 crore (US$ 51.78 million) during the 12th five year plan
• The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has established 44 Agricultural Technology Information Centres (ATICs) in 28 Agricultural Universities and 16 ICAR Institutes in the country. ICAR has also created a network of 630 Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in the country to facilitate farmers' access to agricultural technology generated by the National Agricultural Research System (NARS)
• The Government has launched an initiative to spend US$ 65.1 million to promote 60,000 'pulses villages' in rain-fed areas for increasing crop productivity and strengthening market linkages
• Spice Board of India plans to promote exports of spices by establishing 25-30 spice parks in different parts of the country. This will help in achieving export of spices worth Rs 30,000 crore (US$ 5.40 billion) by 2020, as per Dr G K Vidyashankar, Deputy Director (Marketing), Spice Board

Road Ahead

The country provides various opportunities for agri input segments such as seeds and plant growth nutrients. There is a huge demand for quality branded seeds in India. Further, the demand for cold storage, warehouses, supply chains, etc. will also grow rapidly in the coming years.

In the 12th five year plan, the Government will focus on "mechanization of agriculture" to match the growing need for higher production of food grain and to tackle labour shortages in the farm sector. The Government is committed to at least double the spending on research and development (R&D) in the farm sector by the end of the 12th five year plan from the existing level of about one per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

The Government has taken many policy initiatives and missions to strengthen the farm credit delivery system for providing credit at affordable rates of interest to support the resource requirements of the agricultural sector.

Indian Education and Training Industry 2012

Brief Introduction

With a growth rate of 10 to 15 per cent expected over the next decade, the Indian education market has witnessed a series of developments and changes in the last few years, which has resulted in a significant increase in the market size of the education industry compared to previous years. With a combined market size of US$ 50 billion per annum with more than 450 million students, and investment requirement of approximately US$ 100 billion by 2014 to meet growing demands of the sector, education industry is one of the largest service sector industries in India.

Market Size

The education industry in India can be broadly classified into the Regulated segment (K12 and higher education) and the Un-regulated segment (pre-school, multimedia, ICT, coaching cases, vocational training and books). The expected market size of K-12 sector in 2012 (E) is US$ 34 billion, with a rise of 14 per cent as compared to US$ 20 billion in 2008. The corresponding figures for the higher education sector are US$ 10.3 billion in 2012 (E) with a rise of 12 per cent as compared to US$ 6.5 billion in 2008. The coaching institutes in India will witness a 17 per cent increase from US$ 0.3 billion in 2008 to US$ 0.6 billion in 2012 (E). Similarly, the Pre-schools market in the country will witness a rise of 36 per cent from US$ 0.3 billion to US$ 1 billion and the vocational training from US$ 1.6 billion to US$ 4 billion in 2012 (E).

"The Indian pre-school market is set to become the largest in the world. In India, the pre-school segment is currently worth US$ 750 million and is expected to reach US$ 1 billion by 2012," as told by Arun Arora, Chairman,Serra International Pre-Schools.

Private Equity (PE) Investments

The Private equity and venture capital investors have pumped US$ 93 million into 10 education companies by July 2011, and are bullish about the sector's prospects going forward according to Venture Intelligence. PE investment in the education sector increased from US$ 129 million in 2009 to US$ 183 million in 2010. The other large deals in the country include PremjiInvest's US$ 43 million investment in Manipal Education and India Equity Partners' US$ 37 million investment in IL&FS Education and Technology Services.

Government Initiatives/Policies : Union Budget 2012 - 2013 Highlights

Education

• For the year 2012-13, Rs 25,555 crore (US$ 4.98 billion) have been allotted for RTE-SSA (Right to Education - Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan) which represents an increase of 21.7 per cent over the previous year allotment in 2011-12
• 6,000 schools have been proposed to be set up at block level as model schools in the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-17)
• Rs 3,124 crore (US$ 0.61 billion) have been provided for the RMSA (Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan) which is an increase of 29 per cent over BE 2011-12
• In order to ensure a better flow of credit to students, a Credit Guarantee Fund has been proposed

Skill Development

• National Skill Development Corporation has approved projects that are expected to train 6.2 crore people at the end of 10 years
• The National Skill Development Fund has been allocated Rs 1,000 crore (US$ 0.19 billion) for the period 2012-13
• To improve the flow of institutional credit for skill development, a separate Credit Guarantee Fund will be set up
• "Himayat" scheme introduced in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) to provide skill training to 100,000 youth during the next 5 years and the entire cost will be borne by the Government of India

Major Investments and Key Developments

• Chicago-based Encyclopedia Britannica intends to launch online learning and knowledge products in India. The Indian market, in which Encyclopedia Britannica has been present for 12 years, accounted for about five per cent of the company's global print sales. Britannica has sold around 1,100 of each edition in the country over the past 30 months.
• The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIM-K) has signed an agreement of co-operation with Leeds University Business School, UK to promote the internationalisation of efforts by the institute. The project intends to enable both the institutions to carry out activities such as exchange of students, exchange of faculty members and collaborative research on contemporary management issues.
• India developed Intel Future Scientist programme that aims to sustain the innovative streak in students, has been launched by the global chip maker, Intel Inc. The programme will provide support to teachers in transforming the method of teaching science and math subjects. The focus of the initiative is to help science teachers present their curricula from an inquiry-based perspective to help foster a spirit of research and innovation among their students.
• India's growing Rs 350 crore (US$ 68.33 million) executive education space continues to attract B-schools. US-headquartered Harvard Business School (HBS) will offer executive programmes at the TajLands End, at Bandra, in suburban Mumbai. The Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania, will also set up its own centre in India. University of Chicago, Tuck School of Business, INSEAD, Oxford University's Said Business School and Duke University are among others, to offer their executive education programmes in India.
• Technology-based education solutions provider Core Technologies will set up 150 skill development centres across the country. With an investment of Rs 450 crore (US$ 87.86 million), these training centres will offer vocational training across disciplines such as automobile, construction, hospitality, retail, IT and IT-enabled services.
• IIHT Ltd, a technology-training organisation, along with Microsoft, has announced the launch of a certified cloud expert programme at Kochi Infopark. The programme would help information technology (IT) professionals acquire the necessary skills to develop into cloud professionals.

