Ashish P. Dhakan MD & CEO, Prama Hikvision India Pvt. Ltd. A pro-growth budget with a vision for the new emerging India India’s progressive Union Budget seeks to complement macro-economic level growth with a focus on micro-economic level all inclusive welfare. It has a pro-technology focus with futuristic vision. A special thrust on promotion of Digital India and adoption of emerging technologies, including 5G, AI, ML and drones. The key highlights of union budget underlines the economic growth estimated at 9.2% to be the highest among all large economies. It promises 60 lakh new jobs to be created under the productivity linked incentive scheme in 14 sectors. It also highlights the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes, which has the potential to create an additional production of Rs 30 lakh crore. This budget has a roadmap for achieving the objective of ‘Make-inIndia’ and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat.’ The customs duty rationalisation to incentivise domestic manufacturing is a welcome step. The budget has the PM GatiShakti Scheme with ambitious plans to transform the transportation sector. The seven engines that are going to drive PM GatiShakti are Roads, Railways, Airports, Ports, Mass Transport, Waterways and Logistics Infrastructure. The big boost to infrastructure will help the security industry growth in the long term. There is a greater focus on MSME sector in the budget and as a key stakeholder of the MSME Ecosystem, we feel this a very positive step for the security industry. The government has announced that Udyam, e-shram, NCS and ASEEM portals will be interlinked. The help is provided to 130 lakh MSMEs as additional credit under Emergency Credit Linked Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS). The extension of this scheme till March 2023 is a thoughtful decision. The firm focus on skill development is another positive aspect of the union budget. Digital Ecosystem for Skilling and Livelihood (DESH-Stack e-portal) will be launched to empower citizens to skill, reskill or upskill through on-line training. Overall a pro-growth budget with a vision for the new emerging India on global front. Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani National Vice Chairman, NAREDCO & MD, Hiranandani Group As budget decodes Kaam, Kisan and Kamai as the focus, the outlays have comes out with a ‘budget for the economy,’ with sustainability & infrastructure investment as its underlying theme. Rating it at 7/10, the Budget is clearly about complementing macro-growth with micro-all-inclusive welfare, digital economy and fintech, tech-enabled development, energy transition, bolstering investment and climate action – which augurs well for the nation. Industry welcomes much awaited focus to resolve long standing issues of reduction in approval timelines for land & construction. Emphasis laid towards modernisation and reforms in building byelaws, TDR reforms, urban town planning schemes, transit oriented multi modal corridors and transferable development rights. Impetus to urban development policy with enhanced capacity building will lead holistic development of urban cities. With rise in population & career mobility, focus on nurturing new smart tier 2-3 cities will result in a big boost for Real Estate infrastructure with cascading impact on additional job creation. Extension of PMAY scheme till March 2023 along with an allocation of Rs 48,000 crores outlay will further enhance affordable housing benefits to 80 lacs new beneficiaries under middle class and economic weaker sections in urban areas. Single window portal for green clearances is a step to promote ease of doing business in augmenting sustainable development along with special mobility zones for electric vehicles. Granting of infrastructure status to data centres in lieu of impetus to data localization and protect data sovereignty is shot in the arm. This will enable the data centres industry to avail long & cheap credit financing in order to foster competitiveness to become a global data centre hub. Additional impetus on Gati Shakti, inclusive development for last mile connectivity, public investment, capital spending and financing of investments will augment steady economic growth. Rajesh Maurya Regional Vice President, India and SAARC, Fortinet In this budget the Government has made a strong economic statement with its focus on public investments to spur growth. Forward looking and catering to an aspirational Digital India the budget once again lays its emphasis on technology with the launch of digital currency using blockchain, digital university for education in different Indian languages, roll out of 5G and boost to Start-ups. Climate action is among the top 4 priorities for the Government. Climate change continues to pose a significant threat, and all business and public organizations across the country must do their part to address it. Skilling programs and partnerships with industry will be re-oriented to promote continuous skilling avenues, sustainability, and employability. The launch of Desh-Stack e-portal will provide the ecosystem for skilling and livelihood. Fortinet has been dedicated to closing the cybersecurity skills gap by making all its NSE self-paced training courses free for everyone. We will further build on this commitment with a pledge to train 1 million people across the globe in the next 5 years. Essential services, Digital currency and the sensitivity of the information the government holds all calls for a shared responsibility in protecting valuable data and digital assets. Smart planning, doing the cybersecurity basics and leveraging the increasing convergence of networking and security are keys to ensuring that all services can operate efficiently and securely. S Sriram Chief Strategy Officer, iValue InfoSolutions It was a consistent and pragmatic budget with a lot of thrust around infrastructure spending to enhance growth. Despite multiple elections around the corner, great to see no populist announcement with focus on reducing fiscal deficit starting next fiscal. 5G rollout and extension of sops around ‘make-in-India’ for new start-ups should augur well for the tech enabled industry. Central Government focus around digitization will offer business opportunities for domestic focused ITeS players with the Government taking the lead role on capex investment recovery post pandemic. Overall exciting times ahead as India is poised to be the fastest growing economy for the next few years. R Arun Prasath Chief Information Offier, EverestIMS Technologies A number of measures have been introduced in the country’s General…

