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Malls staying open longer this season

Malls are cashing in on consumers’ festive spends by staying open longer than usual; many other experiences are on offer.

by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

This Diwali, you can go shopping at midnight. Really. You don’t have to wait for your weekend break to go shopping and wait endless hours in long lines at the payment counter, either. After work, just head to the nearest big shopping mall.

Malls in the city have revised their closing time to suit the increased footfall and busy lifestyles of Mumbaikars, with most major stores remaining open till midnight to suit shoppers. High Street Phoenix was the first off the block, with timings being revised from October 1, 2014. The mall added many new brands before the month began, and has thrown in midnight musical performances for shoppers as well. The mall remains open till 11 pm on weekends and 10 pm on weekdays.

Said Rajendra Kalkar, Senior Centre Director, The Phoenix Mills Limited,”We are enthused about extending our timings for new initiatives which are customised to the comfort and convenience of our patrons. We witness many shoppers who find it difficult to manage their leisure time post work due to accessibility at odd hours. This campaign intends to be a boon to such work-life balance.”

Other malls, too, like the Inorbit Mall in Malad and Vashi, have reportedly extended their timings to suit shoppers this season. Veera Mukherjee, a housewife based in Kandivali said, “I hope malls always remain open till late hours, because there are huge crowds in the evening hours of 6 pm to 8 pm. Shopping becomes easier once the crowds beginning to taper. If possible, they should also open for business earlier so that people can shop on their way to work.”

Another shopper, Akhil Morarka, said, “I need to buy gifts for my family back home in Bangalore. It is great news if malls remain open beyond 10 pm so that people like me can go shopping after work. Otherwise I have to do some last-minute shopping over the weekend.”

(Image courtesy mumbai77.com. Picture used for representational purpose only)

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17,665 dispute-free villages in Maharashtra?

Over 17,000 villages in Maharashtra are reportedly free of petty and major disputes, due to a Government scheme launched in 2007.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Is it possible, in today’s hectic times, for any place to be totally dispute-free? If findings from the State Government are to be believed, as many as 17, 665 villages in Maharashtra are completely dispute-free?

A press release from the Chief Minister’s office last week gave the findings of the Government’s Mahatma Gandhi Tantamukh Gaon Mohim (Mahatma Gandhi Dispute Free Village Scheme) launched in year 2007. CM Prithviraj Chavan said, “Maharashtra is one of the largest states in the country with a huge cosmopolitan population spread across both rural and urban centers. With such dynamics, being able to make almost 17,665 villages completely dispute-free is a proud achievement for the State. Our innovative approach has been recognised on the international platform too as a model project by the United Nations. We believe the Scheme will continue to act as a catalyst for the welfare of villagers by engaging citizens to bring prosperity through peace.”

As per the Scheme, 1,741 villages became dispute-free in 2012-2013. Now, 47 villages are set to receive the Special Peace Award. 10 out of the 47 villages are from Buldhana district, followed by Sholapur (8), Kolhapur (7), Chandrapur (7), Yavatmanl (1), Nagpur Rural (1), Parbhani (1), Ahmednagar (3), Satara (2), Jalna (1), and Osmanabad (2).

The Scheme was launched with the aim of resolving minor conflicts, land related problems, cattle grazing, cremation grounds, etc. that normally snowballed into bigger communal and anti-social issues in the State’s villages. Under this scheme, villagers come together, collect data and amicably settle the thousands of pending cases in their village. The idea of this novel experiment was to decrease the number of pending cases in the judiciaries and so it is conducted without any help of lawyers and judges but by the police officials, police jawans and the active participation of residents.

Since its inception, says the Government:

• Record 17,665 villages dispute free in Maharashtra

• Complaints Resolved – 11,00,000

• Gram Panchayats felicitated (cash prize) – 16,004

• Gram Panchayats awarded (special prize) – 1,223

(Pictures courtesy www.panchayat.gov.in)

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Mumbai real estate losing out on NRI investments?

