Paytm se ONDC Network 2023 Recap: Earphones and Burgers were the most sold itemson the platform, with maximum orders from Bangalore across categories

Telugu super news,National, December 29th,2023:One97 Communications Limited (OCL) that owns the brand Paytm, India’s leading payments and financial services company and the pioneer of QR and mobile payments, today announced the release of a Short Recap of 2023 by Paytm se ONDC Network, highlighting trends in consumer behavior and product preferences.

According to Paytm se ONDC Network trends report, Bangalore secured the title of city with
maximum orders across categories. Under the electronics category, earphones are the most
sold item on the platform along with refurbished iPhones, showcasing significant popularity and
the trust users place in pre-owned yet high-quality devices. In the food category, Burgers
claimed the title of the most sold item of the year.
During the fervor of the World Cup, consumer choices were notable with burger and pizza
orders soaring. Interestingly, the World Cup season saw a surge in burger sales, particularly in
cities like Lucknow, Ahmedabad, and Bangalore.

Paytm se ONDC Network 2023 report also delves into the diverse culinary preferences across
different regions of India.
Delhi has emerged as a gastronomic hub, securing the title of the city with most food orders in
North India. The evenings in the northern part of the country witness a surge in orders for
traditional snacks like samosa and chhole bhature. However, the crown jewel of Delhi’s culinary
landscape remains pizza, reigning as the most ordered item.
Heading south, the region showcases a distinct fondness for biryani, surpassing its northern
counterpart in the frequency of biryani orders. Bangalore, known for its vibrant food culture,
claims the throne as the most ordering city in the south. It witnessed a blend of traditional and
contemporary tastes, with biryani and pizza emerging as the most ordered food item.
Interestingly, South India ordered breakfast the most whereas Mumbai loved ordering desserts.
Majority of the food orders were placed between 8:30 pm to 10:00 pm.
Paytm ONDC continued to enhance its culinary offerings by onboarding over 100 new
restaurants for food delivery in the last three months. This expansion provided users with a
broader spectrum of choices, contributing to the platform’s overall appeal.
Majority of the grocery orders occurred around 7 pm to 9 pm, indicating peak hours for
convenient and efficient shopping. Bangalore emerged as the city with the highest number in
the Grocery Category.

The ONDC Grocery section has become a diverse marketplace, hosting over 100 Direct-to-
Consumer (D2C) brands. This curated selection ensures users have access to a wide array of
quality products, enhancing their overall shopping experience.
In the category of Whirlpool products, Lucknow emerged as the top-selling city on the Paytm
ONDC platform, showcasing regional variations in consumer preferences.
Paytm se ONDC Network Spokesperson said, “The rich insights derived from the diverse and
dynamic choices made by consumers across various categories in 2023 offer more than just a
glimpse; they stand as confirmation to the platform’s continuous evolution. Paytm se ONDC
Network is not just adapting; it is thriving in a realm where consumer preferences drive
innovation and redefine the future of digital commerce.”

Bangalore witnessed inclusive artistry with the latest edition of ‘Young Artiste Festival 2023’

Telugu super news, India, August 23rd, 2023: In a bid to democratize arts education and empower aspiring talents from across India, SIFF (Singhal Iyer Family Foundation)’s cultural extravaganza returned with renewed vigour with the latest edition of its flagship programme Young Artiste Festival 2023. The Young Artiste Festival 2023 is an expression of celebrating the cultural vibrancy of India and is set to shine the spotlight on emerging young talents. Under the patronage of esteemed industry veterans, this festival is committed to support the cultural interests of every aspiring young artiste, while nurturing both classical and contemporary artistic expressions. The programme witnessed spectacular performances by some of the contemporary hyperlocal young artistes with large YouTube audiences including Chandrani Sarma (Hindustani classical vocalists and earlier Zee TV SaReGaMaPa performer), Kamlesh Sharma (song-cover expert), and Deepak Devrani (choreographer) along with other talent galore.  

The Young Artiste program was launched in 2020 by SIFF in collaboration with maestros of international stature such as Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Terence Lewis, Shovana Narayan, Shalmali Kholgade and Aruna Sairam. It was created with the aim of increasing the accessibility and affordability of Arts Education for all Indians – with a specific focus on Tier 2 & 3 cities. Over the years, the programme has paved the path for several self-driven learners from all ages and walks of life who are keen on pursuing cultural art forms either as a hobby or as a professional. Currently, the Young Artiste forum has nearly 4 million viewership with a learning community of 60,000 members and around 2,000 videos across 7 channels on YouTube.

