QUARTERLY BULLETIN
October to December 2022
This is the fifth bulletin since launch in Oct 2021. While many offices are now slowly opening up and employees are returning to work at offices, the strength still remains much below expectations. Accordingly, activities on ground have also been low-key as yet. In the coming year of 2023, we hope this trend is reversed and more employees return to work and make RGIP as vibrant as it was before COVID.
As always, I shall once again make the appeal to all employees of HIA member companies. To make every Bulletin an interesting and entertaining read, I shall request the Centre Heads, Senior Staff, Middle Managers, Junior Managers, Freshers and everyone else in the companies to kindly contribute in some way to this effort through small written stories, ideas, experiences and other articles related to our industry and its workforce.
Happy Reading!!!!!!!
The Period Oct to Dec 2022
HIA MC Meetings and Members Meeting: Managing Committee Monthly meetings were held on 31 Oct, 23rd Nov and 21st Dec 2022. The Members Meeting for the quarter was held on 21st Dec 2022.
Meetings with Govt Officials.
Meeting with CEO PMRDA
A meeting was held in the office of CEO PMRDA, Mr. Rahul Mahiwal on 19 Oct 2022. Following points were discussed with the CEO.
- (a) Alternate road land acquisition progress.
- (b) Status of legal cases for land acquisition.
- (c) Requirement of Underpass on NH near Mercedes Benz Showroom for entering into Mhalunge Maan Hi-tech City.
- (d) Metro Rail matters regarding traffic jams and congestions and mitigation thereof.
Meeting with Tata Realty Infra Ltd (TRIL)
A meeting with TRIL team was held on 20 Oct to take stock of progress of Metro Rail and discuss measures to mitigate traffic congestion caused by Metro Rail work. Following points were deliberated upon.
- (a) At places where work is not going on, the barricades are still placed 9 m apart. This is causing traffic jams that are avoidable. Only when work is about to start the barricades could be spread apart. Till then they should be pushed inwards to make more road space.
- (b) Traffic wardens without a police rep with them are much less effective. Additional manpower from police may be sought and wherever the wardens are deployed a traffic policeman should be present controlling 5-10 wardens.
- (c) NO PARKING– NO STOPPING board. From Wakad flyover till Shivaji Chowk, the NO PARKING- NO STOPPING boards were to be put. These are not yet erected.
- (d) Speeding up of HT cables de-energisation between Phase 3 and Shivaji Chowk. MSEDCL and Rahul Cables be pushed to completed the work early so Metro work could start faster.
- (e) Closure during peak hours. Many times, due to movement of machinery inside the barricaded working area of metro rail, traffic is stopped temporarily for up to half an hour. It is requested that such movement be done during non-peak hours or at night.
- (f) Lighting Arrangements. Since electricity poles have been taken off for Metro work there is darkness all along the roads in RGIP. Metro Rail officials assured that lights would be put on the barricades and this would also light up the roads. Accordingly, this was done on priority.
Lights Erected on Barricades by Tata Projects
Security and Safety Committee Updates
Event to bid farewell to Commissioner PCPC
Hinjawadi Industries Association organized a meeting with Commissioner PCPC, Shri Ankush Shinde, IPS at Hotel Hyatt Place, Hinjawadi. The Commissioner was welcomed by Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO HIA and Lt Col Yogesh Joshi, Secretary HIA. The event was also attended by members from other industries organisations and Govt officials from MIDC, PMRDA, PCMC.
Lt Col Joshi appreciated the work done by the police under leadership of the Commissioner and hoped that the new initiatives instituted by him will continue to bring a welcome change to Pimpri-Chinchwad.
Col Bhogal then put forth some issues pertaining to RGIP that remained to be addressed and expressed hope that the issues would be dealt with soon. The participants also interacted with the Commissioner and expressed satisfaction on various initiatives taken. They also put forth few issues that they would like to see.
The Police Commissioner then addressed the gathering and explained the initiatives he had instituted and the success achieved. He said that many things still remain to be addressed and it is a continuous process that must be adopted. Highlighting citizen participation in all initiatives, he brought out that a good citizenry would help solve many traffic and other problems of the city.
In the end, Adhiraj Gadgil, Treasurer HIA delivered the Vote of Thanks. He expressed gratitude to the Commissioner for the good work done and wished him a satisfying tenure as Commissioner of Police, Nasik. The event ended with sumptuous lunch at the hotel and everyone present interacted informally with the Police Commissioner.
Clean and Green Committee News
Clean RGIP drive by Hinjawadi Industries Association
Hinjawadi Industries Association conducted a drive on 16 Dec 2022 to clean the Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park (RGIP). Enthusiastic employees of the companies gathered in large numbers at numerous spots along the entire stretch of RGIP and cleared garbage, paper and other trash lying on the roads, drains and trenches. The initiative was supported by MIDC with active participation of MIDC staff. Vehicles for collection of filled garbage bags and their disposal was provided by MIDC. About 12 tractor trolley loads of garbage was collected during the cleaning drive. Post the drive, all participants gathered at Infosys Phase 1. Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO HIA requested Mr. Krishnan Subramanian, President HIA to address the participants.. The President stressed that this was a small beginning that should trigger actions for more sustained efforts in future. Vote of Thanks was delivered by Ms. Manisha Bhosale, Chairperson Clean and Green Committee of HIA. The event ended with refreshments and informal interaction among participants. The event was well covered in the local vernacular media. Some pictures of the event.....
Members Meeting - Quarter ending Dec 2022
Members Meeting for the third quarter of FY 2022-23 for the period Oct to Dec 2022 was held on 21 Dec 2022 at HIA Office. The required quorum not being present at 3:30 pm, the meeting was postponed for 30 mins and finally started at 4 pm with 20 members present.
