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The Tulsi lake, one of the seven reservoirs supplying drinking water to Mumbai, overflowed on Thursday following heavy rains in the city and suburbs, a civic official said. Earlier this month, the Powai lake, another reservoir located in the heart of Mumbai, started overflowing, but its water is not used for drinking purpose. The Tulsi lake, located in the densely forested Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), started overflowing at 1.25 am on Thursday, the official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (<keyword id="48434" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bmc" source="Orion">BMC</keyword>) said. This is expected to bring relief to citizens facing 10% water cut since the beginning of this month. Tulsi is the smallest of the seven reservoirs that supply potable water to Mumbai and has a storage capacity of 8,046 million litres. The city gets 18 million litres of water from the lake every day. "The catchment area of the lake has been receiving rainfall in the last few days, as a result of which the lake overflowed today," the civic official said, adding the water body has overflowed a little earlier this year compared to 2022. When the <keyword id="18079916" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tulsi-lake-overflows" source="Orion">Tulsi lake overflows</keyword>, its water goes into the Vihar lake, which is also located in the SGNP. Apart from Tulsi and Vihar, the city receives water from Bhatsa, Tansa, Lower and Middle Vaitarna reservoirs all located in Thane district, and Upper Vaitarna dam located in Nashik district.

Mumbai rains: Tulsi lake, which supplies drinking water to the metropolis, overflows

A 6-feet female <keyword id="6392350" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Crocodile">crocodile</keyword> spotted near the entry gate of Ganesh immersion ghat adjoining the IIT-Mumbai boundary wall left Mumbaikars shocked last week. 
 An activist who spotted the crocodile later informed media that the dangerous animal could have used a makeshift road made by <keyword id="1234437" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="BMC-workers">BMC workers</keyword> who has been engaged in clean-up and beautification work at the <keyword id="536956" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Powai-Lake">Powai Lake</keyword>. 
 
 
The road was created due to silt being collected on the banks by the workers who ignored the possibility that crocodiles could use it to stray out of the lake. Also a stretch of land was formed because of debris being dumped here that was not cleaned by BMC over the years. There are 40 crocodiles in Powai lake. 
 
The incident has raised security concerns and infuriated activists who are blaming BMC for destroying the crocodile habitat and ignoring safety of the citizens. 
 Meanwhile, civic body officials have identified the two areas from where the crocodiles can venture out, and have dug up two trenches near <keyword id="61708" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="IIT-Bombay">IIT Bombay</keyword> campus. 
 Activists are now warning Mumbaikars to stay away from the lake, more so because <keyword id="6439882" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="monsoons">monsoons</keyword> will lead to water level rise and crocodiles may stray out again. 
 
Meanwhile, warning boards have also been put up suggesting that the lake has crocodiles and people should not venture close to the water body.

A 6-ft Crocodile found
dangerously close to IIT Mumbai campus wall leaves Mumbaikars shocked

Hyper-local logistics startup <keyword id="3004068" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Shadowfax">Shadowfax</keyword> has received an investment of about $300,000 in an angel round led by Indian entrepreneurs such as <keyword id="219793" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Kunal-Bahl">Kunal Bahl</keyword> and <keyword id="396598" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Rohit-Bansal">Rohit Bansal</keyword> of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Snapdeal">Snapdeal</a>, Zishaan Hayath of <keyword id="2385607" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Powai-Lake-Ventures">Powai Lake Ventures</keyword>, and <keyword id="289857" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Prashant-Malik">Prashant Malik</keyword> of Limeroad. 
 
 “We believe that improving the existing state of last mile delivery and hyperlocal logistics would enable all future business growth. At Shadowfax, we are looking to build India’s most formidable, credible and fastest merchant delivery service,” Abhishek Bansal, co-founder and CEO of Shadowfax, said in a statement on Monday. 
 
