Tag: Hyderabad

Rapido offers free rides to voters to polling stations on May 13 in Hyderabad, 3 other cities

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Voters across Hyderabad, and also in Karimnagar, Khammam, and Warangal in Telangana, will be provided free bike taxi, auto-rickshaw, and cab rides on May 13, polling day in the state, by a ride-hailing platform.

Ride-hailing platform Rapido, on Monday, said it is joining hands with the office of the Chief Electoral Officer to further encourage people to vote. To that end, it organised an event to raise voter awareness at Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium here, which was attended by Vikas Raj, CEO.

On election day, voters can avail free rides on the Rapido app using the code ‘VOTENOW’ and get a free ride to exercise their democratic right. The initiative aims to facilitate residents’ voting rights and ensure a more inclusive electoral process, a release said.

Voting for 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana will be held on May 13. Rapido further said this effort aligns with Rapido’s nationwide campaign, deploying over 10 lakh captains across more than 100 cities to provide free rides on election day.

Rapido’s co-founder, Pavan Guntupalli, said, “We are undertaking this initiative to ensure that every voter in Hyderabad, Karimnagar, Khammam, and Warangal can successfully fulfill their civic duty by casting their votes in the Indian General Election 2024.”

The ride-hailing platform wants to specifically ensure that differently-abled and senior citizen voters have equitable access to exercise their democratic right.

Auto and cab rides to them, the ride app is redoubling its commitment to inclusivity and social responsibility, he added. Raj said, “Commute to voters, especially the differently-abled and senior citizens, Rapido is facilitating greater inclusivity and ensuring that every eligible citizen can exercise their democratic right.”

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

How a Hyderabad businessman lost ₹7 crore to a religious fraud

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A gang of fraudsters have cheated a Hyderabad-based businessman to the tune of ₹ 7 crore by making him deposit the money in their bank accounts for eight months.

The fraud came to light after the victim, who realised later that he was cheated, approached the Cyber Security Bureau for help. The police have registered a case under relevant sections and investigations are continuing.

According to the police, the businessman, a resident of Kondapur in Hyderabad, has been running a hardware store in Devarakonda Mandal of Nalgonda district, Telangana.

He had a real estate business too in partnership with another businessman named Ganta Yadaiah alias Giri from the same area since 2019.

In August 2023, Giri made a new proposal to the hardware store owner saying if he was willing to help Swamiji Ketawath Devsingh Naik Rathod of Anumula village in Haliya Mandal of Nalgonda district he would get a 30 per cent commission in the form of tax benefits from the donations made to Swamiji by his disciples in 40 countries across the world.

To gain the confidence of the businessman, Giri then showed him some fake RBI documents saying ₹19.5 crore was ready for release.

Again on August 2023, Giri informed the businessman that one Augustine, a representative from the UK is in Hyderabad and they will meet him at the Radisson Blue Hotel.

Later, Giri said that Augustine was stopped by the customs officials at the international airport in Hyderabad. He also made the businessman believe that the customs officials had seized US dollars worth₹15 crore meant for Swamiji from the baggage of Augustine.

Meanwhile, Augustine made a phone call to the businessman on September 16, 2023. He introduced a person called Morgan as his lawyer and asked the businessman to transfer money to his bank accounts to recover the seized money. Augustine also introduced another person called George as his manager to the victim. George made many phone calls and asked the businessman to deposit money in their bank accounts to recover the seized US dollars at the earliest.

ALSO READ | Unauthorised stickers banned on vehicles in Chennai; traffic police warn of action after May 1

Later in the last month, Swamiji Rathod called the victim and asked him to come to Delhi and meet him. At the same time, a person named Kiran who introduced himself as PA to Rathod contacted the businessman many times on the phone.

Another person named More who introduced himself as a manager at Standard Chartered Bank also spoke to the businessman over the phone. He said that ₹ 2 crore was ready for release in Rathod’s name and made the victim deposit ₹ 3-4 lakhs each in five instalments on the pretext of the tax payment.

However, he didn’t get the promised amount related to donations, and the businessman along with his business partner, Giri went to Delhi on April 13 and met Rathod there.

When the victim asked  Rathod about the donations, Rathod told him that he had to pay ₹7 lakhs towards taxes. He said that very soon he will be nominated as chairman of the National Jute Board and one Sunil Kumar has been helping him in this. Rathod assured the businessman that he would get the assured amount of donations after he was nominated to the post. He then asked the victim to transfer the money to the account of Sunil Kumar. The businessman has transferred ₹ 40 lakh to Sunil Kumar in 14 instalments.