Mr. Krishnan Subramanian, President HIA assumed the Chairmanship of the meeting. The event started with Col Shankar Salkar, Dy Head of Operations, HIA welcoming the members on behalf of the Chairman. He apprised the members about the latest position on various fronts - number of member companies, general infrastructure improvement, security aspects of RGIP and Clean and Green services. He also brought out particulars of various meetings attended with Govt officials and those conducted by the sub-committees. He explained in detail the important aspects discussed during these meetings.
Accounts and Finances data and updates of all Sub Committees were then given to the members.
Signing Off for Now…….Though the offices have not started in full swing and our activities remain at a low keyit’s been a pleasure bringing to you the news and happenings at RGIP for the Oct- Dec 2022 quarter …. We are keeping our hopes alive for offices to recommence and the charm and vitality of RGIP re-emerging . Till then, we shall continue with our on-line endeavors.
As we sign off, we once again request employees to participate in the journey - write stories, experiences, anecdotes related to RGIP, work, human resource matters, operational issues, fun about office and anything that you would like….it will find a place in the Bulletin along with the updates and news.
Till then leaving you with a warm wish for good health and happiness in the New Year. Cheers and Best Wishes !!!
July to September 2022
This is the fourth bulletin since we started giving quarterly updates last Oct. Through the year there has been a sustained hope that the offices would open and we would have many activities and events. Sadly, we still continue to work from home. Employees are certainly slowly returning to offices, but that is in very small numbers. The reason is the infra work going along the roads for laying of Metro Rail pillars and underground cabling of HT wires. Our activity schedule is hence still at a low key and on-line.
I shall once again make the appeal to all employees of HIA member companies. To make every Bulletin an interesting and entertaining read, I shall request the Centre Heads, Senior Staff, Middle Managers, Junior Managers, Freshers and everyone else in the companies to kindly contribute in some way to this effort through small written stories, ideas, experiences and other articles related to our industry and its workforce.
Happy Reading!!!!!!!
The Period Jul to Sep 2022
HIA MC Meetings and Members Meeting: Managing Committee Monthly meetings were held on 20th Jul, 18th Aug and 21st Sep 2022. The Annual General Meeting for the year 2021-22 was held at Hilton Garden Inn on 24th Aug 2022.
The Annual General Meeting (AGM) for FY 2021-22 : The Annual General Meeting of HIA was held on 24 Aug 2022 at Hilton Garden Inn Hinjawadi. It was after two years that the AGM was held at a venue. Due to COVID-19, AGMs in 2020 and 2021 were held on-line.
The AGM started with the Welcome Address of President HIA. Dr Satish Pai President HIA, welcomed the members to the AGM and emphasised that despite the restrictions imposed by COVID, HIA was able to achieve many of its stated goals and this was possible only due to contributions from member companies. He thanked the members for their sincere efforts and contribution.
Dr Pai then handed over the proceedings to Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO. Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO gave a brief about the changes in membership and the various meetings held by the Managing Committee and various Sub Committees of HIA as also the meetings held with the Govt officials. He highlighted that the meetings always had adequate representation of HIA Committee members.
Passing of Reports by the Members. Various reports like the MOM of previous AGM, Annual Report for FY 2021-22, Audited Statement of Accounts were passed by the House.
Election for the New Managing Committee – 2022-2024.
The Managing Committee having completed two years, there was a requirement of holding elections for the new Managing Committee for the duration 2022-2024.. Cdr Jayant Konde from Persistent Systems was appointed Returning Officer for conduct of elections, by the Managing Committee during the meeting in Jul 2022.
There were no contests for the posts except for the position of Secretary HIA. Accordingly, elections were held for the position of Secretary through the process of Ballot papers. The two contestants for the position were:-
- Lt Col Yogesh Joshi from Wipro
- Mr. Sunil Peshwani, from Pesh Infotech
Lt Col Joshi bagged 23 votes against 08 by Mr Peshwani and was declared elected as Secretary HIA.
Cdr Jayant Konde, Returning Officer then read out the names of the new Managing Committee as under:-
- President: Mr Krishnan Subramanian, Infosys
- Vice President: Mr Unmesh Bhathija, Websym
- Secretary: Lt Col Yogesh Joshi, Wipro
- Treasurer: Mr Adhiraj Gadgil, Harbinger Group
- Member: Mr Nachiket Anvekar, TTL
- Member: Ms Mallika Chatterji, Cognizant
- Member: Mr Nitinchandra Shende, Persistent Systems
The outgoing President Dr Satish Pai welcomed the incoming Managing Committee and enthused the elected members to continue the good work. He wished them success in undertaking new initiatives over the next two years.
The incoming President Mr Krishnan Subramanian then thanked the outgoing Managing Committee members for their dedicated work over the past two years. He complimented them on the excellent work done by HIA under their guidance.
Highlights of Sub Committees: The work done by various sub committees was highlighted for information of the members.
Presentation of Mementos: Towards the end of the event, mementos were presented to the members of outgoing Managing Committee as also a few office bearers and Chairpersons of Committees who had exited various committees during COVID and due to which they could not be felicitated earlier.
Open House. After formal presentations were completed, the house was thrown open for questions and members raised and discussed many current issues of HIA. There were good suggestions that came from the members on various aspects facing all members at HIA.
Vote of Thanks In the end, Mr Samir Gadgil, outgoing Secretary HIA while delivering the Vote of Thanks acknowledged the contribution of all sub committees and member companies and thanked all participants for their valuable inputs. Mr Samir Gadgil thanked the outgoing Committee members for the support received as Secretary and also Col Bhogal, COO HIA and Col Salkar, Deputy Head of Operations, HIA for their sincere, dedicated work at all times.