The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Gurgaon">Gurgaon</a>-based company has invested in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=technology+">technology</a> that uses multiple modes of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=communication+">communication</a> to provide relevant solutions. It employs integrated GPS tracking functions and algorithms in its product to improve the efficiency of the network. 
 “We have incorporated several features that leverage our proprietary end-to-end capacity planning algorithm to put the merchant directly in touch with the rider, geo-location for tracking orders, rider route planning, and order coupling,” said <keyword id="1308709" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vaibhav-Khandelwal">Vaibhav Khandelwal</keyword>, CTO and co-founder, Shadowfax. 
 
Since its launch in May 2015, Shadowfax had an average delivery volume processing of about 3,000 orders a day and 120-150 outlets that are currently utilizing its service for last mile delivery in the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Delhi-NCR+region">Delhi-NCR region</a>. The growth of the company has been driven through referrals. 
 
“We have already created a niche for our services in Delhi-NCR and are looking to strengthen our present team of 35+ employees and 350+ riders and expand into 10 more cities within the next one year,” said Abhishek. 
 
He added: “We have opted for a partial crowd-sourced model, where anyone who wishes to be a rider can join our rider pool. However, every rider is imparted vocational skill based training before deployment.” 
 
Shadowfax charges its customers on a pay-per-delivery model based on distance and required service quality. It provides merchants a flexible, technology-driven framework incorporating features such as automatic rider scheduling, seamless app communication, instant feedback, geo-based tracking, and location-based rider allocation. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

Shadowfax gets funding from Snapdeal founders! Raises about $300,000

Indians are experiencing entrepreneurial revolution in the country. With funds and support coming from all corners of the globe, and Tatas and Ambanis showing interest in startups, one can easily say that Indian entrepreneurs are having a gala time. 
 So when we met Prateek Agarwal, founder, BiteClub.in, who left his high-profile job with <keyword id="1960231" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Housing-com">Housing.com</keyword> to pursue his dream of opening up an exclusive ‘restaurant in the cloud’, we weren’t surprised. What amazed us was the concept—we all have imagined owning a home in the cloud at some point of our life, but the thought of owning a kitchen (or in this case a restaurant) never crossed our minds. However, what inspired Prateek to open a ‘restaurant in the cloud’ i.e. a virtual restaurant was his passion for good and healthy food; something that he missed the most while living alone in Mumbai. And when Prateek, along with his friends, Aushim Krishan and Siddharth Sharma pulled in passionate chefs from various fields on a revenue sharing agreement, <keyword id="2898226" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bite-Club">Bite Club</keyword> was born. 
 
Bite Club: It’s different? Carrying certain traits of both a restaurant and a Tiffin service, Bite Club is not conventionally just another food service platform. Instead, it is a technology and logistics platform that sources its food from various home chefs and professional chefs, and then delivers it directly to the consumers. The good things about this platform are: a wide variety of cuisines, daily changing menu and a native app across all platforms- Android, <keyword id="75489" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="IOS">iOS</keyword> and Web that helps customer order a guilt-free hearty meal in just three taps. The bad thing is: we didn’t really get the chance to taste its offerings so can’t really say how good the food is, but their idea is certainly delicious! 
 
Tasting the power of crowdsourcing Prateek’s first success came with a seed funding of $250,000 (Rs 1.5 crore) from <keyword id="2385607" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Powai-Lake-Ventures">Powai Lake Ventures</keyword> and a few other investors. They could have set up a physical restaurant, but this IIT alumnus decided to leverage the power of crowdsourcing because: one, he wanted good food to reach all and not only selected few; two, he wanted people to know a bit about the chef who would be preparing a meal or them; and three, it also open room for more innovations and variety. 
 
So, how Bite Club really does all this: It has built a community of 100+ chefs spanning home chefs, recipe bloggers, ex- restaurateurs, professional chefs who are all taking their cuisine to a large number of people via Bite Club’s platform. Marketing, order management, packaging and delivery for the chef are Bite Club’s responsibility. 
 