The victim has transferred ₹ 7 crore in total to the accounts of persons introduced by Giri and the gang of Rathod in 280 transactions between August 16, 2023 and April 03, 2024.

Despite all those assurances and the long wait, he did not get any response from the gang regarding the donations. It was at this juncture that the businessman approached the Cyber Security Bureau seeking an investigation into the matter.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Hyderabad BJP candidate Madhavi Latha’s assets worth ₹218 crore

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Bharatiya Janata Party candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency K Madhavi Latha has declared her family assets, both moveable and immovable worth ₹218.38 crore.

Latha’ s family has liabilities to the tune of ₹27 crore.

The BJP candidate’s family owns 2.94 crore shares of Virinchi Ltd valued at ₹94.44 crore. Latha’s husband Vishwanath Kompalle, an IIT Madras alumni, is a founder of the fintech and healthcare company.

According to an election affidavit she filed, the family has movable assets worth ₹165.46 crore including three dependents and immovable – ₹55.92 crore.

She will take on All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and sitting MP Asaduddin Owaisi and the Congress has announced Mohammed Waliullah Sameer as its candidate.

She mentioned that she possesses a Masters degree in Political Science.

Owaisi has declared family assets at ₹23.87 crore and liabilities of ₹7 crore.

He possessed a pistol and a rifle, according to his affidavit filed on April 19.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Meet Sai Charan, Hyderabad’s 15-year-old who saved 50 people from a blazing fire

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A 15-year-old child is being hailed a hero after his swift thinking saved the lives of at least 50 people trapped in a fire. The incident occurred at Hyderabad’s Allen Homeo and Herbal Products factory, which was gutted on Friday evening. One injury has been reported from the incident.

The fire, which reportedly started during welding procedures, rapidly enveloped the building and ended up putting the workers’ lives in danger. However, Sai Charan, the young boy, observed the fire and leapt into action.

ALSO READ | Watch | Bengaluru doctor’s quick thinking saves woman who suffered cardiac arrest at polling booth

He quickly climbed up the building and knotted a rope, offering an escape route for the trapped workers while risking his safety. With his courage, he made it possible for the workers to be evacuated safely, saving their lives.

Senior police officials praised Sai Charan for his courageous actions, noting that his prompt involvement saved several lives. In a video posted on the microblogging platform X (formerly Twitter), a police officer can be heard saying Sai Charan quickly climbed the building and secured a rope. With the help of that rope, 50 persons caught in the fire were able to safely descend from the top of the structure. “He is the real hero.”

#Hyderabad– Hero – Little yet brave Sai Charan- a passerby rescued those trapped by lending a rope and got workers out unscathed.

A fire broke out at the Alvin Pharmacy Company in Shadnagar, causing panic among the workers. @TelanganaDGP he deserves a reward. pic.twitter.com/fbY5eOCdaH

— @Coreena Enet Suares (@CoreenaSuares2) April 26, 2024

When Sai Charan arrived with a ladder and rope, he witnessed six employees battling to escape the building, he told the media. One man, out of six, came out on his own. Subsequently, he proceeded to save the remaining five workers.

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Eyewitnesses told News Meter that they watched employees fleeing the building as flames grew. Firefighters and police deployed two fire engines to douse the blaze.

Shadnagar firefighters used ladders to help trapped people get to safety.

However, one of the five people trapped in the dense smoke took extreme measures and jumped from the top of the building, the news agency reported.

News Metre was informed by a firefighter that while the air conditioners blew, the inferno became intense.

However, a potentially disastrous situation ended up being under control because of the organised efforts of emergency personnel and the heroism of individuals such as Sai Charan, according to the firefighters.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Unsold homes in 9 cities down 7% in last 3 months, 12% fall in NCR: Report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Unsold housing inventories fell 7% in the last three months across 9 major cities to around 4.81 lakh units on higher sales than new supply, according to PropEquity.

Real estate data analytic firm PropEquity data showed that unsold housing stock has come down to 4,81,566 units at the end of March this year from 5,18,868 units at the end of December 2023 across 9 major cities.

These cities are Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Delhi-NCR (Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad), Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai and Kolkata.

PropEquity founder and Managing Director (MD) Samir Jasuja said the unsold housing stocks have declined as “sales are surpassing the new launches which is a positive indicator for the market”.

