Just energy partners with HCLTech for AI-led business transformation
HCLTech has been selected by Just Energy, a leading US-based energy supply company, to enhance Just Energy's operations and customer experience. HCLTech will leverage its integrated Digital Process Outsourcing solutions suite and GenAI platform AI Force to enhance operational efficiency across Just Energy's IT, finance, analytics, customer care, sales and renewals functions. HCLTech will also deploy digitalCOLLEAGUE, its comprehensive and role-specific single-UI platform and Toscona, its business process optimization suite, to improve workforce collaboration and business process management.Powered by Capital Market - Live News
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Print
29 minutes ago
- The Print
Signature Global to invest Rs 2,200 cr on new housing project in Gurugram
Signature Global emerged as the fifth largest listed real estate developer last fiscal in terms of sales bookings by achieving record pre-sales of Rs 10,290 crore. The company has recently launched a premium residential project, 'Cloverdale', comprising 770 apartments, on Southern Peripheral Road (SPR), Sector 71, Gurugram. New Delhi, Jun 29 (PTI) Realty firm Signature Global will invest around Rs 2,200 crore to develop a new housing project in Gurugram to expand business and achieve over 20 per cent growth in its pre-sales this fiscal year. The Gurugram-based company has given a guidance of posting Rs 12,500 crore worth pre-sales in the current fiscal. 'We have launched a new housing project in Gurugram. Housing demand continues to be strong in this city, especially for reputed builders,' Signature Global Chairman Pradeep Kumar Aggarwal told PTI. The company is selling homes in a price range of Rs 4 crore to Rs 7 crore in this project, which is spread over 8 acres and is part of an overall 22-acre development. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2031. Last month, Aggarwal said the company will invest around Rs 4,000 crore this fiscal to acquire land parcels and carry out construction activities in its housing projects at Gurugram. Signature Global had invested Rs 1,070 crore last fiscal year to purchase 48 acres of land in Gurugram, Haryana. 'Land is an important raw material for real estate developers. We will be investing around Rs 1,200-1,500 crore on the acquisition of land parcels,' he had said. Aggarwal said the investment in construction activities would be around Rs 2,500 crore in 2025-26 against Rs 1,900 crore in the preceding fiscal. Last week, Signature Global announced plans to raise Rs 875 crore through issue of non-convertible debentures to refinance debt and expand business. 'We have taken the approval of board to raise funds. We will also seek shareholders approvals,' Aggarwal said. He said the company will use Rs 450 crore to refinance its existing debt while the remaining amount will be for business growth. Aggarwal said the company is targeting to raise funds by end of August, subject to shareholders' approval. Signature Global, one of the leading real estate developers in the country, started its business to develop affordable housing projects but shifted its focusing on mid-income, premium and luxury segments because of high land cost in Gurugram. It posted a net profit of Rs 101.2 crore last fiscal, a sharp jump from Rs 16.32 crore in the preceding year. Its total income grew to Rs 2,637.99 crore in the last fiscal from Rs 1,324.55 crore in 2023-24. Since inception, Signature Global has delivered 13.5 million square feet of housing projects and has a strong pipeline of about 21.6 million sq ft of saleable area in upcoming projects, along with 46.38 million sq ft of ongoing projects, targeted for completion within the next 2-3 years. PTI MJH HVA This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Time of India
30 minutes ago
- Time of India
Late, missing PF contributions by employer today could prevent your PF withdrawal, transfer later: Here's how to track your EPF properly
Missing, delayed contributions Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills Erroneous contributions How to rectify gaps For many, the Employee Provident Fund remains a cornerstone of retirement planning. But what if this safety net gets torn when you need it? This nightmare scenario is a reality for many who face claim rejections at the time of withdrawing provident fund money. Even the tiniest of errors or gaps in your employment records can leave your PF in limbo. One potential red flag may be discrepancies in the contributions to your EPF account . Here's how a tiny omission can have costly repercussions for month, when a portion of your salary gets diverted towards the EPF account, your employer is expected to deposit an equivalent amount . The employer is obligated to remit this payment within a specified time frame, usually the 15th of the following month. Since it is the employer's responsibility, most of us trust company officials to make the payin punctually. You may not realise it at the time, but your employer may have missed or delayed some contributions. If the employer has not remitted the PF dues, you may face problems during Kanekar, Founder, FinRight Technologies, points out 'Delayed or missing contributions may ultimately lead to your claim getting rejected or put on hold.'Often, the missing contributions may be owing to simple administrative errors. Chennai-based Purushothaman P, 39, worked with an IT services company for 12 years from 2010 to 2022. During this stint, he was posted abroad with the same employer's group company for nearly four he was not on the payroll of the Indian company during this period, his records show a gap in PF contributions of 40 months. The nature of this gap, or non-contributory period, was not properly recorded by the employer on the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation ( EPFO ) portal. This discrepancy reflected as incomplete service history and a lower visible PF balance in his PF records. For this reason, his EPF transfer request was later Purushothaman's case, the matter got resolved quickly as his employer issued a letter to the EPFO, citing the reason for the gap in contributions. This was sufficient for the EPFO to approve his transfer. 