Good food no longer a luxury 
A majority of times, people in metro cities end up spending exorbitant amounts for the food they consume, which is mostly unhealthy with no guarantee of freshness or novelty. Bite Club aims to address this problem by giving them a choice to the get delectable and appetizing food made with fresh produce. And for those, who miss home-cooked meal prepared by their moms as they struggle for a living in an unknown city, there are 80+ women partner chefs on the Bite Club platform. Most of these women are housewives who the company claims make more than Rs 80,000/month through them. We don’t know how valid their claim is, but even if women are earning half of this amount per month, then surely Prateek is also giving wings to other entrepreneurs in the country. And this, we believe, is not a bad beginning at all! 
(Image: Bite Club)

​An ex-Housing.com employee is now serving a gastronomical treat to India

<ul><li>Technology solutions like in-work systems enable <keyword id="18966" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="hotel" source="Orion">hotel</keyword> guests to use more self-service alternatives, significantly reducing staff responsibilities while enhancing customer satisfaction.</li><li>Leveraging tech tools has helped hotels direct employees towards urgent and high-priority activities that require personalised engagement and support.</li><li>Few hoteliers will forget 2020 in a hurry. With hotels forced shut, almost 40% employees lost their jobs while an equivalent number suffered salary cuts and furloughs, according to consulting firm HVS Anarock.</li></ul>Faced with a manpower glut, stringent social distancing norms, evolved guest expectations and massive drop in occupancy, hotel companies turned to technology to overcome these challenges. Samir MC, managing director of Fortune Park Hotels, a member of ITC Hotels Group, recalled how solutions like in-work systems, which enabled guests to use more self-service alternatives, significantly reduced staff responsibilities and enhanced customer satisfaction. "Mobile check-in and self-ordering technology in restaurants make it simpler to check into hotels without requiring one-on-one interaction from hotel staff. Moreover, frequent or foreseeable activities can be handled automatically, through the use of technology," he added. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Flagging off the digital journey" comment="subhead" text="Flagging off the digital journey">Flagging off the digital journey</cmsannotation> Besides digitalizing most of its communication and offerings to drive business, ITC Hotels undertook steps like QR code-enabled communication in rooms, digital menus and contactless payment options as it adapted to the new normal. In fact, QR codes for all collaterals, digital menus in restaurants, digital invoices, WhatsApp bot for guest interaction, and even a press reader for newspapers became par for the course. Hotel Manager <keyword id="127335" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="prashant-chadha" source="Orion">Prashant Chadha</keyword> recalled how The Westin Mumbai Powai Lake’s operations continue to remain tech-driven from the perspective of guest navigation, housekeeping and F&amp;B services. "Our keyless check-ins and QR codes at restaurants ensured the need for lesser staffing. However, going completely remote and tech-driven is not the objective; rather the focus is being tech-savvy in our operations while considerate of our guests’ needs," he added. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Customers sound the tech call" comment="subhead" text="Customers sound the tech call">Customers sound the tech call</cmsannotation> Stressing on creating a ‘digital advantage’ during the company's 2021 earnings call, IHG Hotels &amp; Resorts' CEO Keith Barr said, "This is vital to enabling a seamless technology experience across the guest journey, from driving direct bookings and creating integrated digital experiences for our guests to delivering revenue-enhancing solutions for our owners." In 2021, the company partnered with Josh.ai to pilot a voice-controlled smart room at California’s Kimpton Rowan hotel. Since occupancies were in single digits in early 2021, hotel companies concentrated on the events business, which had switched to the hybrid model. IHG partnered with <keyword id="15041118" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="weframe" source="Orion">WeFrame</keyword> for its ‘Meet with Confidence’ global programme, while Hyatt collaborated with Swapcard platform to debut ‘Together By Hyatt’ in April 2021. Raoof Dhanani, managing