During the January-March period of 2024, housing sales across 9 major cities stood at 1,44,656 units while the new launches were 1,05,134 units. This led to a reduction in the unsold stocks.

As per the data, Pune saw a maximum 13% fall in the unsold housing stocks to 65,788 units at the end of this month from 75,521 units at the end of December 2023. In Delhi-NCR, the unsold inventories have come down 12% to 27,959 units from 31,602 units.

According to PropEquity, the unsold stock in Mumbai fell 11 per cent to 48,399 units from 54,633 units. In Navi Mumbai, the unsold inventories declined 11% to 33,385 units from 37,597 units. Thane witnessed a fall of 5% in unsold housing stocks to 1,06,565 units from 1,12,397 units.

Unsold housing stocks in Bengaluru have come down 5% to 44,837 units from 47,370 units. Hyderabad witnessed a 4% fall in unsold stocks to 1,10,425 units from 1,14,861 units. In Kolkata, the fall in unsold housing stocks was 2% to 23,249 units from 23,745 units.

As per the data, the Chennai market witnessed a marginal decline of 1% in unsold homes to 20,959 units this quarter from 21,142 units at the end of December last year. P E Analytics owns and operates PropEquity, which is an online real estate data and analytics platform covering over 1,50,000 projects of 45,000 developers across 44 cities.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Godrej Properties acquires Hyderabad land parcel with ₹1,300 crore booking value potential

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Real estate developer Godrej Properties Ltd. on Thursday, March 14, said it has acquired 3 acre of land in Kokapet, Hyderabad. This will take the overall booking value potential for the company in Hyderabad to ₹4,800 crore, the company said in a stock exchange filing.

The land development has an estimated potential of 1.2 million square feet saleable area, which will comprise premium residential apartments of various configurations, with an estimated booking value of ₹1,300 crore, it added.

The location is near the Outer Ring Road junction, near Golden Mile Road. Kokapet is one of Hyderabad’s largest commercial and residential real estate markets and has a developed social and civic infrastructure with multiple hospitals, schools, residential, retail and commercial spaces in proximity. The location is also well-connected to the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport.

The MD and CEO of Godrej Properties Gaurav Pandey said the company is pleased to add another property in Hyderabad. “It aligns well with our expansion strategy and will further solidify our position as a leading national real estate developer,” he said.

Last month, the Mumbai-based real estate developer had acquired 12.5 acre land in Hyderabad’s Rajendra Nagar.

“The development on this land is estimated to have a potential of 4 million square feet of saleable area comprising primarily premium residential apartments of various configurations with an estimated revenue potential of ₹3,500 crore,” the company had said in a statement.

Godrej Properties shares ended 5.21% lower at ₹2,198.45 apiece the previous day, March 13. The stock has gained 98.45% in the past year.

Also Read: Smallcap Sell-Off: Not a repeat of 2018, says Jefferies while betting on real estate, power, PSUs

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Indian student in US succumbs to brain stroke; body flown back to Hyderabad

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A 30-year-old student from Hyderabad succumbed to a brain stroke in the US, reports said. The student, named B Ruthvik, had gone to the US for higher studies. He suffered a brain stroke earlier this month.

Ruthvik’s body arrived in the Hyderabad city on Monday, The Times of India reported. His family currently resides in the Trimulgherry area of Secunderabad. His father is reportedly a retired official of the state road transport department.

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Ruthvik had recently completed his graduation from Texas A&M University. The Indian resident suffered a brain stroke on February 16. At the time, he was having lunch with his friends. Suddenly, he collapsed and fell to the ground. Soon after, Ruthvik’s friends and others called an ambulance and rushed him to a nearby hospital.

During a health check-up, the doctors found a clot in the patient’s brain. Meanwhile, the left side of Ruthvik’s body became unresponsive. Later, the doctors conducted a surgery, but his condition remained critical, reports said.

A few days later, Ruthvik passed away while undergoing treatment at the hospital.

ALSO READ | Indian student in US hammered to death by homeless drug addict

For Ruthvik’s treatment, his friend B Shyam had reportedly set up a GoFundMe page seeking donations from others. As per the target set by his friend, Ruthvik required $200,000 for his treatment.

The fund-raising campaign witnessed the participation of 1,200 people in total. Shyam is said to have raised $57,000 through the page.

ALSO READ | Indian student critically injured in stabbing at US gym dies

However, on February 23, he shared an update on the page, announcing that Ruthvik was declared brain dead by the doctors at the hospital.

