Business
UNIQUE TIMES
On the brave new world of the management graduates of 2020
Education has reached a sort of pinnacle in quantity, in India. The growth of the number of business schools and engineering colleges has been disproportionately high in the last two decades. With a huge build-up of supply of seats, the ease to get into these institutions has become an open road. The new reality is that the institutions are now making it easy for students to seek admission – that is to euphemistically say that they are falling over each other to get students.
5 min |
August - September 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
INVERTED DUTY UNDER GSTA RUBRIC EMBROILED IN UNNECESSARY LITIGATION
As evident, GST works on a premise that being in the nature of consumption tax, the tax burden is ultimately borne by the final consumer and businesses do not bear the burden of the tax since they are allowed to take credit of the tax paid on anterior supplies received by them. The said principle has also been endorsed by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in the context of international VAT/ GST Guidelines.
5 min |
August - September 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Hong Kong: The City of Skyscrapers
Hong Kong is the best place in Asia to experience the vibe of vibrant city. It is not different from any rapidly growing economic hub in the world. People visit this city normally to experience how is it like to live in a fast-growing economic hub.
4 min |
August - September 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Getting the economy back to shape, post-pandemic
When Unlock 1.0 began in May, we were hopeful of returning to normalcy within a couple of months. However, three months down the line, the situation continues to be dire as we head back to more of localised lockdowns and curfews. Most of our states are reporting an increasingly higher number of positive cases than before.
5 min |
August - September 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
CUBES INTERNATIONAL GROUP: AN ENTERPRISE BUILT ON DETERMINATION AND TRUST
Where there's a will, there's a way. Only a determined entity can persist in the face of perils. Shareef Muhammed, Chairman and Managing Director of Cubes International Group, is the living example of this proverb.
7 min |
August - September 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Natural Ways To Cure Skin Rashes
Sometimes, skin rashes can be highly irritating – especially be-cause of their itching sensation. Most people prefer chemical methods to fight this skin condition. Needless to say, this condition too can be solved with the help of non-chemical methods.
2 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Post-Covid India: Challenges And Priorities Sam Pitroda
The write-up is prepared by Mansoor Palloor based on Sam Pitroda’s lecture in a webinar organised at Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies.
8 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
GADGETS
Motorola One Fusion Plus
1 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
IT IS NOT JUST STARTING BUT ABOUT SCALING UP
The fascination of entrepreneurship has caught the spirit of the times. We are increasingly seeing entrepreneurship emerging as a viable career option and some of the best students embracing ideas and converting them into institutions. Entrepreneurship has also democratised leadership and youngsters are getting a seat at the corporate table much before, the norm of the yester years. The pace of some of these ventures often defy conventional logic but very phrase does not have meaning, as we see a ‘new normal’ emerging in business.
4 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
INVESTING IN GOLD AND OPTIONS FOR THE RETAIL INVESTOR
Whenever the price of gold goes up, the personal fi-nance columns published in various newspapers and periodicals see hectic discussions about how much money an investor should set apart for investing in gold. However, during periods when the price of gold is stable or showing weakness, these very columns tend to be either silent about gold or go the other way and recommend against holding gold in the portfolio. But now that gold price in India is ruling at historic highs, there is a broad consensus that gold should always be a part of our investment portfolio, with a decent share of our total budget (anywhere from 10 to 20 percent) earmarked for the yellow metal. It is therefore time to look at what makes gold an enduring investment and also examine the various avenues available to retail investors who wish to add gold to their portfolio.
5 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Long-term impact
Rooma Sarika runs the ‘Rooma Permanent Cosmetics’ clinic at Kochi. She talks about some beneficial treatments her clinic offers.
6 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
HYUNDAI VERNA
Vivek Venugopal is one of India’s top automotive writers with over a decade’s experience in road-testing and reviewing cars. He is currently the Editor of Quarter Mile magazine and a columnist in several leading magazines and newspapers. He is also a highly sought after consulting engineer and market analyst for many automobile manufacturers.
4 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
GOKULAM GOPALAN: THE SOCIALLY COMMITTED BUSINESSMAN
Being a socially committed person is extra-ordinary – especially if you are into business. Not all people have the true courage to dedicate their life for their society. Specifically speaking, the present generation has come down to the level of selfishness. Needless to say, given the aforesaid facts, if there is someone who does not qualify the said assumptions, he deserves to be treated as a noble soul. Fortunately, a search for one such divine soul has culminated with a positive note. In this edition, a business legend, who has shown the world the importance of leading a socially committed life, is covered. That exceptional human is none other than A M Gopalan (popularly known as Gokulam Gopalan), the owner of Gokulam Group of Companies.
9 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
FACTS ABOUT FIBROMYALGIA
Fibromyalgia is a common and disturbing ailment. Fibromyalgia is estimated to affect 2–8% of the population, with a female to male incidence ratio of approximately 9:1. Fibromyalgia is basically a functional somatic syndrome ie a physical response to depression and stress.
3 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
BOOK REVIEW
Executive Presence: The POISE Formula for Leadership
2 min |
July - August 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
A Man With A Mission...
Entrepreneur, Dr. Ravi Pil-lai's success story is one that inspires every young entrepreneur.
10+ min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Transitional Credit A Fight To Retain My Property
In It is known to every reader of this article that “lexprospicit non-respicit”, which means that ‘The Law looks forward and not backward’. We are in a period where law is made to look backward whenever the courts read it favourable to the taxpayers and against the Government. Retrospective amendments, in the recent times, have become a weapon with the Government to overcome any judicial pronouncement against the Government. Needless to state, such retrospective has been a matter of challenge, whilst there is no wrangle that the Legislature does have the right to promulgate laws retrospectively.
7 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
New Zealand: A Truly Blessed Island Country
This Island country is one of the first countries which have recovered from the clutches of the disastrous Covid-19 outbreak – which has brought the world to an unpleasant state. Like most advanced countries in the world, the tourism sector of the country is one of the main contributors to the economy. The quick recovery of the country from the clutches of the virus implies that the country may go back to normal in near future itself.
5 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
SKODA OCTAVIA RS 245
Forty-five lakhs for a Skoda Octavia, you must be joking, right? Not really, the Octa-via RS245 is expensive, but special in its own way.
5 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
THE CURIOUS CASE OF GROWTH IN GOLD LOANS AS REDEMPTIONS SPIKED
Amidst this widespread risk aversion, only the gold lenders stood firm and kept their doors open for everyone. Even during the lockdown, when most lenders had stopped lending, gold loan companies were disbursing fresh loans through digital modes. Safety, or worries about likely defaults, is not an issue for the gold loan companies as the gold collateral (i.e. the jewellery pledged by borrowers) is held in the custody of the lenders and can be easily liquidated in the event of default.
4 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
ZERO WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT FOR ENHANCED PROFITABILITY
From a business point of view definitely there are sector-specific opportunities coming up in various fields of health care, technology, online trade and e-commerce etc. For organisations existing in or related to these sectors definitely the opportunities would be easily visible. For other organisations if they have to survive the current crisis they have to spot the opportunities, develop them and encash them.
5 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
THE GREATEST WEAPON HUMANS POSSESS IS THEIR MIND POWER
There is definitely a scientific basis for which our minds released so much energy helping us to perform exceptionally well as per demand. All humans have this potential. But only few learn to ulitise the skill well. Definitely, strong genes play a significant role in developing our mind power but at the same time we can train ourselves to develop strong minds and achieve the impossible.
3 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
MANAGEMENT IS ACTION NOT JUST A BUNCH OF ACTIVITIES
We often mistake activities and movement for concrete action. When we get busy with quotidian, repetitive tasks, we also pile up a series of prosaic and not so important tasks that buries our calendar. Time Management principles are popular and we have some very interesting frameworks including that of ‘7 Habits’ by the late Stephen Covey. But, what is useful is also a mental frame which helps you guide you work life.
4 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
IMAGINE A NEW FUTURE!
Softskills is a combination of communication skills, life skills, behavioural skills, business skills and cognitive skills. Where hard skills are quantifiable skills which can be gained through technical and on-the-job training, Softskills are qualifiable much harder to define and evaluate. It accounts to 80% of your productivity. Technical skills applied alone won’t be truly effective.
4 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
A EXTRAORDINARY LAPAROSCOPIC SURGEON WITH EXCELLENCE: DR. R. PADMAKUMAR
He is a source of comfort not only to patients in Kerala, but also to patients in the GCC countries. He is the fifth person in the world and the first person in the Gulf countries and Kerala to conduct a surgery to surgically resolve the condition of diabetes under the non-obesity category. He is one of the rare doctors who has expertise in endoscopic thyroidectomy, and is the first doctor to successfully perform intestinal surgery with just two grams of haemoglobin. He is the inventor of Ileal Hybrid technology.
7 min |
June - July 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Covid-19: Light At The End Of The Tunnel
A couple of months ago, in the March issue, I had written about COVID-19, even as it was in the early stages, highlighting the need for a coordinated global response. That was when total worldwide cases stood below 100,000 whereas it stands at over 3.8 million now, after having caused over 265,000 deaths. The disease has moved from China to Iran, Italy, South Korea, Spain, France, US and so on, to almost every inhabited part of the world. The worldwide lockdowns necessitated by the need to contain its spread have brought trade and travel to a grinding halt.
4 min |
May - June 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
Covid 19: Is It An Opportunity?
Adv Sherry Samuel Oommen is a practising lawyer at High Court of Kerala who specialises in tax and Corporate Laws. Presently he heads the tax and corporate law practice of Nash Capital Partners. Apart from being a qualified lawyer, he is also a chartered accountant, cost accountant and a company secretary. He is currently pursuing his Doctorate Degree and is reachable at sherryoommen@nashcp.com.
6 min |
May - June 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
NAMIBIA: THE DRIEST COUNTRY IN AFRICA
Africa is a magic. It is an interesting land to explore. The world knows this continent as a dark continent. But, there is more this can offer. Its beauty is unexplainable. It possesses everything – from beautiful mountains and amazing forests to mindblowing deserts.
3 min |
May - June 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
THE NEW CONNOTATION OF LITERACY-DIGITAL AWARENESS
The past two months have been that of severe dis-ruption and change. The COVID 19 spurt and the subsequent lockdowns of various degrees across the world have forced us to explore new working models and also sweat every idea we had of remote working. Plugging into office networks on remote lines, home networks, multiple devices has thrown up opportunities and challenges of its own. Our old definition of literacy was the ability to read and write in a language – the presumption being that this would give us access to education, communication, reading, general information and build our thinking capabilities. But, today, some of it have no meaning unless we are able to access an electronic equipment like a phone or a laptop or desktop and a handheld mobile phone!
5 min |
May - June 2020
UNIQUE TIMES
GADGETS
Honor X10
1 min |