INDIA: Housr, a rapidly growing luxury managed living brand, is expanding into the short-stay segment to meet the rising demand for flexible accommodations among corporate travelers. The expansion follows a significant growth witnessed by Housr over the past 18 months with 90% + occupancy rates across its existing 70+ properties spread across top-tier cities. The company is creating and dedicating bespoke rooms within its properties for corporate short stays, enhancing the overall experience for professionals on the move, especially during the peak year-end travel period and beyond.

A recent report suggests that India’s over USD 10.6 billion corporate travel sector is estimated to grow at a 10.1 percent CAGR to USD 20.8 billion by FY30, driven by tech-enabled, personalized, and sustainable solutions.

The brand believes this new offering will redefine the corporate stay experience by offering customized solutions for working professionals. Talking about the motivation behind the expansion, Deepak Anand, Founder & CEO, of Housr said, “Since its inception, Housr has witnessed exceptional demand for short-term stays, signaling a gap in the market that we are now set to fill. Approximately 30-40 % of our current residents expressed a desire for a capsule format of Housr tailored to facilitate their corporate travel seamlessly. This resident feedback has been a significant motivator behind our new initiative. Inspired by positive industry trends and real consumer demand in the growing corporate travel market, we decided to foray into the short-stay segment.”

“With Housr, we have a reputation of bringing premium offerings at value pricing, and we shall continue to build on that premise with Housr Short Stays as well. We have active business collaborations and are already in talks with multiple corporates for partnerships to streamline our offerings further”, he added.

Housr’s rapid growth trajectory will continue into Quarter 1 of 2025 with the launch of 10 new properties, adding to the existing 70+ properties. For the short stay format where a traveler can book one or multiple nights with Housr, the company is capitalizing on its existing presence in five cities: Gurugram, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Pune, and Vizag with the target audience mainly being business and corporate travelers, within the age group of 25 to 40 years. This strategic decision will not only establish the brand in the short-term stay market but will further solidify its position as a leader in the managed living segment.

To cater to the demands of this segment, Housr will retain its standard services, which include professional housekeeping, laundry on demand, breakfast and dinner buffets, high-speed WiFi, and 3-tier security. In addition, personal care shower essentials and grooming essentials will be provided as a part of the offerings for the corporate traveler.

The post Housr’s Strategic Move into the Short Stays Market appeared first on NRI News.

PUNE: Bebasi’- a short film about the importance and issues surrounding organ donation and organ transplant was released at NFAI, Law College Road. The film has been written and directed by Pune-based Raahul Panshikar, produced by Rahul’s Grafix, and has received special support from Fleetguard-Filtrum Pvt. Ltd.

Well-known actor, Mohan Joshi, and the entire cast of the film, Sanjay Kulkarni – President of Fleetguard, Niranjan Kirloskar – Managing Director of Fleetguard, Dr Mahesh Kotbagi – Director, Rotary International, Dr Sanjay Shinde – Inspector General of Crime Investigation Department (CID), Mr. Milind Mohite – Deputy Commissioner of Police, Dr. Harish Raichur, Dr. Sneha Gharmalkar and other dignitaries were present on this occasion.

The level of public awareness regarding organ donation and organ transplants is at a very nascent stage today in India. People are not aware of the difficulties one faces during organ transplantation along with the government schemes available for the same. Through Bébasi, Panshikar proposes that aid for organ transplant procedures should be brought under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). That will make these procedures prohibitive costs, and accessible even to poor people.

‘Bebasi’ is the third sequel of Raahul Panshikar’s two earlier films- ‘Raakh’ and ‘Duvidha’. ‘Bebasi’ depicts the plight of the family of an honest man, Tatyasaheb Joglekar, who has dedicated his life to the education of poor children. Tatyasaheb, the main character in the short film, played by Mohan Joshi, mortgages his house to build a school for deprived children.

Tatyasaheb and his family are beaming with happiness when his son completes his engineering and gets employed. However, their happiness is short-lived when they learn about the serious ailment of their son and the need for an organ transplant. The story movingly reveals the family’s emotional turmoil after realizing that their child has only 3-4 weeks along with the positive portrayal of the help offered by some sensitive people in the society.