Drinks and Dinner. The bar and dinner were then opened to the members and the sumptuous spread was enjoyed by all over informal interactions.
Some pics from the event…….
Meetings with Govt Officials
Meeting with Commissioner PCMC: A meeting with the new Commissioner PCMC, Shri Shekhar Singh, IAS was held on 15 Sep 2022. Issues related to infrastructure at RGIP and slow progress of various on-going projects were discussed in detail.
Broadly, the issues raised were as under:-
- (a)Widening of Kasturi Chowk.
- (b)Potholes repairs along all roads.
- (c)Widening of Road Kaspate Chowk- Wakad
- (d)Reconstruction of demolished furniture shops.
- (e)Slow and Incomplete works on Wakad service roads.
- (f)Planned road from Surya Hospital Wakad to RGIP.
- (g)CCTV Coverage at RGIP.
Infra Committee News: Some projects have been completed during this quarter and others like Metro Rail have progressed adequately. Few pics of the infrastructure progress during this quarter.
Metro Rail
Transport Operations Committee News A meeting was held with Uber on 28 Sep 2022 to understand if the bus services from Uber could be utilised for the employees as and when offices start re-opening. Unfortunately the model on which HIA provides transportation to the employees, viz B2C is not being planned by Uber till 2023 end. The Committee is therefor exploring other options with the existing vendor - Ford Officeride.
Signing Off for Now……. As always, it’s been a pleasure bringing to you the news and happenings at RGIP for the Jul- Sep 2022 quarter …. We are keeping our hopes alive for offices to recommence and the colour and enthusiasm returning to RGIP. Till then, we shall continue with our on-line endeavours.
As we sign off, may we once again request employees to participate in the journey - write stories, experiences, anecdotes related to RGIP, work, human resource matters, operational issues, fun about office and anything that you would like….it will find a place in the Bulletin along with the updates and news.
Till then leaving you with a sincere wish for good health and happiness and greetings for the festive season…..……. Cheerio and Best Wishes !!!
April to June 2022
As we release the third Quarterly Bulletin, we are still not fully operating from offices. Though the COVID situation has much improved, companies still prefer to Work from Home. Part of the reason is the infra work going along the roads for laying of Metro Rail pillars and underground cabling of HT wires. Our activity schedule is hence still at a low key and on-line.
I shall once again make the appeal I made in the first two bulletins. To make every Bulletin an interesting and entertaining read, I shall request the Centre Heads, Senior Staff, Middle Managers, Junior Managers, Freshers and everyone else in the companies to kindly contribute in some way to this effort through small written stories, ideas, experiences and other articles related to our industry and its workforce.
Happy Reading!!!!!!!
The Period April to June 2022:
HIA MC Meetings and Members Meeting:
Meeting with CMD PMPML A meeting with Mr Laxminarayan Mishra CMD PMPML and his team was held on 07 Apr 2022 at 12 noon. HIA was well represented by the Transport Operations Committee (TOC) and representatives from many member companies. Few other Industry Associations also attended the meeting. There was lot of exchange of ideas over two hours and many new suggestions were made for improvement of PMPML services in RGIP.
Points Discussed:
(a) Requirements of HIA member companies were put forth :-
- (i)PMPML service to Ascendas Enclave for employees of companies located there.
- (ii) Shuttle service from SEZ Circle to Ascendas Enclave in Phase-III.
- (iii) Improved bus services to RGIP from all over Pune.
(b) Buses on Contract to Companies. PMPML is keen to provide its fleet of electric buses for timely, economical and comfortable services to all commercial and industrial corporations / companies across the region for ferrying the employees / staff members. The buses available are 12-meter buses and 9-meter buses with seating capacity of 32/36.
(c) It was also clarified by CMD PMPML that they have pool of about 300 Electric buses and are in process of acquiring another 300 buses. All electric buses are AC by default thus provide a very comfortable ride. PMPML is looking forward to introducing cab segment EVs for travel within the city.
(d)Launching of User-Friendly App. An app for booking, tracking etc is being launched on 17 Apr for citizens. This would be useful for employees as well.
(e) Celebration of Bus Day. Bus Day is being celebrated on 18 Apr 2022.Everyone is encouraged to undertake a bus ride on this day. All member companies’ employees were encouraged to commute by buses on 18th Apr 2022.
Actions By Companies: Companies are being encouraged to provide the data of employees wanting to utilise the PMPML Electric Vehicle services. The meeting was concluded with sumptuous lunch organised by PMPML authorities.
Some pics from the event…….
Meeting on Traffic Issues
A meeting with Sr PI Hinjawadi, Sr PI Traffic Hinjawadi, Metro Rail officials and PMRDA officials was held by Security and Safety Committee on 04 May 2022 at HIA.
The following attended:-
- (a)Ms Sheetal Deshpande, Exec Engr PMRDA and team
- (b) Mr NP Wakude, PICTMPL and team
- (c) K. Rout, TPL and team
- (d) Shri Vitthal Kubade, Sr PI Traffic Hinjawadi
- (e) Mr. Vivek Mugalikar, Sr PI Hinjawadi PS
- (f) Shivendra P Singh, Co-Chairperson S&S Committee HIA
- (g) Subodh Bhave, S&S Committee HIA
- (h) Amandeep Singh, S&S Committee HIA
- (i) Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO HIA
- (j) Col Shankar Salkar, Head Transport HIA
- (a) Improvement and completion of roads is still WIP. A meeting with all agencies chaired by CEO PMRDA needs to be convened again. Suitable date may be given by CEO PMRDA. Lack of progress on minutes of Feb 2022 meeting is also attached with these minutes for perusal by CEO PMRDA.