Road Ahead

With the focus on the Indian education sector, an increase in allocation for Right to Education - Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan reiterates the Government's commitment towards education. The increase in budgetary allocations for school education and adult literacy is also a welcome step for the future of the Indian education sector.

Exchange Rate Used: INR 1 = US$ 0.0195246 as on March 23, 2012

References: Press Releases, Media Reports, KPMG Report

Renting benefits for toy lovers

Parents spend huge amount of money on toys but kids soon get bored with them and desire for new ones. Thus this investment becomes a waste. As a result the concept of renting toys is emerging fast. Read on to explore the opportunity. 

 

Toys are an indispensible part of almost everyone’s childhood. However with toys becoming more and more expensive it is becoming difficult for parents to buy new toys and games for their little ones. Moreover kids get bored of toys very quickly and after few days toys become a waste and occupy lot of space. To avoid this and make toys more affordable the unique but functional concept of toy rentals has become popular in India. The concept is already quite popular in countries like New Zealand, Australia, and America where even the government funds such concepts. However in India toy libraries was an unheard concept till recently. With more of awareness, a toy library is an upcoming opportunity with many entrepreneurs already cashing in on this new concept. Read on to be more aware. 

Need for toy renting

Toys are still considered to be a luxury in India. Although parents spend huge amount of money on toys yet it is not a healthy investment.   Moreover kids get bored with the toys very soon making it a storing item. This brought the idea for buying toys on rent. The concept of rental toys work wonders for kids as well as parents. Let us have a look at the advantages of this venture:

• New toys without much expense: Kids usually get bored with toys, which are quite expensive. They store these in their playroom as useless items. However getting toys on rent saves money for parents as well as gives variety to the kid.
• Toys as learning experience: There is a continuous range of new toys available in the market. These not only provide entertainment but also knowledge to kids as well as their parents. Instead of buying them, toys can be taken on rent.
• Saves space: Presently everyone mostly have small compact houses without much storing space. Buying toys and storing them takes a lot of space. Therefore toys on rent save money as well as space.
• Play, learn and pass it on: The best thing about toys on rent is that they can be passed on to the next child when the previous owner gets tired playing with it. This way they do not get wasted.

Rental toy franchising:

Concept of renting toys is quite recent in the large bandwagon of franchising. However it is becoming more organised due to the various brands in the sector which have taken the franchise route for rapid and successful expansion. As informed by Toys-on-rent that Franchising is essential for giving the next big step to their business. Moreover seeing the success of this concept in other nations, they can be assured that it has a bright future in India also.

New and emerging players:

As mentioned the toy rental concept is quite recent, therefore there are few players who are benefitting from this concept till now. Few of them are:

• Toys-on-rent: The brand has recently opted for the franchise route. It needs a total investment of Rs 2,30,000 which would include the sign up fees and franchise set-up cost as well. Toys-on-rent is presently planning to open franchise outlets in Hyderabad, and Mumbai etc. 

• Planet Toyz: It is a fun library from where kids can get books, toys, games, CD’s etc on rent. The first outlet was opened in north Delhi. It needs an investment ranging from Rs 1.5 to 1.75 lakh with an area approximately 200 sq. ft. 

• Rent Me Toy: The toy library, headquarters at Mohali has recently opened. The brand has taken the franchise route for rapid expansion pan India. It needs an investment of Rs. two to five lakh.  

Play way for franchisees:

A toy rental franchise can be benefiting for aspiring entrepreneurs. There are not many requirements for taking toy rental franchise. Any aspirant with total commitment to quality and service can opt for this. Moreover toy rental concept is well suited for women who are home makers. They understand kids and love dealing with them. Few of its other benefits are mentioned below:

• Low cost but attractive returns: Taking a toy rental franchise is not very expensive. It is a low cost business opportunity which can fetch lucrative returns to franchisees.

• Easy to manage: Toy rental business is easy to run. As informed by Kapure: “The business can be managed at home with just a 6'X3'X3' storage space.”

• Staggered investments: The franchisees can keep expanding the business with no additional fees within their territory. Moreover adding more and more toys can give this business an easy leap.

Few hurdles on the way

Along with numerous benefits, this concept faces a few challenges as well. The understanding of rental toys among parents and kids is the greatest challenge. Moreover entrepreneurs have to keep updating newer toys, games and books in the outlet. This forms the major issue as one needs to add on toys keeping children’s expectation in mind.

It can be concluded that a toy rental franchise is low cost with high benefits and easy to manage as well. Therefore aspirants who love toys and kids can surely opt for this venture for a happy and fulfilling business growth.