The 16th edition of the Security Leadership Summit organized by Central Association of Private Security Industry (CAPSI) was held at the NDMC Convention Centre, Sansad Marg, New Delhi on 17th December 2021. This years’ Summit was organized in a hybrid manner with physical presence of over 250 industry leaders from across the country. Eminent politicians, bureaucrats and public figures shared their thought process with respect to the growth and well-being of the industry. Apart from them, the conference was also attended by the senior officials and students of the private security management course being conducted by Sardar Patel University of Police Security and Criminal Justice (SPUP) to understand the functioning of private security industry. Over 150 security guards who are the frontline soldiers of various private security agencies also attended the Summit. All the members of CAPSI were able to view the entire proceeding sitting at their respective states and were able to even participate through zoom platform. The highlight of the event was the participation of the Chief Guest Gen (Dr) VK Singh MoS Road, Transport and Highways at the inaugural session. Traditional practice of the lighting of the lamp was followed wherein the dignitaries on the dais lead by Gen (Dr) VK Singh lit the auspicious lamp followed by distribution of Badge of Honour to the Frontline warriors of the industry for their exemplary courage during the pandemic. The summit was also graced by Udai Mahurkar, Information Commissioner of India; Anurag Batra, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Business World Magazine; Prakash Mirani, Additional CEO, GEM; and Advocate SK Gupta as Guest of Honour. Audio Visual on Private Security Day Celebrations – 4th December An audio visual on Private Security Day celebrations was showcased after the inaugural session. Addressing the Summit, Chairman Kunwar Vikram Singh highlighted that to recognise the role of private security industry and private security guards in the nation-building process, particularly in the times of national emergency and crisis, the Central Association of Private Security Industry (CAPSI) decided to celebrate December 4 as the ‘Private Security Day.’ He informed the Chief Guest that ‘Private Security Day’ was also celebrated internationally as all the leading global organisations and companies agreed to the CAPSI proposal. “December 4 is a special day for the entire private security industry in India and across the world as it was on this day that the former President Smt Pratibha Patil had inaugurated the CAPSI’s Annual Security Leadership Summit in 2009. It was the first-ever occasion across the world when a Head of the State had inaugurated the annual summit of the private security industry in any country,” said Mr Singh, “It is also a solemn occasion for us to honour the contributions of the private security industry during the Covid-19 pandemic which created havoc in India and across the world. We paid tributes to our brave private security personnel who died while serving humanity during the pandemic. A number of events were planned to commemorate the day. Certificates and prizes to recognise the services of the deserving security personnel were awarded. Associates of CAPSI across the globe also celebrated the day which speaks volumes of solidarity of security sector fraternity.” The Chairman further said as the country’s economy was badly affected, many private security establishments were also forced to close down due to the slowdown of business, thereby resulting in loss of jobs for the employees. The private security industry was able to withstand the onslaught of the Covid tsunami and continued to provide services to the end users. The performance of the private security industry during the COVID pandemic, especially during the lockdown phase, was outstanding. The fact that the industry was recognised as an ‘essential service’ by the government authorities speaks volumes of faith and trust the Government of India reposes on the industry. The security personnel faced a lot of problems during that time when public transport and other amenities which we take for granted was not available. Most importantly, the fear of contracting the deadly virus as they were vulnerable was also there. Despite that the security guard, undaunted by the difficulties posed did manage to reach his place of duty and performed his tasks admirably. Now was the time to appreciate their role and the professional commitment exhibited at that time. Keeping in view the spirit, ‘Private Security Day’ was celebrated in all parts of country by all state chapters of CAPSI. He said that with the dedication and devotion with which our comrades celebrated this day, there was hardly any city or town where it would not have been celebrated. Addressing the Summit, Chairman Kunwar Vikram Singh also lamented the government proposal to downgrade private security industry from skilled to semiskilled category as it will hurt employability of over 1 lakh private security guards currently working in the industry. He urged the government to reconsider it. He also said increasing mandatory training period for private security guards from 160 hours to 400 hours was not feasible as there are no paraphernalia available to conduct such training programmes. Private Security Sector to Employ more Women in Times to Come Addressing the Security Leadership Summit-2021, Gen (Dr) V K Singh said the Indian private security industry needs to evolve itself by employing more women and maximising use of technology in order to survive and excel. He said, in times to come it will be difficult to provide security and ensure safety without the use of technology. Similarly, need of security is growing across sectors, and here women can play a major role in providing security to various businesses and industry including markets, saloons, highways schools and institutions and companies etc. Their role and involvement is key to the growth of the private security industry, Gen VK Singh added. The Union Minister also stressed the need for better training to provide better security, and here too technology will play a major role. Terrorists and anti-social elements are using technology to commit crime, so the private security industry will also have…