- (b) Traffic Wardens.T Traffic wardens were to be given by TPL for control of traffic. Currently 25 wardens have been given of which 13 have been given to Hinjawadi Traffic Police. TPL assured that more wardens as required by police would be provided.
- (c) NO PARKING – NO HALTING BoardsTPL has prepared about 300 boards with NO PARKING SIGNS for installation along the roads. Currently, haphazard parking on main roads is causing traffic jams. The Traffic Police would assign an officer ho would show the location on ground to TPL. The boards would be erected by TPL.
- (d)) Tow Vehicles CEO PMRDA had agreed to provide tow vehicles to the police to tow away 4-wheelers parked wrongly and also a vehicle for picking up 2-wheelers wrongly parked. Exec Engr PMRDA will be reverting on this aspect.
- (e) Dismantling of HT TowersThese were to be dismantled by end Mar. However, the underground cables are yet not fully charged and the pylons remain. These are causing a reduced road width in Phase 2 as two HT pylons are on the road.
- (f) Along with above point of HT Cables, many other points need to be discussed for slow progress. A meeting if convened by CEO PMRDA will help.
Points Discussed and Decisions.
Interaction with Police Commissioner PCPC
Interaction with Commissioner PCPC Mr Ankush Shinde was held at HIA Office on 30 May 2022. The Police Commissioner was introduced to HIA and the problems faced by RGIP employees on aspects of security, law and order ad traffic were put forth. The requirement of CCTV and the long follow up that has been going on was also explained to the Police Commissioner. The Police Commissioner has assured that he would push the matters faster and ensure closure of pending projects. Few pics from the event……
Sub Committee News – Apr – Jun 2022
Infra Committee News.
A recee to ascertain progress of all pending infra projects was carried out on 05Apr 2022. Brief of the Report of the Recce is placed beneath.
Only PMRDA and Metro rail reps were present along with HIA team. Hence a preliminary meeting was held at HIA Office followed by a recce over New Alternate Road patches of concern, where land acquisition is still an issue. PWD road widening work at Sus village was also visited.
Few points that emerged are as under:-
(a) New Alternate Road (PMRDA).
- (i) The Thacker family court case still prevents work being undertaken on the Mann- New Bridge stretch of road.
- (ii) Three stretches on road Shedge Wasti – MIDC Circle are still being acquired. Work can be undertaken by MIDC after this is resolved by PMRDA. This is still WIP.
- (iii)No progress on road acquisition from Mercedes Benz Showroom to Shedge Wasti.
- (iv) No progress on 18m wide PMC road due to land acquisition issues.
- (i) Widening of road Kaspate Chowk – Wakad Chowk – IOC Chowk is WIP. Needs to be completed faster.
- (ii)IOC Circle work started yesterday with marking being undertaken.
- (iii)Updates on other roads viz Kasturi Chowk, Kasturi- Shivaji Chowk are not available. No work happening on ground.
- (i)Work of widening road near Sus crematorium is progress and proceeding well.
- (ii)No updates on widening of GhotavadePhata- Ghotavade village road and Nande vill. No work on ground.
- (iii)No update on widening of road Mhalunge to Shedge Wasti.
- (i) The pylons will be dismantled after MSEDCL has given power to the new cables.
- (ii)As of now Shut Down has not been given by MSEDCL.
- (iii)The power would be given upto point PMR 3 ( near Infosys Phase 2) by 15 Apr 2022. HT pylons till this point would be dismantled by 30 Apr.
- (iv)Power beyond PMR 3 ( Infy Phase 2) would be done thereafter – probably by May end.
- (a) Commissioner of Police PCPC
- (b) Officials of Tata Realty undertaking the Metro Rail project.
- (c) CE PMRDA and team.
- (d) Jt City Engr PCMC and team.
- (e) EE MIDC with his team.
- (f) SE PWD with his team.
- (g) ACP Hinjawadi with his team of officers.
- (h) Centre Heads of major HIA companies.
- (i) President, Vice President of HIA
- (a) Road from Mercedes Benz showroom to Shedge Wasti has major land acquisition issues and while efforts will continue, the same is not likely to fructify in the near future.
- (b) Road from Shedge Wasti to MIDC Circle. Road construction by MIDC has started on the 12 meter width made available by PMRDA. Efforts to acquire the balance width of 24 meters are on. However, no timeline could be put as yet on the date for acquisition..
- (c) Road from New Bridge to Maan Village. The road has two patches that are under legal contest by the Thaker family. CEO PMRDA said PMRDA has employed a good lawyer and also asked HIA to participate in this fight. He said that he would intimate the exact nature of support that HIA could provide in this legal fight..
- PCMC Roads.
- (a) Widening of Kaspate- Chowk to Wakad.Completion by end-Mar 2022.
- (b) Wakad Flyover – IOC Petrol Pump including round about near IOC Pump.Completion by end-Mar 2022.
- (c) Kasturi Chowk Widening.No input as yet.
- (d) Widening from Kasturi Chowk to Shivaji Chowk.No input as yet.
- (a) Widening and Cementing from IOC Petrol Pump to Shivaji Chowk. 90% completed. Balance by end-Mar 2022.
- (b) Shivaji Chowk to Mindtree Road cemented.Miscelleous work balance at patches to be completed by end-Mar 2022.
- (c) Widening of Road from Wipro Phase 2 to Phase 3. By end-May 2022.