'Written clarification from my employer was required to mark the days of non-contributory period in my PF records,' says another instance, when Nitin Prakash of New Delhi applied for PF withdrawal after leaving his employer in December 2024, he found that the latter's PF contributions were only credited up to October. The employer had deposited November and December dues belatedly in January 2025 as part of the final settlement. This discrepancy between the date of exit and contribution timeline prevented Prakash from initiating his final PF recent years, there have been several media reports of companies failing to deposit money in the EPF account of employees. 'Instances of missing or delayed contributions are increasing and affecting employees' provident fund savings,' observes Vikash Jain, Co-founder, Share Samadhan. 'This may be due to sheer negligence by the employer or could be intentional in some cases, such as when the company is in financial distress .'For instance, airline SpiceJet was in the news last July for not depositing EPF dues of its staff since January 2022. Employees at Byju's (Think and Learn Pvt Ltd) had accused the edtech company of not depositing PF contributions, despite the same being deducted from their pay. Byju's reportedly made the payment later after much rise in such episodes last year led to the EPFO issuing a stern warning to employers. Experts have also noted that missed payments need not just happen with cashstrapped or troubled employers; even healthy companies can miss their share of EPF contributions, due to defaulting on PF contributions are liable to pay damages and interest on the amount due. As per sections 7Q and 14B of the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, the employer is liable to pay damages and higher interest rate on amount due from damages and penalty rates differ according to the duration of the delay. If the duration of default is less than two months, the employer has to pay 5% per annum of the total contribution to the employee's fund. A default of 2-4 months will incur damages at 10% per annum, which rises to 15% for delays up to 4-6 months. If the employer fails to deposit PF dues for over six months, the penalty is 25% per annum of the total contribution. However, the damages are restricted up to 100% of the amount due. Simple interest at 12% per annum is payable on the due amount for the entire period of the EPFO portal and click on the 'For Employees' section under the 'Services' section on top of the on 'Member Passbook' under 'Services'.Enter your UAN and password. Fill in the captcha and sign in.A six-digit OTP will be sent to your Aadhaarlinked phone the OTP and click 'Verify'. Your PF account balance will be displayed on the can check your EPF balance on the EPFO portal only if your UAN is activated and registered on the in to the UMANG app by clicking on the profile picture. Select 'Services' and click on the 'Social Security' on 'EPFO' option from the list of 'Employee Centric Service', click on 'View Passbook'Enter your UAN number. You will receive an OTP on your registered mobile on the company for which you want to view and download the EPF passbook. The passbook will be displayed on the contributions is another problem area. Your employer may inadvertently deposit a lower or higher amount to your EPF account. 'Often, PF contribution amount deposited by the employer does not match as per the rules, which can create problems for the employee,' asserts simple accounting errors may lead to erroneous PF contributions. For instance, an employee who gets a salary hike in April may receive the higher salary payout, but the payroll team may continue depositing PF as per old many instances, errors creep into EPS (Employee Pension Scheme) contributions. Under the EPF rules, 8.33% of the 12% employer contribution is diverted to fund the EPS, subject to a monthly wage ceiling of Rs.15,000. Currently, a maximum contribution of Rs.1,250 per month is deposited to the employee's EPS account. Sometimes, the employer may inadvertently skip EPS contributions or deposit the wrong Pune-based chartered accountant Vaibhav Jain, 35, switched jobs in 2019, his PF transfer from the previous employer got rejected, as his EPS account had money he was not eligible for. Since 2014, new members are not eligible to enrol in the pension scheme of EPF if their monthly pay exceeds Rs.15,000. Jain's previous employer had mistakenly continued to deduct money towards EPS for three years even though his wages exceeded the ceiling. This resulted in his PF transfer getting blocked. For five years, Jain's entire PF corpus was stuck—and interest thereon went unpaid—as he ran from pillar to post in many failed attempts to get his passbook reconciled. He finally got his PF transfer processed towards the end of last year, along with unpaid insist that the onus is on employees to remain vigilant about discrepancies in their PF contributions.'Regular monitoring by the employee is required for early detection of these issues,' says