Good morning, Bengaluru!
🌧️ Today’s weather: Cloudy with a chance of rain.
🧐 Did you know? Prakash Padukone became the first Indian to win the All England Open Badminton Championships. His father Ramesh Padukone was a secretary of the Mysore Badminton Association.
🐂 Kambala race in the city
Bengaluru is gearing up for its inaugural Kambala race featuring a distinctive 155-metre slush track, set to commence on November 25, 2023.
What’s it about? The event, traditionally held in Karnataka’s coastal regions, will debut in Bengaluru under the aegis of the Bengaluru Kambala Committee, attracting 116 buffalo pair registrations. The track will be the longest in the state.
- Ashok Kumar Rai, Puttur MLA and committee president, unveiled plans for a longer track to mark this milestone, alongside exciting rewards for winners.
- The event will also promote Tulu culture, with proceeds directed towards constructing a Tulu Bhavana in the city.
Huge turnout expected: The two-day event is expected to see a massive turnout, with notable personalities like film actor Suniel Shetty and cricketer KL Rahul in attendance, bolstering the cultural and competitive spirit of Kambala.
🧅 Onion prices soar
Onion prices in Karnataka have shot up, with Bengaluru witnessing a rate of ₹75 per kilogram due to drought-induced demand.
Surge price: Over a week, prices surged by 40 to 50% per kilogram, heavily impacting consumers. The drought in the onion-producing northern Karnataka region is a major cause.
- This price hike is not just a local issue but resonates in Delhi too, hinting at a larger supply-demand imbalance in the market.
- Nationwide, prices are up as rabi stocks dip and fresh Kharif stock awaits arrival.
Stock disposal: The Union government has offloaded 1.7 lakh tonnes of buffer onion stock across 22 states to stabilise prices, a measure that will continue till December.
📈 Historic SSE listing
Bengaluru’s SGBS Unnati Foundation is set to become the first entity to list on a social stock exchange (SSE) in India with a zero-coupon-zero-principal (ZCZP) bond offering of ₹2 crore.
What for? The foundation aims to utilize the funds raised to train 10,000 graduating youths from government colleges for employment, through their UNXT programme.
- Unlike commercial exchanges, SSEs aim for societal benefits. This listing promotes transparency and accountability in the NGO sector, addressing donor mistrust.
- It’s part of a broader government initiative to foster transparency in social sector funding.
Story so far: Over the years, the foundation has positively influenced over 80,000 individuals, with a goal to impact 1 lakh people in the current financial year alone. Major donors like Infosys Foundation, ExxonMobil, Boeing, MUFG Bank, and HDB Financial Services have supported Unnati Foundation’s mission.
💰 Aequs secures ₹448 crore funding
Bengaluru-based contract manufacturer Aequs has raised ₹448 crore in a fresh round of equity funding.
Funders: The funding round was led by Singapore-based Amansa Capital, with participation from five new investors including Catamaran Ventures and Steadview Capital. Aequs, known as India’s largest aerospace precision components manufacturer, primarily exports its products and supplies to major aerospace companies like Airbus, Boeing, and Honeywell.
- The company plans to use this capital to launch a new Advanced Technology Products (ATP) vertical for manufacturing high-precision components for global consumer electronics companies.
- Aequs’ revenue is almost entirely from exports, showcasing its strong global presence in the aerospace sector.
Locations: Aequs operates 12 aerospace-focused units in India, the US, and France, along with five more units in Karnataka for its non-aerospace businesses.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Ice cream or kulfi – what do you like more?
- I like ice cream more than kulfi.
- I like kulfi more than ice cream.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
If you were a school teacher, which subject would you be teaching?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- Malabar Group has opened ‘Grandma Home’ for destitute women in Bengaluru.
- Read the story about Malleswaram’s 120-year-old Canara Union.
- Despite budget allocation, the city’s footpaths still have recurring issues.
- Bengaluru scientists have developed a heat-engine that generates high power with high efficiency, overcoming a 200-year-old problem.
- World’s first portable oxygen generator has been developed by Bengaluru-based startup, O2-Matic.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I prefer private transport: 33.3%
- I prefer public transport: 66.7% 🏆
That’s it for today. Have a great day!