- (a) Road MIDC Circle to Nande. Land issue still being resolved through obtaining Property Cards from DC office. EE PMRDA Ms. Sheetal Deshpande co-ordinating the matter. Work expected to start by end-Mar 2022 once land acquisition issue resolved.
- (b) PMRDA and MIDC. 12 meter width handed over to MIDC also has problems at two places. This is being dealt with by PMRDA through Land Department. This may need escalation and CEO PMRDA may have to get involved along with Dist Collector. EE PMRDA Ms Sheetal Deshpande co-ordinating matter.
- (a) Widening of road near Sus gaon Crematorium WIP. Completion date not certain yet.
- (b) Widening of Road from Mhalunge to Shedge Vasti. Work not started yet.
- (a) Removal of HT towers. Completion by end- Mar 2022.
- (b) Metro work as per schedule.
- JSTF - UDF Security Services
- HIA Building Security - Radiant Security Services
- Traffic Wardens - Radiant Security Services
- SEZ Units can sell in India only against payment of Foreign Exchange. This is an impractical situation.-HIA asked for sale in INR as done for STPI
- Material movement is severely restricted causing difficulties to units and vendors.Documentation be insisted upon only for bonded goods. 99% goods entering SEZ being unbonded, the strict procedure should be done away with.
- Group Health Insurance , food material etc does not come under GST benefit as it is considered ‘not linked to business’.Human capital being linked to business associated expenditure on them must get zero rated supply of input tax credit.
- WFH is restricted under SEZ scheme.Since hybrid work culture is the norm now, any restriction including movement of personnel from SEZ to non-SEZ and vice versa should be removed.
- Connectivity of RGIP is grossly inadequate.More avenues be created as over 3 lakhs employees come for work to RGIP daily.
- • WFH is a new phenomenon which has become reality across industry sectors. However, the relevant laws and rules do not cater for this.All workplace related and employee rights/welfare related laws and rules would need suitable amendments. HIAshould be involved in such a process.
The new contracts areeffective from 01 Apr 2022.
(b)Road MIDC Circle – Nande Village (PMRDA). The property card matter is still in progress and work will start after the same are received. PMRDA is seized of this matter and taking action.
(c)Widening of Road from Wipro Phase 2 to Infosys Phase 2 (MIDC). This is progressing as per schedule and is being undertaken wherever the trenches have been filled after laying the cables. This work should complete before monsoons.
(d) PCMC.
(e) PWD.
(f)Metro Rail.The HT pylons were to be dismantled by 31 Mar 2022 as per recce report of 09 Mar 2022. However the latest status is as under:-
Further Recce. In view of lack of attendance for recce by agencies as also slow / no progress on ground, it is futile to conduct fortnightly ground recce. Instead, it was felt that a fortnightly update on mail by all agencies followed by monthly update meeting at HIA would be more productive. This would keep everyone updated and agencies could work on ground at best speed possible within all their constraints.
Security and Safety Committee News.A meeting on traffic issues was held at HIA on 04 May at 1200 hours. The meeting was attended by Sr PI Hinjawadi, Sr PI raffic Hinjawadi, reps from Metro Rail and PMRDA.
A meeting with the new Police Commissioner PCPC, Mr Ankush Shinde was organised by the Committee in May 2022.
Clean and Green Committee News. To commemorate World Environment Day a Webinar on “Challenges and Need for Waste Management” was held on 06 Jun 2022. Mr Anil Gokarn and Ms Manjushree Tadwalkar, both experts in the field of soil health and waste management conducted the Webinar.
There was good participation from member companies
Transport Operations Committee News As per the request made by HIA for starting a PMPML Shuttle Bus from Megapolis to Phase 3, the shuttle service was started by PMPML.
About 54 shuttles through the day have been planned. Ticket rates of Rs. 5 and Rs.10 depending on distance travelled – SEZ Circle or Megapolis- have been fixed.
The Flag off ceremony was done on 26 Apr 2022 from Hexaware company in Phase 3. Jt MD PMPML graced the occasion.
Some pics from the event…..
Training Event by HIA on New Instructions of GOI on Incident Reporting
Webinar was organised by HIA through our legal partners Legalogic on the important subject of Incident Reporting to Govt. The companies are expected to send monthly reports, the first to be sent on 28 Jun 2022.
The event was therefore held on 16 Jun to enable companies to understand the issue and clarify any doubts.
Mr Nihal Kothari of Legalogic conducted the event. On request from participants, the ppt has been shared with all companies
Signing Off for Now…….Once again, it’s been a pleasure bringing to you the news and happenings at RGIP for the Apr- Jun 2022 quarter ….Though the pandemic has ebbed, the infrastructure challenges continue to impede offices from fully opening up. Hence, the restriction on holding events and activitiesat HIA continues.
As we sign off, we would once again request more and more employees to participate in the journey - write stories, experiences, anecdotes related to RGIP, work, human resource matters, operational issues, fun about office and anything that you would like….it will find a place within the Bulletin along with the updates and news.
Till then leaving you with a sincere wish for good health and happiness …..……. Cheerio and Best Wishes !!!
January to March 2022
I hope the readers have enjoyed going through the First Bulletin for the period Oct-Dec 2021. The offices are still not fully open and employees are working from home. This has prevented HIA from taking up any activities. We are still in the process of getting the infrastructure improvements completed, that will enable more employees to come to office.
The Metro Rail work has started and coupled with that is the difficult task of putting the overhead HT cables underground. The roads are therefore dug up and though COVID-19 has abated, the companies are still not sure whether they should be opening up offices in totality. The effort in this quarter has been entirely to ensure faster completion of projects and clearances of roads.