director at Sayaji Hotels, explains that most hotels also started using Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven chatbots with inbuilt booking engines to increase direct bookings and capture guest data at the same time. "It also sends automated emails, location, availability, quote and property images and videos to the guests as per their requirement," he noted. Having tasted the fruits of technology, <keyword id="183920" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="marriott-international" source="Orion">Marriott International</keyword> went a step further and launched the Marriott Design Lab at its Bethesda headquarters this January. Rather than work in isolation to accelerate the development and deployment of new technologies, it collaborated with companies like Carrier and LG to optimise HVAC efficiency in modular hotel designs, adding more vendors to this list. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Out with the old" comment="subhead" text="Out with the old">Out with the old</cmsannotation> After a long journey, contemporary hotel guests often want to grab a shower and a meal rather than engage with hotel staff. A Skift study titled 'Hospitality in 2025: Automated, Intelligent and More Personal' found that 73% travellers want to use their mobile device to manage their hotel experience, including checking in and out, paying, ordering food, and more. Aware that fulfilling these needs, or at least meeting it halfway, is key to winning guest attention and thereby their loyalty, hoteliers are increasingly mindful of their tech investments. A first mover, Marriott, for instance, rolled out IoT services as early as 2018, signing up to Amazon's Alexa for Hospitality room assistant technology to allow voice control functionality to be installed in guestrooms. Integrating IoT technology gives guests the power to customise their room settings, including lighting, temperature and curtains. Moreover, since employees can remotely monitor the performance of in-room devices, it means lesser staff on the floor. Additionally, hotels can conserve energy costs by turning off heating or air conditioning when the room is unoccupied. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="An eye on the cost" comment="subhead" text="An eye on the cost">An eye on the cost</cmsannotation> By leveraging technology, hotels can direct a lean workforce towards urgent and priority tasks that require personalised engagement and support, thus easing their workload. Moreover, it can simplify their HR procedures, reduce expenses and also boost revenue generation by cross-selling services. Imagine visiting the hotel's spa and getting a discount on a healthy breakfast the next day! Chadha believes that the more efficient the processes, the less time is wasted, which reduces costs and increases productivity and revenue. "As compared to 2019, our operating costs have gone down, with a significant rise in efficiency. This has happened by streamlining tasks and improving our overall quality and reliability," he states. However, these tech deployments come with a caveat – don’t lose the human touch. <keyword id="1417520" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="rohit-pandey" source="Orion">Rohit Pandey</keyword>, Hotel Manager of Leela Bhartiya City Bengaluru notes that while technology and automation help bring better efficiency, the service industry cannot operate without the human touch or interaction and personalisation. "Whilst designing the standard operating procedures for the hotel and planning on technology; we smartly adapt systems to smoothen guest journeys. All human touch points remain intact or are enhanced with technology’s adaptation," he emphasised. The hospitality industry traditionally underinvested in technology, spending less than 5% of their net room revenue. However, digitalisation is now on every hotelier's mind. Using it mindfully will help them create a frictionless guest experience and bring down operating costs while navigating the labour shortage, making it a win-win situation for all. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/tata-investment-corporation-stock-almost-doubled-investors-money-in-just-six-months/articleshow/94336887.cms">This Tata group stock doubled investors money in just six months</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/snack-maker-annapurna-swadishts-sme-ipo-is-subscribed-by-190-times/articleshow/94332255.cms">Snack maker Annapurna Swadisht’s SME IPO is subscribed by 190 times</a>

Saving costs, managing manpower, enhancing guest experience: The various ways technology is helping the hospitality industry