Photo – Mehek Fatima (10, Mumbai) performing at SIFF Young Artiste Festival 2023

Speaking on the initiative, Kavita Iyer, Cofounder, Young Artiste said, “Young Artiste Festival is a testament to our unwavering commitment to democratize art education, ensuring that each aspiring artist’s voice is heard. Stepping into the offline phase, we are taking a leap towards advancing our offering for young talents to be trained by industry experts, bridging between tradition and innovation with a long-term impact.”

Further to a huge success of the previous edition, which was an online offering in the wake of the pandemic, this is the first-ever on-ground adaptation bringing young talents aged 6–21 years from across India, including Jammu & Kashmir, Sikkim, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Karnataka, showcasing their prowess in their art—Instrumental, Vocal & Dance Genres. Some of the youngest artistes performing at the festival were as young as 6-year-old, Vihaan Bamugade, one of the youngest pianists in India, and 13-year-old Navdeep Singh, a dancer from Jammu.  

Recognizing art education as one of the most exquisite expressions of every culture, Singhal Iyer Family Foundation, the Bangalore-based philanthropic organization embarked on the journey of increasing affordable and accessible art education for all. The festival recognizes the broad reach and influence of this platform in connecting learners across geographies, making quality Music & Dance education more inclusive and available. The winners have been rewarded with trophies, cash prizes, mentorship, select studio opportunities, and Young Artiste Give Aways, with the aim of promoting and keeping alive the rich and diverse Arts & Artistes of India – both classical and contemporary forms of music and dance.

Worldclass Sarod Maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, who was part of launching the first edition of the SIFF Young Artiste Festival in 2020, emphasized on the importance of art education, saying, “It is the duty of every parent and schoolteacher to find out creative instincts in every child because it is very healthy for the mind and body of the child to express his creative instincts. The heartbeat is an indication of rhythm and what we speak; conversation, recitation, chanting, and singing are all part of music. To continue our tradition and convention of music, whether classical, folk, music, or film music, we need younger, committed, and dedicated young musicians.”

The launch of the Young Artiste Advanced Mentorship Program (YAMP) in 2020 offered immersive mentorship to the top 100 finalists chosen from the national level competition Young Artiste Festival 2020 – under the leadership of globally acclaimed Indian maestros including Ehsaan Noorani (part of renowned musical trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy), Dr. L. Subramaniam, Kavita Krishnamurti, and others.

Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited launches first-ever QR ticketing service on WhatsApp

Telugu Super news Bengaluru, October 31, 2022: WhatsApp and Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) today announced a partnership to launch Namma Metro’s WhatsApp chatbot-based QR ticketing service. The chatbot is integrated with UPI powered payments on WhatsApp and will allow Namma Metro commuters to purchase tickets and recharge their metro travel pass right within WhatsApp. BMRCL is the first transit service globally to enable end-to-end QR ticketing on WhatsApp.

BMRCL’s WhatsApp chat bot is available in English and Kannada for all commuters of Namma Metro. To use the service, commuters need to simply send ‘Hi’ to BMRCL’s official WhatsApp chatbot number +9181055 56677 and choose from the various options such as: 

  • Recharge metro travel pass using payments on WhatsApp
  • Purchase single journey ticket using payments on WhatsApp
  • Access updated fare tables
  • Select source and destination for the trip
  • Check Metro Rail timetable and other information

The process of making the payment is a seamless experience that gives users the option to pay without leaving the WhatsApp chat interface. After choosing their travel details, users are given the option to pay using payments on WhatsApp by authenticating the transaction using their UPI pin.

Abhijit Bose, Head of WhatsApp India said, “BMRCL’s QR ticketing service on WhatsApp will make travel and ticketing on the Metro extremely simple and convenient for the people of Bengaluru. This is yet another great example of how organizations across sectors, from the largest transportation service to the smallest retail business, can transform their customers’ experience using the WhatsApp Platform.”

A.S. Shankar, Executive Director (O&M), BMRCL said, “It is a proud moment for us as BMRCL becomes the first transit service globally to launch QR ticketing service on WhatsApp. Our constant endeavor is to make it easy for our citizens to use our services and with the help of a simple technology such as WhatsApp, we are able to build solutions that can be quickly adopted by our commuters. I encourage everyone to use this digital solution and experience the ease and convenience it will bring to their commuting experience with Namma Metro.” 