May we once again reiterate the appeal made in the First Bulletin. To make the Bulletin more wholesome and enjoyable, we request the Centre Heads, Senior Staff, Middle Managers, Junior Managers, Freshers and everyone else in the companies to kindly contribute wholeheartedly to this effort with their ideas, experiences and suggestions through small articles related to our industry and its workforce. I am sure the next bulletin will have more stories from the environment.
Happy Reading!!!!!!!
The Period Jan to Mar 2022:
HIA MC Meetings and Members Meeting:Managing Committee Monthly meetings were held on 20thJan, 24thFeb and 31st Mar 2022. The Members Meeting for the Quarter was held on-lineon 31Mar 2022.
Meeting with CEO PMRDA and all Govt Officials To deliberate upon the slow progress of infrastructure work and to find ways to speed up the same, a meeting was called under aegis of HIA at Infosys on 25 Feb 2022. The meeting was attended by Commissioner of Police PCPC and other department heads including those from Tata Realty, the company constructing the Hinjawadi Metro Rail. A very comprehensive discussion ensued and decisions were taken to speed up the progress of various works.
Brief of proceedings is placed beneath:
To discuss all infra issues, CEO PMRDA was invited along with all stakeholders involved in various projects. Those who attended included:-
Mr RK Malviya, Vice President HIA opened the discussion and welcomed CEO PMRDA and his team to Infosys. He also welcomed CP, PCPC and other participants from different Govt departments to the meeting. Setting the ball rolling he brought out the criticalities impeding employees starting work from offices. He explained the losses that the companies and thus the taxes that the Govt of Maharashtra was losing out to other States primarily because of lack of infrastructure. He said that the earlier we get our act together and complete all the pending infrastructure projects, the better it will be for the companies and the State. Dr Satish Pai reiterated the same and highlighted the falling employee strength due to poor infrastructure at RGIP. He appealed to the CEO PMRDA to complete the projects at top priority. CEO PMRDA too explained that he was seized of the difficulties being faced and was keen to ensure that the projects were completed earliest. The discussions and outcomes of various issues are set-forth below.
PMRDA Roads
New Alternate Road:
Road Mhalunge – MIDC Circle – Nande. Though this road was to be completed in 2019, land acquisition issues have prevented completion of about 500 meters of this road. CEO PMRDA expressed that in a democracy there are people who adopt the legal recourse and while we would like to close the matters soon, it takes time to acquire the land. The delay is entirely due to this inability of acquire the said land in its entirety. No date could be set for completion.
Road Suratwala Complex to RGIP Blue Ridge. The police reps brought out that after Bhoomi pujan done two months ago, no work has happened and the villagers are asking about it. Here too it was explained that there was some relocation issue, but no clear-cut answers were available. PMRDA is seized of this issue and will take it to resolution.
MIDC Roads
Widening of Road Wipro Phase 2 to Infosys Road 2. EE MIDC brought out that the widening work is progressing well and will complete by end-Mar 2022. The road construction over the pits filled up once cables are put underground will complete a month after the cable work is fully done. On being informed by Tata Realty team that the entire cable work would be completed by 10 May, EE MIDC said that MIDC would complete its widening work by 10 Jun 2022.
Road IOC Petrol Pump to Shivaji Chowk. EE MIDC informed that the cement road is nearly complete for use and is being used by vehicles. However, there are a few places where work has been stopped for technical reasons. This will start shortly and the road will be fully ready by end-Mar. As asked by Col Bhogal, COO HIA the Exec Engr MIDC informed that there will be no footpath made on this road to enable provision of wider road space for vehicles.
New Alternate Road. Presently there are no land patches handed over by PMRDA where MIDC has not started work. As we keep getting land parcels, we shall continue work on the Alternate New Road.
PWD Roads
Widening of Road Ghotawade Phata – Ghotwade on Forest Land. EE PWD informed that they had taken up the case with forest department to construct the road. However, no response has been received. PWD will take it up again. There is no timeline for this project.
Widening of Road Near Sus Village Crematorium. :EE PWD informed that this work is on-going and will complete by Apr 2022.
PCMC Roads
Widening of Road Kaspate Chowk – Wakad.It was brought out that though this work is in progress, it is proceeding at a snail’s pace and often stops completely. The BBM work has been done but beyond that there is little progress to make it serviceable. Jt City Engr PCPC brought out that the people still have some unresolved issues that are brought up from time to time. These are sorted out and the work then commences. The entire widening will finish by end-Apr 2022.
Widening and Cementing of Road from Wakad bridge to IOC Petrol Pump.This is nearly complete and will finish in Mar 2022.
CCTV. CP, PCPC brought out that he has taken up the Rs. 16 cr CCTV project for RGIP that has been pending for long. He explained that Rs. 8 cr each would be provided by MIDC and PCMC.
Metro Rail:Tata Realty Team gave a presentation on the Metro Rail project and the details of engineering and the timelines sought to be achieved. 24 kms in 40 months was a tough task which Tata Realty is set to take on and complete.
Barricading and Piling Work. Presently piling work is going on at only one point in RGIP. The team brought out that when new machinery comes, more points at RGIP would be taken up. CEO PMRDA also asked the team to put barricades only when work was to start and not keep the entire stretch of road barricaded for long. The maximum time a barricade should be in place should be six months. Within that time, the required work should be completed, the pillar should come up and the barricades removed, returning the road to its previous width.
Summary.
Site Visits to Review Progress. It was decided that PMRDA will initiate a fortnightly site visit to all locations where work is on-going. All stake holders would participate. The first such site visit would be organized on Wed, 09 Mar 2022. After that the visits will be held on every alternate Wednesdays.