If a recent real estate survey is to be believed, Mumbai is not the top investment choice for NRIs any more.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Mumbai has become a real estate nightmare, what with unrealistic, sky-high market rates making it impossible for people to buy their first homes in the city. For long, though, the real estate market in the city has somewhat been buoyed by investments from NRIs.

However, a recent report by ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India) reveals that Mumbai is no longer the first, or even second or third choice for NRI purchasers. As per the report, Bangalore is the most favourite property investment destination for NRIs, followed by Ahmedabad (2nd), Pune (3rd), Chennai (4th), Goa (5th), Delhi (6th) and Dehradun (7th).

“Indian property developers are anticipating a 35 per cent surge in inquiries from NRI-based purchasers as compared to last year about 18 per cent,” reveals the report, which was compiled based on a random survey of nearly 850 real estate developers in Delhi-NCR, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahemdabad, Pune, Dehradun and Chennai. “NRIs feel confident about the new Government and are waiting for an investment-friendly market in various fields,” adds the survey.

The majority of real estate developers said that the NRI traffic is coming primarily from the UAE, US, Singapore, Australia, UK, Canada and South Africa. This year, the demand is more for the high-end property and commercial buildings. Said DS Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM, “With the revival in global economy, especially in the United States and Europe, people are more optimistic and looking for property to invest in. Both small and big developers are focusing on the NRI base in the US, UK and Asia Pacific Region this year.

“As per the findings, the share of NRI sales are currently at approximately 18 per cent and are likely to increase by 30 to 35 per cent in the coming year,” says the survey.

To tap a large section of the cash-rich NRIs living overseas, developers are not just conducting property shows, exhibitions and opening overseas representative offices, they are also expanding their existing distribution chains and entering into strategic partnerships to encourage investors from this cash-rich segment also.

The findings

– According to the survey, Bangalore tops in terms of investment from NRIs, who are considering settling down in India in the coming years. The major factors that drive NRIs to invest in Bangalore’s property market is the booming IT sector. It has the largest concentration of leading IT and ITeS companies. According to an estimate, there are 2,200 IT companies, over 664 MNCs, 183 biotechnology companies, and 248 BPOs operating in Bangalore.

– Growing number of IT/ITES companies in Bangalore provide lucrative job opportunities to NRIs who are considering settling in India. Moreover, exponential growth in infrastructure and real estate sector also contributes positively towards influencing NRIs to invest in the property market. The demand has also shifted from mid-segment housing to luxury housing in Bangalore.

– Ahmedabad (32 per cent) has continued to be the most stable market in terms of demand and absorption of both residential and commercial spaces.  NRI’s consider Ahmedabad as a safe place to invest in, with lenient government regulations regarding property investments by NRIs.

 

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Mumbai, Bangalore, blog the most in country

IndiBlogger.in and Businessworld report analyses bloggers’ preferred topics, language of communication, and how many blogs are monetised, among other factors.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Some years ago, blogging took India by storm – suddenly, here was a free digital medium on which one could record one’s thoughts without having to worry about word counts or writing style or even presentation. Till date, it seems, India is still blogging seriously, and using the digital space for a variety of activities.

As per a report by Business World and IndiBlogger.in, titled The Indian Blogosphere 2014, it turns out that Mumbai and Bangalore have the highest numbers of bloggers and blogs in the country – both cities account for 12 per cent of all Indian blogs surveyed. Other cities mentioned are Chennai (10 per cent), Delhi-NCR (8 per cent), Hyderabad (6 per cent) and Pune (4 per cent).

The report is based on 36,464 authenticated blogs in the IndiBlogger.in database. 1,059 respondents replied to a questionnaire for the survey.

The findings

Blogging in IndiaBroadly, says the report, “Bloggers are the source of a majority of the content available on the Internet today. High levels of interaction indicate that blogs are topic-specific networks.” The report states that there has been a huge 48 per cent increase in the number of blogs from year 2012 to 2013. “In India, blogs have been the fastest growing medium across the web,” the report says.