Mumbai, July 5 (IANS) Heavy rains continued to batter coastal Konkan Maharashtra, including Mumbai, for the third consecutive day on Sunday, and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued high alerts for the next two-five days, officials said. As incessant rains pounded the city, Mumbai's Powai Lake started overflowing on Sunday noon. The famed picnic spot of Bhushi Dam in Lonavala (Pune district) also started overflowing after three days of rain in the region, bringing cheers to the locals. Over the weekend, the entire Konkan belt and parts of western and northern Maharashtra received good rain, and upbeat farmers got busy with the sowing season. The South-west Monsoon, which usually hits Mumbai around June 10, was disturbed owing to the Cyclone Nisarga that hit Raigad on June 3. After over a three-week delay, Mumbai finally got the first monsoon showers and the past three days seemed to make up for the season's early deficit. On Sunday, Mumbai received 8-10 cm rain. Based on satellite and radar images, fresh heavy rainfall warnings had been issued for the Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts, said IMD Deputy Director-General K.S. Hosalikar. Heavy overnight rain also saw water-logging in several parts of Mumbai, including Chembur, Kings Circle, Sion, Dadar, Parel, Goregaon and Malad. The IMD has forecast heavy to very heavy rain over the next three days (till July 7) in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar and Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg (till July 9), and similar conditions over the next two days in Pune, Nashik, Dhule, Nandurbar, Jalgaon, Satara and Kolhapur. Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the Arabian Sea due to strong winds along the coast and in the high seas, and 3-4.1 metres high waves off the Maharashtra and Goa coasts over the next five days (till July 9). --IANS qn/pcj

Rain clobbers Maharashtra, high alert in Konkan

<ul><li>After a complete halt during the COVID-19 pandemic, hotels in India are beginning to clock sales and are back on the path to recovery.</li><li>Most of the listed hotels have already shown a gradual quarter-on-quarter growth with their latest results for the October-December quarter of the current financial year.</li><li>The <keyword id="2173225" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="travel-and-tourism">travel and tourism</keyword> industry seems to be an elated industry with the news of the COVID-19 vaccine being rolled out across the globe.</li></ul>The stocks of India’s hotel companies have rebounded in the past few months, as several indicators signal a recovery for travel and tourism. After a complete halt during the COVID-19 pandemic, hotels in India are beginning to clock sales and are back on the path to recovery. Here’s how India’s top hotel stocks have fared in the last six months <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change in share price in last six months </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">IHCL </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+36.77% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Lemon Tree Hotels </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+50% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Chalet Hotels </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+27.6% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">EIH Hotels </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+28.5% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Mahindra Holidays and Resorts </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+40% </td></tr></tbody></table> While most of the stocks are yet to recover to their pre-COVID levels, the recovery in the last few months have been fuelled by various reasons and especially, with the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Vaccine – shot of hope for travel and tourism" comment="subhead" text="Vaccine – shot of hope for travel and tourism">Vaccine – shot of hope for travel and tourism</cmsannotation> The COVID-19 vaccine rollout has started across the globe triggering hopes for people to go on leisure as well as business travel. “While we anticipate a gradual revival in corporate travel, leisure demand is already strong and this traction is expected to further increase in months ahead,” said a report by ICICI Direct dated February 12. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Resilience of hotels" comment="subhead" text="Resilience of hotels">Resilience of hotels</cmsannotation> Most of the listed hotels have already shown a gradual quarter-on-quarter growth with their latest results for the October-December quarter of the current financial year. Analysts say this is reflecting in their share price movement. “One is the business recovery, from a complete standstill gradually the businesses have started recovering. Secondly, they have done a good job of cost rationalisation during the pandemic,” Himanshu Shah of Dolat Capital told Business Insider. <div type="image" title="hotels." msid="81032343" hostid="261"></div> Even unlisted companies like OYO Hotels and Homes have seen a recovery in business thanks to “revenge travel”. The term gained popularity in China, after people having been stuck in a lockdown, started travelling within the country, just to get out of their homes. OYO said that during the Valentine’s Day weekend, its online traffic was up by 70% of pre-COVID levels. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Premium hotels will be the first to cater to demand" comment="subhead" text="Premium hotels will be the first to cater to demand">Premium hotels will be the first to cater to demand</cmsannotation> The coronavirus pandemic has changed a lot of things, and the most important of them all is our priority towards safety and hygiene. And that’s where premium hotels will have an edge over others as people travel more often. “Most of the listed stocks are premium hotels. Business and leisure travellers will now prefer branded names as they will still be cautious,” Kranthi Bathini, equity strategist at WealthMills Securities told Business Insider. Despite all the disruptions during the pandemic, travel and tourism is set to make a big comeback as Bathini puts it “man is made for mobilisation”. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Back on track for business" comment="subhead" text="Back on track for business">Back on track for business</cmsannotation> Hotel companies have also announced that they are now back on track with their plans for new hotels across the country. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">New projects already under development or signed </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">To be completed by </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Chalet Hotels </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Commercial projects at Renaissance Complex, Powai, Mumbai Marriott Complex, Whitefield, Bengaluru </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Q4FY23 &amp; Q4FY22 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Lemon Tree </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Lemon Tree Mountain Resort, Shimla Lemon Tree Vembanad Lake Resort, Alleppey, Kerala Aurika, Intl. Airport, Mumbai </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Mumbai project to be completed by 2022. </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">IHCL </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Signed six new hotels with over 1100 rooms in third quarter </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;"> </td></tr></tbody></table> And that may translate into more business for hotels. “Despite investment activity being paused since March 2020, there are emerging signs of re-valuations and a slow demand revival, improvised cost structures and reduced profit levels in the next two years,” said a report by real estate services company JLL. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/info-edge-is-now-worth-almost-10-billion-even-with-its-profits-falling-for-five-quarters-in-a-row/articleshow/80925389.cms">Info Edge is now worth almost $10 billion even with its profits falling for five quarters in a row</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/from-ambani-adani-to-godrej-indias-treasure-trove-of-satellite-data-goes-beyond-helping-startups/articleshow/80989166.cms">From Ambani, Adani to Godrej — India's treasure trove of satellite data goes beyond helping startups</a>