Participation of Tata Realty team in HIA MC Meetings.Tata Realty team was invited to participate and give the updates about progress of work during the monthly Managing Committee meetings of HIA.
Meeting with Hon’ble Dy CM. CEO PMRDA brought out that he would invite the Dy CM and other concerned Ministers to participate in a meeting where all the RGIP issues would be discussed. He said that presence of all concerned ministries would help things move faster once decisions are given by the Hon’ble Dy CM.
Restarting Offices in Staggered Manner. CEO PMRDA asked companies to start in staggard manner and that by Jun the situation would be much better for more employees to come to office. Mr RK Malviya too said that they would start with about 10% employees coming to office and slowly enhance the strength as per the situation.
Use of Mass Transport for Employees.CEO PMRDA also brought out that companies should make more use of buses for employees to reduce the number of vehicles on the roads.
Keeping Roads Free from Parking and Vendors. The CP PCPC instructed the ACP Hinjawadi to pass instructions to all Gram Panchayats about the various clauses that would be invoked if there is parking in no-parking areas and also vendors occupying streets. He asked the ACP to liaise with Pune police and check what all equipment and vehicles they have asked for controlling illegal parking and towing away vehicles.
The meeting ended with all stakeholders assuring to do the best for addressing the infrastructure issues of RGIP and keep in regular touch to jointly take the projects to completion.
Vote of Thanks. Mr RK Malviya, Vice President HIA thanked CEO PMRDA, Commissioner of Police PCPC and all Govt officials for sparing their valuable time and contributing wholeheartedly to the meeting and to the development of infrastructure at RGIP. He expressed that this interaction has given everyone a renewed confidence that each department of the Govt is committed to carry out the projects on time. He expressed gratitude to CEO PMRDA for driving the Metro Rail initiative that was so critical to RGIP and the companies functioning therein. He also lauded the role of CP PCPC in the overall security environment and traffic management of RGIP that enabled the smooth execution of various projects through vigilance of police, and thanked him for the same. He also expressed his appreciation to the PWD, MIDC, PCMC and Police representatives without whom he said the meeting would have remained inconclusive. Finally, Mr Malviya thanked all the Centre Heads of RGIP for sparing time and attending the meeting. He also thanked the Admin staff that made this meeting successful.
Sub Committee News – Jan – Mar 2022
Infra Committee News. A recee to ascertain progress of all pending infra projects was carried out on 09 Mar 2022. Brief of the Report of the Recce is placed beneath.
Teams from Metro Rail, PMRDA, PCMC, MIDC, Police and HIA participated. PWD reps did not attend. The dates for completion of various projects and the issues involved that still present an impediment are as set -forth in the paragraphs below.
MIDC Roads:
PMRDA Roads
PWD Roads:
The PWD team was not present. However following roads being undertaken by PWD.
Metro Rail Team.
Security and Safety Committee News.
Changes in Vendors for RGIP Security Purposes: After nearly a decade, it was decided to find new vendors for performing security and traffic duties. Accordingly a new RFP was floated. Response came from ninevendors. A detailed exercise to evaluate the vendors was carried out by the S&S Committee and the various contracts allotted to vendors are as under:-
The new contracts areeffective from 01 Apr 2022.
Evaluation of Vendor for Garden Maintenance An exercise to evaluate new vendors for garden maintenance was undertaken. The existing vendor – Sumeet Facilities- was found most suitable and was continued with.
Tree Plantation on 09 Feb 2022
A Tree plantation drive was organized by the Clean and Green Committee of HIA on 09 Feb 2022. 60 trees were planted between SEZ Circle and Mannara Tech Park. This is part of the continued efforts at greening RGIP.
This drive saw plantation of Banyan and Almond trees. Neem trees would be added to this area in monsoon.
The event was attended by Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO HIA amid participation by the complete Clean and Green Committee.
News from HR Co-ord Committee. A review of the book Digital Sutra – Accelerating Digital Success was conducted by Upohan on 17 Feb 2022. The book co-authored by Ganesh Natarajan, Uma Ganesh and Lavanya Jayaram deals with the subject of re-imagining organisations for a Post Covid -19 World.
Eklavya Malhotra, Engagement ManagerUpohanvery effectively took the audience through the content with a very interesting elaboration of how working at organisations is changing for good in the post Covid -19 era. He brought out how the authors have tried to focus on the different components of a business. From business infrastructure, investment in digitization, service enhancement, all the way to suggestions on employee productivity. He explained that each chapter has been further divided into sections, which made the reading more educative.
There is a worldwide transformation in business practices occurring across industries. Organisations continue to enhance their competitive advantage by launching new digital journeys with great agility. The COVID-19 transformation and the unstoppable push towards a ‘new normal’ for all processes and businesses will definitely see a complete reimagination of work. Digital re-engineering will emerge as the new imperative as technologies enter the workplace and processes get re-engineered. This also enables a complete changing of the customer and other stakeholder requirements and new skills and cultural change become the new imperative for human resource functions.
This bookwould be of interest to CEOs, CFOs and other senior positions within companies that are trying to make the digital changes in their organisations. The book will help them gain insights on aligning their existing investment with newer initiatives, and also develop a proper roadmap for their digital future.
Panel Discussion on Post Covid Scenario of Industry. The book review was followed by a panel discussion. The panel of Dr. Deepak Deshpande, Sr Dir HR, NTT Global Centres and Cloud Infrastructure India and Deep Mody, CHRO Easy Pay was well moderated by Advait Kurlekar, COO Upohan and deliberated upon a number of current issues post COVID and also looked to the future that would emerge with new technologies like Artificial Intelligence taking over the workplace. .