A majority of Indian bloggers fall in the 25 to 35 years age bracket, and these account for 54 per cent of all bloggers.

As per the findings, more men than women blog today – 75 per cent men as against 25 per cent women. As many as 88 per cent of the Indian blogs are written in the English language, while the most Indian languages used include Hindi (5 per cent), Tamil (3 per cent), Marathi, Malayalam and Telugu (all 1 per cent).

Twitter is the highest used social media network – accounting for 46 per cent of use – while Facebook is second, at 29 per cent.

Interestingly, a staggering 86 per cent blogs are monetised, with Google Adsense being the most preferred monetisation tool (72 per cent), followed by advertising and affiliate marketing. Of the monetised blogs, 45 per cent blogs are being approached by brands or agencies.

Lastly, 31 per cent of most blogs’ traffic comes from followers. Blogspot.com is the most preferred blogging platform, with 63 per cent blogs present on this platform.

(Pictures courtesy gorgeousingrey.com, www.creativeeducation.co.uk)

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About 35% couples took a trip this weekend

Survey reveals that about 5 lakh travelers from the metros went to nearby tourist spots over the long I-Day weekend.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

The long weekend, starting from Friday, August 15 (Independence Day), and ending on Monday, August 18 (Pateti, Janmashtami) certainly allowed several people to take short trips to nearby locations. If a quick survey by ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India) is to be believed, about 35 per cent working couples of 500 couples surveyed in the metros of the country took planned an extended weekend trip during this time. 

About 5 lakh travelers made the journey to renowned weekend destinations, as per the survey based on feedback received from various working couples and tour operators in metros. “The weekend, starting this Independence Day on Friday, was extended up to Janmashtami on Monday (August 18) and about 35 per cent of working couples in metros planned to make it an extended holiday and escape to the nearby tourist destinations,” highlighted the survey.

ASSOCHAM representatives interacted with about 500 working couples to gauge their mood and plans for the Independence Day weekend in five cities of Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi-NCR, and Kolkata during the last fortnight.

While about 35 per cent respondents conceded they had planned their itinerary in advance, about 55 per cent said they would relax at home and enjoy some good quality time with their family and the remaining 10 per cent said they have not made any plans so far. “With work schedules getting hectic by the day, working couples in India impatiently await weekends and thus make the most of extended weekends,” said DS Rawat, secretary general of ASSOCHAM.

The survey also took into account inputs from representatives of leading travel portals, travel agencies, and hoteliers who came up with various packages, as they had received a good number of bookings for traditional picturesque destinations located around the metros.
 
Certain respondents even said that their companies enabled the ‘work from home’ facility for their employees so that they could spend the weekend comfortably and complete their tasks as per their convenience.

Ashtvinayak, Goa, Khandala, Lonavla, Mahabaleshwar, and Matheran were the top destinations for about 30 per cent working couples in Mumbai, while almost 40 per cent respondents from Delhi-NCR rated Agra, Dharamshala, Haridwar, Jaipur, Jim Corbett, Khatu Shyam, Landsdowne, Mathura and Vrindavan, Manali, Mussoorrie, Nainital, Rishikesh, Shimla, Vaishno Devi and other spots among their favourite spots. 

Ambaji, Gir, Kutch, Mount Abu, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Udaipur and others were significant getaway destinations for about 45 per cent working couples planning a quick holiday this weekend in Ahmedabad. Meanwhile, Chikmagalur, Coorg, Madhugiri, Mysore, Nandi Hills, Ooty, Ramanagara, Shivanasamudra Waterfalls, Wayanad and others were most sought-after weekend getaway destinations for 35 per cent working couples in Bangalore.

Bakkhali, Darjeeling, Digha, Mandarmoni, Murshidabad, Navadivpa, Raichak Santiniketan, Sunderbans, Tajpur, Tarapith and others were preferred weekend getaways for about 25 per cent respondents in Kolkata.

Also read: ‘Four-day holiday causes six-hour traffic snarl on Mumbai-Pune Expressway‘, TOI

(Picture courtesy www.planmoneytax.com)

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Are these Mumbai’s best MLAs?