Indian hotel companies have shown resilience during the pandemic and now the markets are celebrating them

Online fashion rental platform Flyrobe has raised around $1.7million in seed funding led by <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Sequoia+Capital&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Sequoia Capital</a>. The deal was closed last year and the official announcement is expected to be made later this month. 
 
Biggies from the startup industry including <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Snapdeal&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Snapdeal</a> founders <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Rohit+Bansal+&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Rohit Bansal </a>and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Kunal+Bahl&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Kunal Bahl</a>, and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=FreeCharge&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">FreeCharge</a> founders Sandeep Tandon and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Kunal+Shah&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Kunal Shah</a> invested in this round. The filings show Zishaan Hayath, co-founder of Powai Lake Ventures, and Abhishek Jain, former associate director at Temasek Holdings Advisors India were the other investors 
. 
What’s so special? Mumbai-based Flyrobe is an on-demand apparel rental platform that offers premium designer wear and branded outfits on rent. The company has joined hands with designer labels like Outhouse, Masaba Gupta, <keyword id="667" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritu-Kumar">Ritu Kumar</keyword> and Shehla Khan. 
 
Who are these people? 
Omapal Technologies, the company that runs Flyrobe was founded in September 2015 by IIT Bombay alumni Shreya Mishra, Pranay Surana and Tushar Saxena. The founders – Sh 
reya Mishra, Pranay Surana, and Tushar Saxena have come together over the belief that ‘shared economy’ in fashion can work wonders. 
 
Before starting Flyrobe, Mishra was working as an analyst with Everstone Capital, Surana has earlier worked as a senior analyst at Deutsche Bank and Saxena was earlier chief technology officer at Triptainment Technologies. 
 
Troubled times for Sector 
The apparel rental space has been facing tough times recently. Ethnic market-place, Craftsvilla <a href="http://www.vccircle.com/news/technology/2016/04/28/ethnic-products-marketplace-craftsvilla-buys-clothing-rental-startup" target="_blank">acqui-hired</a> women clothing rental platform F2SO4 and Bangalore-based online apparel rental platform Klozee <a href="http://techcircle.vccircle.com/2016/05/13/online-apparel-rental-platform-klozee-shuts-down-co-founders-join-livspace/" target="_blank">closed</a> operations. 
 