Jain, adding, 'The employee often realises the gaps only at the time of applying for withdrawal or transfer, at which point it may be difficult even for the employer to correct the records.'If this sounds like a task, don't fret. Missing or delayed contributions are fairly easy to spot. Here is what you can your passbook on the EPFO portal or UMANG app to keep tabs on the deposits to your EPF account on a monthly basis. Any discrepancy in contributions will be reflected in the passbook. The member must activate his/her UAN to access the e-passbook. Members also receive SMS on their registered mobile phone on credit of monthly contribution to their PF account, though this system unfortunately doesn't always work. Employees may also verify their salary slips to see if the amounts match with the PF you find any gaps, bring it to your employer's attention immediately and seek rectification. For record, send a written communication to your HR with evidence of your EPF passbook. 'In cases of genuine administrative lapses, the employer may simply clear the dues or issue a clarification letter to the EPFO citing reasons for the gaps,' avers if the employer is non-compliant, you may have to escalate the matter to the EPFO directly. You may file a grievance on the EPF i Grievance Management System (EPFIGMS) portal or file a written complaint with the regional PF authorities. Submit relevant proof that EPF deposits have been deducted but not deposited in the EPF account. Your salary slips and EPF passbook entries should be enough evidence in most cases. If the employer is in default, the EPFO has the power to investigate and seek corrective actions by the employer, failing which it can impose damages and penalties on the company. The EPFO can file a complaint with the police under Section 316 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for action against the the problem persists, try filing a grievance with the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS). Finally, if nothing else works, consider approaching the courts. 'If the employer continues to default and refuses to comply, employees can seek legal remedies,' Jain of Share Samadhan on the nature of the discrepancy, it may take anywhere between a few weeks to a few years to get the issue resolved. Prolonged delays can severely hamper your financial well-being. Therefore, it is critical that employees remain proactive and monitor their EPF contributions regularly to flag issues well before time.
Time of India
30 minutes ago
- Time of India
Indian family offices now go beyond investing for HNIs and are involved in legacy planning, capital preservation for the future: Umang Papneja, CEO, Julius Baer India
RAPID FIRE the one financial habit every young investor should adopt early?The art and science of saving! your biggest investing superstition that you know is totally irrational?That the markets generally fall in do you unwind after a volatile market day?Markets don't move in a straight line, they are inherently volatile. It really doesn't bother one investing myth you wish more people would stop believing? Real estate investment in India is better than stranded with only three stocks for 10 years, which ones you'll choose?I am bullish on the BFSI sector in India as I understand that better than other businesses so all my stock picks will be from this global market or economy fascinates you the most right now, and why?I believe in the India growth more dangerous to your returns – a business TV news channel or Twitter?WhatsApp University is the most dangerous!Wealth creation and preservation is not just an aspiration for the common man and woman. The rich and the famous also want to see their money grow. But more importantly, they'd like their wealth and legacy being passed on to future generations. A report by wealth management firm Julius Baer, in association with EY, estimates that US$ 1.5 trillion is expected to change hands in India over the next decade. A large chunk of this wealth sits in family offices —the 'money box' of affluent families—run with a strict constitution designed to grow the capital and pass it to future generations, alongside any mandates for charity or other causes. The Julius Baer-EY report titled 'The Indian family office playbook–June 2025' gives us an insight into the world of family offices, trends in their investment preferences, their risktaking abilities, succession planning and so on. Excerpts from the conversation with Umang Papneja, CEO, Julius Baer India:The amount of wealth creation in India is unparalleled. India is at number three, just behind US and China in terms of new people being added to the ultra high-networth individual (UHNI) list. A report says that around three individuals get added in the $30 million plus bracket every day in are the kinds of additions we're seeing to the elite club. Wealth managers and multi-family offices are targeting 1,000 new clients annually, and over the next five years, another 5,000 individuals are expected to join—each with an investable surplus of $30 million (Rs.250 crore). No wonder we have seen the number of family offices swell from 45 to people don't only want to manage and grow the money in terms of asset allocation and product selection. International investing and philanthropy too are on their aspiration list. The focus is also on how to preserve and sustain this level of wealth for future generations—two or even three down the line. That's the mindset change. I won't be surprised if there's an exponential increase in the number of family offices over the next four- five a new-generation entrepreneur has launched an IPO and sold