The movie delves into the efforts Tatyasaheb takes to include organ donation under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and the follow-up he takes on government schemes to guide the deprived people of society to seek timely help. The options have been effectively conveyed to the audience, helping to create awareness of the issues and offering solutions about organ transplants and organ donation.

‘Bebasi’ also appeals to seek help from authentic hospitals, social organizations, and government organizations to curb the illegal organ transplant racket being run in the country.

Speaking at the film release, Raahul Panshikar said, “Films play an important role in social change, and with a topic like an organ transplant and organ donation we wanted to make sure we not only create awareness but also guide people towards the authentic options available as help”

Niranjan Kirloskar mentioned that lakhs of rupees are being spent on organ transplants and dialysis of patients. He expressed hope that like all technologies, these costs will also come down eventually. He added that awareness about organ donation was the need of the hour, which has been addressed in ‘Bebasi’.  

Dr. Sanjay Shinde expressed his belief that this short film would help several people looking at organ transplant and donation as it covers all the necessary aspects.

Milind Mohite said, “After the law came into force in 1994, organ donation has gained momentum, and it is nice to see how ‘Bebasi’ had handled this topic bringing out the essence of humanity.”

To appeal to the people, Dr. Mahesh Kotbagi suggested opening multiple free dialysis centers and creating awareness about these to as many needy citizens as possible.

Dr. Raichur, who had been carrying out several initiatives on organ donation in Solapur, appreciated the message given through Bébasi and talked about several challenges in encouraging people to volunteer for organ donation.

During the release function, Raahul Panshikar made the introductory remarks and thanked the participants for their valuable contribution.

The post ‘Bébasi’-A Short Film Released At National Film Archives Of India (NFAI) appeared first on NRI News.

• The average increase in water level by 4.88 ft.
• Increase in agriculture productivity of 7,380 acres of agricultural land
• Increase in the area under irrigation by 2,232 acres through an increase in water availability and water use efficiency
• 1,500 acres of area brought under diversified farming systems (horticulture, agroforestry, mixed cropping, etc.)
• 4,028 acres area protected from direct soil erosion
• 520 acres of area brought under horticulture
• Created 1,302 million liters of water harvesting potential
• Increase in average annual household income of 1,628 HHs by 25%

MUMBAI: HDFC Bank has completed and handed over its Climate Change Adaptation Project to the panchayat of 20 villages in Jafrabad, Maharashtra. The project was launched in October 2020 to aid local people in coping with adverse climate change vulnerabilities such as drought, heat waves, and erratic and intense rainfall patterns.

The project has successfully increased the average annual income of 1,628 households by 25% and increased the agricultural productivity of 7,380 acres of agricultural land. It has also brought 1,500 acres of the area under diversified farming systems and created 1,302 million liters of water harvesting potential.

The project took a multi-dimensional approach with work in the areas of Area Treatment, Horticulture, Water Resource Development, Nala Deepening, Micro Irrigation System Automatic Weather Station, and Pest and nutrient Management Demonstrations. Cumulatively, the project has helped enhance the lives of nearly all 25,000 village dwellers.

Speaking at the handover ceremony, Ms. Nusrat Pathan, Head CSR at HDFC Bank, said, “Climate change is likely to stay for a longer haul. It becomes imperative to change our approach, making it response-based instead of relief-based. Our interventions have successfully built the farmer’s response capacity to become climate and market-compatible, while also improving their farm incomes and maintaining the integrity of the ecology.“

HDFC Bank’s interventions have successfully increased agricultural productivity and the area under irrigation through an increase in water availability, along with an increase in the agricultural land cover through diversified farming systems. The project has addressed many important issues like Runoff Harvesting, Groundwater recharge, Soil protection and moisture retention, Micro irrigation, and other climate-resilient agriculture practices.

The project has also increased the groundwater level by 4.88 ft and protected 4,028 acres of the area from direct soil erosion. It has brought 520 acres of the area under horticulture and increased the area under irrigation by 2,232 acres through an increase in water availability and water use efficiency.

HDFC Bank’s Climate Change Adaptation Project has helped over 5,400 households fight water shortage in Maharashtra and has successfully built the farmer’s response capacity to become climate and market-compatible. The project has enhanced the lives of nearly all 25,000 village dwellers and has addressed many important issues related to climate-resilient agriculture practices.

The post HDFC Bank Helps Over 5400 Households Fight Water Shortage in Maharashtra appeared first on NRI News.