Others startups operating in this space include Revamp My Closet, which was also recently acqui-hired by Spoyl, another online platform. 
 
Big Money to be made, apparently 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=PricewaterhouseCoopers&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">PricewaterhouseCoopers</a> estimates the global sharing economy will grow from $15 billion today to $335 billion by 2025. However, its yet to pick up big time when it comes to apparel. Transportation, accommodation, and food and beverages sectors are doing better. 
 
Flyrobe estimates the fashion rental market, including western and ethnic wear is worth $4-5 billion today. 
 
Rental economy picking up? 
In India, the idea of rented apparel has been reserved to graduation, fancy dress competitions and theme parties. 
 
However, as large scale immigration to bigger cities across the country picks up, investor interest too is growing. Back in November, furniture rental company <a href="https://www.rentomojo.com/" target="_blank">RentoMojo</a> raised $2 million in funding and Klozee raised a seed round from TracxnLabs and angels in August. 
 
<a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/photo/51891607.cms">Image Source</a>

This unique online apparel rental
portal just raised one of the largest funding rounds in recent times

According to an education survey conducted by HSBC, <a href="http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/minorityview/indian-parents-have-very-high-expectations-about-their-childrens-education-and-careers/">educating their children is the ultimate goal of 51% of Indian parents</a>. So, it is not surprising that education is the next front on the horizon of the entrepreneurial Indians leading to the emergence of many interesting edtech concepts. 
 Most of the <keyword id="2989202" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="edtech-startups">edtech startups</keyword> comprise faculty pool, <keyword id="6379645" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Online-education">online education</keyword> material and technology working in tandem. Most of them cater to various sections of the student community, ranging from schoolchildren to working professionals and budding entrepreneurs. 
 
While there is some focus on tuition for school-going children, others help in cracking entrance tests, and a few others focus on providing professional certification courses. Indian education system has come a long way from classroom education to redefining the way children are taught, and these edtech <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/topic/Startups">startups</a> are responsible for this revolution. 
 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.embibe.com/">Embibe</a></h3>
Embibe is an online portal that consists of a team of entrepreneurs, who help students to get coaching for various entrance examinations like JEE, AIIMS, AIPMT, CET and many more. Founded by an ex-TCS employee, 33-year-old Aditi Avasthi, wanted to change the way students prepared for competitive exams. 
 
At present, Embibe boasts of over one million student users. Last year, this edtech venture raised $4 million from early-stage investor such as Kalaari Capital and Lightbox. 
 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.careerguide.com/">CareerGuide</a></h3>
<h3>
	CareerGuide is an edtech platform targeted to provide answers to all the career related queries of an aspirant. They have a marketplace of renowned career experts from various fields and a student can connect instantly to get their query resolved.</h3>
How it is different than the other players? Well, Artificial Intelligence (AI) may be the answer. CareerGuide boasts of an AI-led algorithm that connects students with the best possible career guidance expert based on their query. Further, their psychometric assessments help students in figuring out their true aptitude, interest, motivation and personality to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/6-Tips-To-Landing-A-Job-At-A-Startup/articleshow/27654867.cms">take informed career decisions</a>. CareerGuide has most definitely emerged as the one of the hottest names in the edtech business as of now. 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.vedantu.com/">Vedantu</a></h3>
<h3>
	Looking for a personalised teaching while you sit at home? Vedantu, the live online tutoring edtech company, is conceptualized to bring personalization back into education where a teacher will teach according to the requirement, pace and level of a student and the student will interact with the teacher online.</h3>
The founders claimed the existing teaching system to be “institutionalized and generalized”, which quite possibly was the motivation behind this concept. 
 
According to Vamsi Krishna, cofounder and CEO, “The current system is teacher-centric and learning happens, predominantly, one-way. We want to change that.” 
 