Praja Foundation rankings for 32 Mumbai MLAs put BJP’s Yogesh Sagar in top spot, followed by the Congress’ Amin Patel.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Mumbai is well out of the Lok Sabha election fervour, but in a few days, when the Election Code of Conduct sets in prior to the Assembly Elections later this year, the city will once again reel from election fever.

Before a new Government is elected, however, city-based Praja Foundation deemed it fit to release a ‘scorecard’ for the 32 city-based MLAs. Mumbai elects 36 MLAs in every Assembly, however, since four of the current MLAs are ministers in the current State Government, they were excluded from the ratings.

The findings revealed that 68 per cent people who voted positively for their MLA thought they were less corrupt; while 53 per cent people who voted against their MLA felt they were corrupt.

Releasing the Report Card, Nitai Mehta, Founder Trustee, Praja, said, “The current report card is going to be the last for the 12th Assembly and fourth in the series. This report card which we publish every year gives the citizens, elected representatives, political parties and the Government valuable feedback on the functioning of the elected representatives. We hope that it will set standards and benchmarks for the performance of the elected representatives.”

The number one MLA this year, too, has been the previous two years’ topper, Yogesh Sagar of the BJP. Also retaining their ranks from last year are Amin Patel of INC on second position and Madhukar Chavan, again from INC, on third position.

Rating methodology

The MLAs have been rated on four quantitative parameters and three qualitative perception-based parameters: 1) Quality of questions asked in the assembly, 2) Number of questions asked, 3) Attendance, 4) Clean criminal record 5) Perceived least corrupt 6) Perceived accessibility for the public from relevant constituency, and 7) Perceived performer for the constituency.

Said Mehta, “We collected quantifiable data through RTI applications over the year. We also commissioned Hansa Research to do a scientific-statistical survey from among over 22,580 people of Mumbai to gauge the public perception of the MLAs on the above mentioned parameters.”

Milind Mhaske, Project Director, Praja, added, “The appraisal is based on the constitutional role and responsibility of the elected representatives and opinions of their electorate.” The Report Card covers the working and performance of the 32 MLAs during Winter 2012, Budget 2013, Monsoon 2013 and Winter 2013 assembly sessions. It also covers the Local Area Development funds spent by the MLAs for the period between December 2009 and March 2014.

Mehta added, “There is no standard rule for establishing the performance of elected representatives. Voters have voted on traditional factors to expectations or perceptions to ideologies; few have attempted a scientific approach, mainly due to lack of standardised data and the humongous efforts involved. Hence, Praja made its first MLA report card in 2011.”

Changes in rank

Mangesh Sangle, who got the first rank in the 2011 report card dropped to 20th in 2013 because of low attendance and a new charge sheet, then recovered to the 6th position due to improved attendance and consistency in his other parameters. Sardar Tara Singh’s rank has gone down from 3rd in 2011 to 15th in 2012 due to a new charge sheet, then recovered to 10th in 2013 due to increase in overall perception and quality of questions and is now down to 24th due to drop in attendance, questions asked and overall perception.

On the other hand Yogesh Sagar has remained in the top four in all years and number one for the last three years due to his consistent scores in all parameters. Similarly, his party colleague, Prakash Maheta, has remained in the bottom five in all the years. Bala Nandgaonkar who has asked 4933 questions i.e. 12 per cent of all the questions asked by Mumbai MLAs, has had above average ranks but has never been in the top three as asking questions is just one aspect of the gradation system but there are many more parameters on which this system grades performance.

Mhaske shared that 50 per cent MLAs not only have criminal cases registered against them, but some of them are also charge-sheeted and some also have new criminal cases.

In the survey, respondents were asked to comment on whether they will vote for their current MLA and the score was matched with whether they find them to be corrupt. The findings revealed that 68 per cent people who voted positively for their MLA thought they were less corrupt; while 53 per cent people who voted against their MLA felt they were corrupt.

(Featured image courtesy dnaindia.com)

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