Every year, a large number of traffic incidents and crashes occur worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 1.3 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes. There are many factors leading to this – road infrastructure, road users, vehicle speeds, and vehicle safety. Another of these is fatigue and drowsiness at the wheel, which could result in a dangerous situation that jeopardizes the safety of driver, passengers, and even pedestrians. According to The Euro Weekly News, the fatigue detection system and other driver assistance system will be mandatory in new cars in 2022, as it says the vast majority of road accidents are caused by human error. So much so, it is critical that actions to improve vehicle safety are taken to promote safe transport for all road users. How a video-based onboard security system can help As a leading IoT solution provider with video as its core competency, Hikvision designed and developed its Mobile Onboard Video System to boost vehicle security in comprehensive ways. These range from reliable footage recording and route deviation or speeding alarms, to emergency alarms and abnormal driving behavior analysis. The system offers 360° video coverage both inside and outside a vehicle, providing real-time situational awareness for safe driving. Video footage is reliably transmitted and stored, which can be used as forensic evidence in the event of a traffic accident. It also generates insights such as passenger flow in a public bus, for example, so that passenger distribution can be optimized to improve their comfort. Protecting a range of road vehicles Hikvision’s Onboard Video Security System ensures that typical types of vehicle are well protected, including public buses, school buses, trucks, taxis, and ride-hailing cars. Public buses Buses play an important role in urban transportation. For many people, they provide an indispensable method for their daily commute. Accordingly, the operational efficiency of the bus fleet, its services, and public safety demonstrate new challenges for public transport authorities. Hikvision understands those challenges, and has developed its Bus Solution with two important features. Firstly, passenger flow counting, based on video analytics, allows bus drivers to know the actual number of passengers inside in real time. This is helpful when certain compliance requirements such as social distancing is introduced. If passenger flow exceeds a pre-defined number, an alert can be sent to the operation center for better bus fleet scheduling. This help them to improve service quality and passenger satisfaction. Another feature is abnormal driving behavior detection, which can pick up driver fatigue, as well as smoking in the bus. If these incidents are detected, an alert is sent to the monitoring center in real time, allowing operators to communicate with drivers immediately via two-way audio. School buses School buses can carry 40 or more students to and from school. As such, operators want to take extra care of this precious cargo. Is the school bus on its usual route? Did a student board the bus on time and get off at the right stop? For school administrators and parents, these matters can be critical. Hikvision’s School Bus Solution offers innovative onboard attendance capabilities. When students get on the bus, they can swipe their ID card on a terminal and the record is uploaded to the system’s central platform right away. At the same time, a notification can be pushed to parents’ mobile phones, informing them that their child is safely on the bus. It’s also important to protect students when they get off the school bus and cross the road. The solution includes a ‘stop for school bus’ sign with an audible and visual flash warning. This works to notify passing vehicles to stop until students safely cross a street. Trucks Trucks transport a wide range of goods and materials, ranging from our daily necessities to luxury products. Therefore, it is important for logistics companies to know the real-time status of their truck fleet, whether they transit goods on time, and arrive at the destinations safely etc. Hikvision’s Truck Solution collects audio and video data with cameras installed inside and outside the truck. It sends GPS and alarm data through onboard video recorders and 3G/ 4G wireless networks, to realize remote truck monitoring and management. Due to their size, trucks have large blind spots on both sides. Vehicles located in these blind spots are difficult to see and can easily go unnoticed by the driver. Hikvision’s Truck Solution offers camera views that cover these blind spots, so truck drivers know about vehicles entering into these areas. This helps them to drive safely and promotes road safety. Hikvision’s solution further provides different kinds of sensors for bespoke needs on a truck. For example, if a truck transports valuable goods that are not allowed to be checked during the journey, a door sensor can be added to record if anyone opens it before arrival. In some cases, if a truck transports cold food, the temperature inside must be maintained at a stable level to ensure freshness. Accordingly, customers can include a temperature sensor in the system to monitor the temperature change. Taxis and ride-hailing cars As mobility improves in urban life, many people use mobile apps to get a ride, either with a taxi or a ride-hailing car. It’s convenient and fast. On the other hand, it’s also important to maintain rider safety from the start of the journey until they reach their destination. In busy periods, for example rush hours and holiday seasons, taxi and ride-hailing drivers struggle to take a break and they usually work long hours. In this situation, it’s very easy to get tired which could also cause health issues. Hikvision’s solution for taxis and ride-hailing cars includes abnormal driving behavior analysis, such as driving while drowsy. In that case, drivers can be reminded to pull over and take a rest. Hikvision’s solution also provides a trunk camera that records footage if a passenger’s luggage or handbag was left behind after departure, or stolen by others. From…