Vedantu raised a $5 million from Accel Partners and Tiger Global Management last year in May. 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.edukart.com/">EduKart</a></h3>
<h3>
	EduKart is an online entrance coaching site that caters to the needs of almost every individual. Apart from courses for high school students appearing for various competitive examinations, the company offers undergraduate and post graduate courses for everyone who seeks help in management, engineering, medical, civil services, business, Law, and various other interesting courses.</h3>
The startup acquired $1 million funding from Holostik Group’s United Finsec, Yuvraj Singh’s YouWeCan Ventures, 500 Startups, and a bunch of other investors in June ‘15. EduKart projected 5x growth for themselves last year. 
 
<a href="http://www.upgrad.com/">UpGrad</a> 
 
If you are a working professional and want to upgrade your skill set, UpGrad is the place for you to explore. This startup offers online higher education programs for working professionals. With a highly experienced faculty forming academia advisory board, this company provides one-to-one academic and non-academic support for all its students by providing them with live projects, case studies, group assignments, access to live lectures and interactive content and many more. 
 
“With UpGrad, we aim to revolutionise the online education industry by bringing credibility and scale. The response to our first course is a strong validation that we are on our way of achieving our vision,” said UpGrad founder Ronnie Screwvala. 
 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.toppr.com/">Toppr</a></h3>
<h3>
	This super-interesting edtech firm focuses on giving training to students aspiring for IIT JEE, pre-medical and also the foundation courses (starting from class 8) for various competitive examinations. They provide the students with unlimited practice tests along with learning material and students’ doubts will be answered personally on live chat.</h3>
 
Till date, Toppr has raised $12.2 million in three funding rounds from four investors, such as Fidelity Growth Partners India, Helion Venture Partners, SAIF Partners, InnoVen Capital India and Powai Lake Ventures. 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.wiziq.com/">WizIQ</a></h3>
<h3>
	WizIQ believes in delivering high impact online teaching and training through mobile apps by making virtual classrooms possible. Their online academy builder includes live classes, integrated cloud storage, mobile learning, tests and assignments and many other interesting features.</h3>
Hailed as the 'best virtual classroom provider' at the World Education Congress, one should expect a promising 2016 from WizIQ. 
 
<h3>
	<a href="http://www.iprofindia.com/">iProf India</a></h3>
<h3>
	iProf claims to be India's biggest Tablet PC based education content delivery company and digital education library that offers “smarter way” of studying through its advanced android based application that works on offline mode (without internet connection). Their USP is their content, which can be accessed both online and offline via pen drives, memory cards, tablet PCs in a secured and scalable environment.</h3>
iProf has raised $15 million in total funding through Series A &amp; B rounds from Daily Mail Group Information, IDG Ventures India and Norwest Venture Partners – NVP. 
 
In a nutshell 
 
The Indian edtech market is pegged at over $70 billion by 2017. The space breakup is estimated with higher education sector closing on 50 per cent, K12 at 40 per cent, and coaching/tutoring taking up 10 per cent. These emerging and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Top-10-Indian-startups-that-are-going-places/articleshow/49090916.cms">successful startups</a> are surely creating an impact and are making their presence felt. Books cannot be updated real time but these start-up can push updates on an app and this can be distributed to millions with no incremental cost which makes edtech definitely one of the most exciting sectors in the Indian consumer market. The funding battleground could perhaps change the face of this sector as well. 
 
(The article has been authored by <a href="https://plus.google.com/+UtkarshSahu9?rel=author">Utkarsh Sahu</a>, a digital strategist with over three years of writing experience for business magazines, such as Business Insider, Huffington Post, Tech Radar, etc. He admires technology with paradigm-shifting attributes, and digital marketing, social media and content are his current beat. An analytics enthusiast, he likes to break down key performance drivers of a robust digital marketing campaign. You may connect with him on <a href="https://in.linkedin.com/in/utkarshsahu9">LinkedIn</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/UtkSahu">Twitter</a>.) 
 
(Image: Thinkstock)

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