“The update about Ruthvik was delayed considering the health conditions of his close family members in India. With heavy hearts, we share the sombre news of Ruthvik’s passing. Ruthvik was in post-surgery observation battling for his life. Despite a valiant struggle for survival, Ruthvik was ultimately declared brain dead a few days ago,” Shyam wrote on the page.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Medplus defers fundraising for diagnostics until Hyderabad pilot shows profit

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A few weeks ago, shareholders of Medplus Health Services, one of India’s biggest chain of drug stores, approved a proposal to raise ₹1,200 crore to expand a two-year old diagnostics venture.

But the Hyderabad-based company has decided to not raise the money as planned before the pilot project in Hyderabad adds at least 200,000 subscribers and profitability becomes visible.

ALSO READ: MedPlus sees no material impact from licence suspension of subsidiary

Founded in 2006, and listed on the stock exchanges in December 2021, Medplus has 4,233 pharmacies spread across ten states in the country. Its experiment with diagnostics started in March 2022 with four full-service centres, two relatively smaller ones, and 120 collection points in Hyderabad.

It has taken almost two years for the company to get to 120,000 subscribers for its diagnostics experiment in Hyderabad. CEO Gangadi Madhukar Reddy wants this number to swell by another 80,000 before he takes a call on whether to build on it further.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Lufthansa Airlines launches Hyderabad-Frankfurt direct flights five days a week

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL) on Wednesday announced the launch of direct flights to Frankfurt, Germany in partnership with Lufthansa Airlines.

With five weekly departures (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday), flight LH753 will depart from Hyderabad at 01:55 hours and arrive in Frankfurt at 07:05 hours.

The return flight LH752 will depart from Frankfurt at 10:55 hours and arrive in Hyderabad at 23:55 hours, a release from GHIAL said.

Also Read: SpiceJet announces special Delhi-Ayodhya flight for Ram temple ceremony — timings here

GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd CEO Pradeep Panicker said, “This connectivity will benefit travellers visiting Frankfurt as a transit point or for leisure trips and would open up multiple destinations in Europe, USA, Canada, and South America via Frankfurt.”

Lufthansa Group (South Asia) Senior Director George Ettiyil said, “As we launch Hyderabad-Frankfurt service, our capacity to India has increased by 14% (relative to 2019), making this country the fastest growing major market for Lufthansa.”

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Watch | 64-year-old devotee from Hyderabad embarks on padyatra to Ayodhya

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A 64-year-old man hailing from Hyderabad has embarked on a 7,200 km padyatra (walking) to Ayodhya. The man identified as Challa Srinivas Sastry, is also carrying gold-plated khadaun (charan paduka or footwear) with him, as news agency ANI reported.

According to the news agency, Sastry is aiming to reach Ayodhya ahead of the pran pratishtha, or consecration ceremony of the Ram Lalla idol on January 22.

#WATCH | Telangana: A 64-year-old man, Challa Srinivas Sastry from Hyderabad embarked on a 7,200-kilometre padayatra to Ayodhya carrying Khadaun ‘charan paduka’ with him ahead of the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony of the Ram Temple. (09.01) pic.twitter.com/J8hQg6hBcS

— ANI (@ANI) January 10, 2024

Sastry, on Tuesday, told ANI, “I have made this ‘charan paduka‘ using 8 kg silver and got it coated with gold.”

He mentioned that he had opted for the route which Lord Ram took to travel from Ayodhya to Rameswaram.

Expressing his excitement, Sastry added, “My target is to reach Ayodhya on January 15th and I will hand over this ‘charan paduka‘ to UP CM Yogi Adityanath on January 16.”

#WATCH | Challa Srinivas Sastry says “…I have made this ‘charan paduka’ using 8 kg silver and got it coated with gold…I am walking on the route which Lord Ram took from Ayodhya to Rameshwar. My target is to reach Ayodhya on January 15th. I will hand over this ‘charan paduka’… pic.twitter.com/XijQs2g0xT

— ANI (@ANI) January 10, 2024

Reportedly, Sastry began his journey on July 20.

Meanwhile, the preparation for the grand celebratory day of Ram Mandir consecration is in full swing. The event will see several dignitaries and celebrities in attendance.

As per the reports, the pran-pratishtha ceremony will be held over a span of seven days. It will begin on January 16. On the final day, January 22, the deity of Lord Ram Lalla will be consecrated in Mrigashira Nakshatra, followed by a grand puja.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow