‘OnePlus success because of single prodcut focus’

Avik Das & Sujit John tnn TNN

Bengaluru:02.08.2018

OnePlus founder & CEO Pete Lau said his brand’s outstanding performance in India went way beyond his initial expectations, and attributed it primarily to two elements – the company’s total focus on a single flagship product, and its culture of listening closely to the voices of its user community to understand their expectations.


On Tuesday, global research firm Counterpoint said OnePlus had surpassed Samsung to lead the premium smartphone segment (over Rs 30,000) for the first time ever in the second quarter of 2018. It estimated OnePlus’ share at 40%, and Samsung’s at 34%. Apple was third, but way behind at 14%.

Counterpoint noted that with every flagship OnePlus launch, its user base had been growing in India and this was now translating to record sales for every new flagship. The last quarter had seen the launch of the OnePlus 6, which saw kilometre long queues in front of some of its stores in India.

In an exclusive interaction with TOI in Bengaluru, Lau said, “This is definitely a milestone. It’s also a natural result of our persistence in doing what we believe is right, our focus on making the best possible products.”

India, he said, would now be his biggest market, slightly above even home market China. India accounts for about a third of the company’s revenue – the global revenue was $1.4 billion in 2017.

Lau said his biggest base of users, about 30%, is in the age bracket of 18 to 24. “We realise that India as a country is more close to western culture than we thought. And there is a high level of awareness,” he said. Lau had started working in China’s Oppo Electronics as a hardware engineer. He rose to be vice president in the mobile company. In 2013, he started OnePlus. The brand was launched in India the following year.

Lau understands English, but finds it difficult to speak the language. “I spent a lot of time focusing on the language in university, spent time memorising words, but I was never able to improve my speaking. If I’m sent to the US for a year without a team to support me, I’ll learn,” he said with a laugh. The interview was done with the help of a translator.

Lau is obsessed with design, probably a big factor in OnePlus’ attractiveness. “I can talk about design all night, it’s in my heart, as a product manager. I will spend months working on 0.01mm differences in the back curve or in the bottom slope of the device. We are focused on creating a design that does not become uninteresting within weeks or months,” he says.

Lau said OnePlus does not add elements or functions for the sake of adding them.

“It’s our core product philosophy – create a user experience that’s the best, have a device that does all of what is expected of it in a manner that is as fast and smooth as possible, and doesn’t bind the user to deal with things beyond that, like unnecessary notifications, adware, bloatware,” he said.

Snake catching to fetch Irulas more income

Oppili.P@timesgroup.com

Chennai:02.08.2018

Irula tribals involved in snake catching as well as venom extraction will soon get additional income under the ‘Access and Benefit Sharing’ rules under the Biological Diversity Act of 2002. A preliminary meeting in this regard was organised by the State Biodiversity Board at Panagal buildings in Saidapet on Wednesday.

National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) secretary T Rabi Kumar said under the Biological Diversity Act of 2002 guidelines on Access and Benefit Sharing Regulations 2014 it is stipulated that: ‘Any person referred in the Act, who intends to have access to biological resources and or associated traditional knowledge for research or bio-survey and bio-utilisation for research shall apply to the NBA for obtaining access to such biological resource and or associated knowledge occurring in India.’ Already the NBA had helped several communities to get a real value for their traditional knowledge and also for gathering resources from the forests. Rabi Kumar said Irula tribals are having both the traditional knowledge to catch the snakes and extract venom from it. The resource they collect is used for making anti-venom serum, which is meant for the society. So on both counts the Irula tribals are eligible for getting additional income. This is the first ever meeting for implementing access and benefit sharing system for them, he said.

At ₹10K per answer sheet, marks mafia made a killing

In 2017,Controller of Exams Colluded With Profs To Award Higher Marks To Students Who Had Paid Bribe

Siddharth.Prabhakar@timesgroup.com 02.08.2018

The cash-for-marks scam unearthed by DVAC may well hold answers to the abysmal standards of engineering graduates who pass out of Anna University every year, as much as it raises questions on the credibility of the biggest technical university in Asia with 530 affiliated colleges.

The involvement of controller of examinations GV Uma has shocked many. Former Anna University vice-chancellor M Anandakrishnan told TOI that the scam was unheard of anywhere in the country. Vigilance officers who unearthed large-scale malpractice in the re-evaluation of papers of April-May 2017 exams, too are surprised how well-oiled the rigging machinery ran.

Sources said a closed group of professors controlled the re-evaluation mafia. Once a student fails in the examination and applies for re-evaluation, agents swing into action and convey to the students that the “problem can be fixed,” as a source put it. Around 12 lakh students write semester exams every year; in the April/May 2017, 3.02 lakh applied for re-evaluation, of whom 90,000 got higher marks.

“If half of the students had paid ₹10,000 for higher marks, this means ₹40 crore for just one semester exam. The controller of exams post is for three years, during which at least six exams are conducted,” said a source. This was also during the period when the university was without a VC. Before M K Surappa was appointed in April 2018, the university was headless for two years. Surappa’s predecessor M Rajaram is facing a DVAC case for taking bribes for appointment of professors.

Here’s how the re-evaluation process should ideally take place in the university. A student who wants to apply for re-evaluation has to pay ₹700, of which ₹300 is for the photocopy of the answer script. After a subject expert confirms that there can be a change of mark in the script, the controller of examination comes into the picture. The controller decides the re-evaluation centre and appoints officers who are in charge of ensuring accuracy and quality of valuation.

Last year, however, protocols were violated and the controller of examinations colluded with re-evaluating professors to forge answer sheets and illegally award higher marks to students who had paid bribe. The scam now unearthed pertains to a central re-evaluation process at Tindivanam, which was selected as the valuation centre for the zone. There are 23 zones, each with a zonal coordinator. Apart from Uma, the other main accused are P Vijaykumar, assistant professor and dean at the University College of Engineering, Tindivanam and R Sivakumar, assistant professor maths at the same college. The other accused are examiners R Sundarajan, M Mahesh Babu, N Anbuselvan, C N Pratheeba, I Pragatheeswar, M Rameshkannan and S Ramesh.

Incidentally, it was after the evaluation of the April/May 2017 examinations in November last year, that Anna University debarred more than 1,100 faculty members from valuation. This was after variations of up to 40 marks were found in more than 50,000 of the 2.5 lakh answer scripts. For variations up to 20, 30 and 40 marks, the professors were barred for one, two and three years respectively.

DVAC officials are considering the possibility of some of these professors being penalised for not toeing the line of the scamsters. “In that case, we may get some new tips from the debarred professors,” said an official. Denying all allegations, Uma told TOI that she had streamlined all procedures during her term and was transparent in her activities. DVAC sources said they would conduct a detailed investigation and file more FIRs if needed.

Paying your maid less can land you in prison

Tamil Nadu Issues Notification Fixing Minimum Wage For ‘Unskilled’ Domestic Workers

Ekatha.Ann@timesgroup.com 02.08.2018

Paying your domestic help even a rupee less than ₹37 per hour for doing daily chores like sweeping, washing utensils and mopping can land you behind bars.

Enforcing labour reforms in the unorganized sector, the Tamil Nadu government in a recent notification has fixed ₹37 per hour as the minimum hourly wage of ‘unskilled’ domestic workers, while the remuneration for skilled workers like home nurses and semiskilled helps like cooks and gardeners have been set at ₹39 and ₹38 per hour respectively.

The rate for an entire day’s chores (eight hours), including washing clothes and utensils, sweeping and mopping the floor and babysitting, has been fixed at a minimum of ₹6,836 a month, while qualified home nurses should get at least ₹8,051 for similar hours. The remuneration for those who stay with their employers – skilled, unskilled and semi-skilled – is 10% higher than this.

The notification said the minimum wage was fixed based on recommendations from an eight-member committee headed by the deputy commissioner of labour, Coimbatore, after various meetings with domestic workers’ unions, labour inspectors and employers. “From January to June last year, we travelled to 10 districts and held discussions with domestic workers associations to understand their needs,” said a member of the committee. Besides interviews, the team also factored in the average consumer price index in Chennai city in 2015 while fixing the rate, she said.

While Tamil Nadu, along with Kerala, Rajasthan and Punjab, has been lauded for including domestic helps in the schedule of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 – entitling these workers to file cases before authorities concerned in this regard – Tamil Nadu has lagged in fixing a minimum wage.

Advocate David Sunder Singh, who deals with labour issues, said workers can seek legal recourse for labour and human rights violations. “If an employer pays less than an agreed sum, it is a labour issue. If an employer pays less than the minimum wage, it is a human rights violation,” he said. The burden of proof rests with the employers. Singh quoted a 1982 SC order which said if a person receives less than the minimum wage, it amounts to forced labour. The employers can be tried under the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, Minimum Wages Act, 1948 and IPC Sections 370 and 374, which invite imprisonment of up to seven years with fine. “Even an oral agreement will suffice as evidence,” said Singh.

While the government has no clue about the number of domestic workers in TN, unions estimate it to be around 18 lakh, a majority of them are in the semi-skilled category.

The notification has evoked mixed reactions from employers and domestic workers.

Valarmathi of National Domestic Workers’ Movement said the minimum wage was too little. “When the government asked us for recommendation, we had suggested ₹75 per hour. The wage they have fixed now is what we had suggested in 2010. What we need is a living wage not a minimum wage,” said Valarmathi whose association has 2,000 members in Chennai. Although the notification said dearness allowance would go up with the increase in consumer price index, union leaders were sceptical. “Although the revision should be done annually, industrial workers don’t get it. The domestic sector is unmonitored” said T A Latha, head of south Chennai Metropolitan Domestic Workers’ Union, which has 5,000 members. She cautioned against minimum wage being used as a yardstick. “Employers shouldn’t pat themselves when they see they pay more than the minimum wage,” she said. Residents now pay between ₹2,000 and ₹6,000 a month for an hour’s work.

Employers, on the other hand, have appealed to the state for more specific guidelines. “It would have helped had the government specified how many days off workers are entitled to and when we are allowed to deduct their salary. Some of us bear with shoddy work and extended periods of leave because we find it difficult to find a replacement,” said T Mohan, a resident of Virgumbakkam.

Kapil, Gavaskar, Sidhu, Aamir get Imran invite

Omer Farooq Khan TNN

Islamabad: 02.08.2018

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party said on Wednesday that it would like to invite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other foreign heads of states to the PM-elect Imran Khan’s oath ceremony.

Though the party has already invited Indian celebrities like Aamir Khan, Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and Navjot Singh Sidhu, it has asked the foreign office to confirm whether foreign heads of states could be invited to the PM’s swearing-in ceremony, scheduled to take place in Islamabad on August 11, three days before the country’s Independence Day.

A day earlier, the PTI had denied reports that it was considering inviting PM Modi and other heads of Saarc countries for the ceremony.



Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, Aamir Khan & Navjot Singh Sidhu have been invited for the Aug 11 oath ceremony by Imran’s party PTI

PTI seeks nod on inviting Modi, other dignitaries

In an informal conversation with reporters, PTI spokesman Fawad Chaudhry said the party had asked the FO if it would be possible to invite foreign dignitaries, including Indian PM Modi, at a short notice. “The FO has yet to respond on the matter and we are waiting for it,” Chaudhry said.

He said the party had already invited celebrities like Amir Khan, Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar for the ceremony.

On Tuesday, Iftikhar Durrani, PTI’s media head, said, “We have note extended any invite nor was this issue

Marks-for-money racket at Anna University unearthed

DVAC FIR On Ex-Controller Of Exams, 9 Profs

Siddharth.Prabhakar@timesgroup.com 02.08.2018

Tens of thousands of engineering graduates from Anna University might have got their degrees by bribing professors who re-evaluated their answer sheets, an investigation by the directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption (DVAC) suggests. The agency filed an FIR on Tuesday naming former controller of examinations G V Uma and nine professors for rigging answer sheets for money.

TOI reported in May 2016 that 40% of candidates who applied for re-evaluation since 2011 had got more marks. The DVAC probe found students paid ₹10,000 as bribe for each re-evaluated paper of the April-May 2017 exams. Some 3,02,380 students had applied for re-evaluation, of which 73,733 students passed and 16,636 students got higher marks after the recheck. Between 2015 and 2018, Uma was in charge of exams and re-evaluation of papers for the university’s 530 affiliated colleges which annually admit 1.5 lakh students. The FIR said Uma, along with assistant professors P Vijayakumar and R Sivakumar took money to forge answer scripts and increase marks.

The other seven accused are examiners responsible for coordinating and conducting the reevaluation process at the University College of Engineering, Tindivanam, where the scam was uncovered. “When they smelled trouble, they destroyed a large number of answer scripts,” said an official. The officers, however, managed to get around 100 scripts as evidence.

Uma, meanwhile, said the charges were false. “I’m true to my conscience ... God is with me,” she said. DVAC has slapped cheating and forgery charges, and seized property documents after raids at houses of Uma, Vijaykumar and Sivakumar.

4-month-old dies on flight from Bengaluru to Patna

Hyderabad:01.08.2018

An IndiGo flight from Bengaluru to Patna was diverted to Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA), on Tuesday, after a four-month-old boy developed health complications on board. The infant was rushed to the Apollo clinic at RGIA where, according to police, he was declared brought dead.

The Patna-bound IndiGo flight 6E 897, took off from Bengaluru at 6.09am. An hour-and-half later, the flight was diverted to the Shamshabad facility as baby Sparsh, travelling with his parents, Sandeep Kumar and Puneeta Sharma, developed breathing problems, RGIA SI Venkateswarulu said. By the time the flight landed in Hyderabad, authorities had made necessary arrangements to attend to the infant.

“The baby was brought to the emergency room of the Apollo clinic at RGIA around 7.45am. On examination, doctors confirmed that he was brought dead. While the actual cause of his death is not known, the doctors attending to the baby noticed slight bleeding from his nose,” said a source from Apollo hospital. Meanwhile, speaking about travelling with infants, hyderabad doctors said, “Any infant aged over two months can travel by air provided the child is not suffering from any major illness.” “Many a times, a mother makes the mistake of feeding a child during the flight without knowing that it can cause aspiration, with solid or liquid food entering the airway and lungs,” said Altaf Naseem, director, Candy Children's Hospital. TNN