The interface makes the user experience easy and interactive. Commuters can plan their transit on-the-go and make payments without leaving the WhatsApp chat. With user-safety at its core, ‘payments on WhatsApp’ is designed with a strong set of security and privacy principles, including entering a personal UPI-PIN for each payment.

Raghu Ravinutala, CEO and Co-founder, Yellow.ai said, “Conversational AI-powered experiences nudging users from consideration to payments coupled with native WhatsApp payments is a game-changer in the conversational commerce space. Yellow.ai is proud to be facilitating this industry-first endeavour for BMRCL, and our platform is fully capable of supporting the needs of Namma Metro’s commuters at scale. We are confident that our Dynamic AI agent for BMRCL will successfully enable passengers to avail the benefits of WhatsApp in the most seamless way.”

Visit the link to explore and experience its end-to-end journey.  

Wonderla Holidays honours Veer Jawans this Independence Day

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Wonderla Holidays is hosting Veer Jawans across Kochi, Bangalore and Hyderabad parks to celebrate the auspicious occasion of the 75th year of Independence, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. This initiative is a gesture to pay respect to those brave men of the Armed Forces who ensure the safety and security of our motherland.

As a tribute, Wonderla Holidays is inviting 75 personnel from the Indian Armed Forces along with 3 of their family members or friends to Wonderla parks for a fun-filled day. Wonderla provides free park entry, lunch, HI-tea, and access to all rides for 300 Veer Jawans and their family/friends per park, a total of 900 people across all 3 Wonderla parks. Selected Armed Forces can visit the park any day between August 15- August 17.

Along with this, Wonderla has announced a special offer 25% for all active and ex-service personnel of the Indian Armed Forces. A maximum of 3 members of the family, or three friends along with the individual from the armed forces are eligible for the offer at all the three Wonderla Parks. This offer stands valid till August 31st, 2022.

For more details, check out the Wonderla website: https://www.wonderla.com/, or reach out +91 84146 76300, +91 84146 76333

HDFC Bank Parivartan signs MoU with IISc Bangalore

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HDFC Bank Parivartan today signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore. As per the MoU, HDFC Bank Parivartan has pledged Rs.107.76 Crore to support three wings of Bagchi-Parthasarathy Hospital, IISc Bangalore. The three wings to be supported by the Bank are the Cardiology Wing, Radiology wing, and Emergency Medicine wing. 

IISc Bangalore is setting up a multi-speciality, not-for-profit, 832-bed hospital, called the Bagchi-Parthasarathy Hospital along with a Postgraduate Medical School within its Bengaluru campus. The hospital is expected to be fully functional by end of 2024 while the first batch of MD/PhD students will be admitted in the year 2025.

HDFC Bank has partnered with IISc Bangalore for the first time with the aim of improving the healthcare infrastructure in the region..

Listed below is the direct impact of HDFC Bank’s partnership with IISc Bangalore within the first five years (2025-2029):

  • The Cardiology wing is expected to see about 1,83,000 patients in the outpatient section and 18,300 patients in the in-patient section and train atleast 20 super specialist doctors 
  • The Radiology wing is expected to benefit an estimated 4,28,326 patients in the first five years and train 20 super specialist doctors. 
  • The Emergency medicine wing will benefit 56,304 patients and train 50 super specialist doctors
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HDFC Bank’s partnership with IISc Bangalore is aligned with our commitment to improve healthcare and medical infrastructure across the country,” said, Ms. Ashima Bhat, Group Head, ESG & CSR, Business Finance & Strategy, Administration and Infrastructure, HDFC Bank. “The new hospital and the medical school will not only bolster the healthcare needs of the entire region but will also provide a new generation of physician-scientists. HDFC Bank has always supported nation-building activities and the impact of the medical school/hospital is expected to set the tone for sustainable health goals and policies for the nation. It will serve as a model of clinical research and training that can be emulated across the country. We look forward to working closely with IISc Bangalore in this journey.”

Prof Govindan Rangarajan, Director, Indian Institute of Science said, “After pursuing excellence in science and engineering research for 113 years, IISc has embarked upon a new frontier of clinical research through the establishment of the Bagchi-Parthasarathy Hospital and IISc Medical School. We are thankful to HDFC Bank for being a major partner in this new initiative and providing support for the establishment of three important wings: Cardiology, Radiology, and Emergency Medicine at the Hospital. We look forward to expanding this engagement with HDFC bank in transforming the future of healthcare in this country.” 

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HDFC Bank is the amongst the largest corporate CSR spenders in the country. The bank’s key focus areas include care for climate, rural development, education, skill development, healthcare & hygiene and financial literacy under Parivartan.