part of their stake through an offer for sale, or brought in a private equity investor. With this liquidity, the entrepreneur can now consider setting up a family age has got nothing to do with this. The perception that senior people do not like risk and only youngsters do, is a misconception. That's because the patriarch, even if he is 75 years old, knows that he is not just saving the money for himself. The wealth is for the next generations as well. Why should he be conservative in his choice of investments and wealth creation? He obviously thinks about growing and compounding as well, so that his future generations are taken care of. Family offices work way beyond goals like retirement planning. They think about preserving and compounding wealth for future generations; it's a growth mindset at play offices invest in traditional products like listed equities, fixed income products, and so on. But new generation entrepreneurs also want to give back to the community where they come instance, if a startup founder had a successful exit and there was an ecosystem which supported him, he would want to give something back to the system. For instance, say 4-5% of his wealth may go towards a startup founded by peers in his cohort. We see a lot of that in the technology sector landscape. The new age family offices might give something away to startups, but that's not the case always, with legacy depends from family to family. Typically, and irrespective of how many goals a family office would have, its investment agenda has three sides to it. First is safety. Second, growth investments. And, third, aspiration or the risk-taking each family might allocate different proportions to this. Some might not want any safety element in the way they manage their money. A family office might say it needs to earmark a certain amount or a certain percentage of the overall corpus, in the safety basket, which will only invest in risk-free or least risky instruments, and so on. But all of this is laid out in the family office's constitution at a broader level and more specifically, in their investment policy course, they still invest in mutual funds. That's the bread and butter. But they also aspire to grow their wealth. And the buckets that I just explained, also has a risk bucket in the midst. Most family offices restrict investments in alternate assets to around 10% of their overall corpus. There are growing opportunities in the private equity space—especially as government spending rises in sectors like manufacturing and defence. Many new companies are emerging in these areas, but they are still in the early growth stages and not yet listed. Savvy and smart investors like family offices might not want to wait till they get listed to make money out of them. For example, as iPhones get locally-made, they might turn to small local companies to supply parts. Some of these companies can provide tremendous growth opportunities, especially since they get access to them at early only thing to remember here is that liquidity in unlisted companies and private equity is very low. Hence, most family offices prefer to restrict their investments in alternate assets to under 10%.Patriarchs and matriarchs would certainly like to decide how the next generation takes over. Without a plan, it can become emotional or even create friction. It gets even more complex in larger families. Nearly 60% of family offices take succession planning head on. It's important. In our experience, families that plan early, tend to transition more smoothly.A trust is perpetual. If assets are transferred to a trust, the trustees will transfer assets to the next generation exactly as per the wishes of the person who has made the trust. It becomes automatic and more longterm. A trust deed ensures that assets can be distributed for long enough, to as many beneficiaries as the trust deed mentions and over a long time. It gives you enough number of permutation and combinations and works well for families with complex assets or if the members are spread across geographies. A will, on the other hand, needs to be executed immediately upon the person's this is something we are seeing more often. Younger family members may want to follow different careers or investment paths. In such cases, having a family office structure helps, because it gives them a way to manage their share of wealth and income separately, but still with some family oversight. It also allows families to stay connected through shared values, while giving freedom for individual choices. It's not always easy, but the right governance structure and family oversight offices are increasingly investing in real assets because they offer stable, long-term income. These are not linked to market ups and downs in the same way as equities. REITs and InvITs, for example, give them exposure to assets like commercial buildings, roads, warehousing or data centres, these spaces are leased under long-term contracts, creating stable monthly income for investors. This investment class brings in regular cash flows, which suits families looking for steady returns without taking on too much remains a strong long-term story. Even with the current global tensions, we've seen that domestic liquidity is high, and that has helped markets stay steady. A few years ago, we may have seen sharper corrections, but that's not the case today. We continue to be positive on India's fundamentals. Sectors like banking, infrastructure, renewables and manufacturing are all seeing good momentum. So while it's important to stay balanced, this is also the time to look for the right opportunities with a long-term lens.