Vote of Thanks. Lastly, Mr. Samir Gadgil, Secretary HIA and member of HR Co-ord Committee delivered the Vote of Thanks and expressed his gratitude to the panel members and Upohan for conducting a very insightful discussion.
Signing Off for Now…Once again, it’s been a pleasure bringing to you the news and happenings of the Jan-Mar 2022 quarter at RGIP and HIA ….Though the pandemic has ebbed, the infrastructure challenges continue to impede offices from fully opening up. Hence, the restriction on holding events and activitiesat HIA continues.
As we sign off, we would once again request more and more employees to participate in the journey - write stories, experiences, anecdotes related to RGIP, work, human resource matters, operational issues, fun about office and anything that you would like….it will find a place within the Bulletin along with the updates and news.
Till then leaving you with a sincere wish for good health and happiness …..……. Cheerio and Best Wishes !!!
October to December 2021
Welcome to the First Bulletin!!!!!! as all dear members are aware, HIA conducts a monthly Managing Committee meeting where the updates and changes occurring during the month are brought out for information of the Managing Committee. Further every Quarter, there is conduct of Members Meeting where changes and updates that have occurred over the quarter are presented to the member companies with a detailed pictorial slide show. During the pandemic where personal contact is extremely limited, on-line meetings remained our only sources of exchange of information and ideas.
As of now, all activity undertaken by HIA and thereafter put across to the companies during Members Meetings are uploaded onto the HIA website for information of employees. To further improve our information channels, the Managing Committee has decided to also start a ‘Quarterly News and Updates’ link that has been placed on the Website. This will be an additional tool to pass updates and information to the environment. The existing channels will continue…...
To make this attempt more interactive and interesting we also appeal to everyone – Centre Heads, Senior Staff, Middle Managers, Junior Managers, Freshers and everyone else in the companies to contribute wholeheartedly to this effort with their ideas, experiences and suggestions through small articles related to our industry and its workforce. So, rather than being merely one of updates, the document will be an interesting and wholesome read for all.
HIA MC Meetings and Members Meeting: Managing Committee Monthly meetings were held on 27th Oct, 25th Nov and 20th Dec 2021. The Members Meeting for the Quarter was held offline on 15 Dec 2021.
Meetings with Govt Officials:
Meeting with Police Commissioner PCPC on 05 Oct 2021:This meeting was held at HIA Office and attended by a large gathering of police officers, MIDC, PWD, PMRDA, PWD and other Govt departments in addition to the representatives from Gram Panchayats of various villages. Topics ranging from security to infrastructure to subjects of common interest were discussed. The Managing Committee HIA welcomed the Police Commissioner and the Additional Police Commissioner to the event. Col Charanjeet S. Bhogal, Chief Operating Officer HIA then gave a detailed presentation on all infrastructure aspects to be discussed. There was active participation and contribution from all officials and it was agreed to speed up all processes and activities to make the goal of world class infrastructureat RGIP and in the surrounding villages, a reality.
Some pictures from the event:
Meeting with CEO PMRDA @ PMRDA Aundh Office on 22nd Nov 2021:In view of the Metro Rail work starting at Hinjawadi and the consequent traffic jams due to restricted road space, meeting with CEO PMRDA was held to push for speedier completion of various roads that are alternate avenues to RGIP. Repairs of potholes, speedy completion of cable laying and closure of the ducts and such other infra related issues pertaining to PMRDA were discussed. The result of the meeting was that work on roads and cable ducts has started in real earnest.
Work on Hinjawadi-Shivajinagar Metro has also started after this meeting
Meetings and interactions with MIDC are a regular affair. This has ensured faster pace of the widening of this very critical stretch.
Interaction with Min for Commerce and Industry @ JW Marriott on 12th Dec 2021
An interaction with Minister for Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goel was held under aegis of CII at JW Marriott. HIA was represented by the President HIA Dr Satish Pai and his team comprising Col Charanjeet Singh Bhogal, COO, and Shri Adhiraj Gadgil, Member Managing Committee.
The President HIA put forth the following points to the Hon’ble Minister and also offered solutions against each:-
Sub Committee News: Oct – Dec 2021
Security and Safety Committee: New Bolero for JSTF. To replace an ageing vehicle for the JSTF, a new Bolero was deployed. The vehicle was inducted into service on 15 Dec 2021. After the Members Meeting at HIA, a small ceremony was held to induct the Bolero into operational duty.
Clean and Green Committee: Members would recall that the beautification area created with so much care and love was totally destroyed due to the cable laying requirement. The cables have now been laid and the area is being flattened. Till the Metro work is complete no further beautification drives will be held. However, plantation of Oxygen yielding trees like Bael, Neem etc would continue wherever areas for plantation are available. The Committee continues with this quest for a cleaner environment at RGIP.
HR Co-ord Committee: A review of the book The Right Choice: Resolving 10 Career Dilemmas for Extraordinary Success by Shiv Shivkumar was conducted by Upohan on 18 Nov 2021. The book with foreword by Indra Nooyi was reviewed by Eklavya Malhotra of Upohan who briefly but clearly brought out the 10 dilemmas that face anyone wanting to make a career change. The book review was followed by a panel discussion. The panel of Soumi Alphons and Sanjay Khorate both established leaders in the field of HR Management and Employee development had an interesting conversation with Advait of Upohan.
Signing Off for Now……. It’s been a great pleasure bringing to you the very first bulletin…. The pandemic has prevented us from holding events and activities, but our collective desire to interact, contribute and grow as an Association cannot be curbed. We shall find newer ways to connect and this is another effort towards that. This cannot be however a one-sided affair and I would request more and more to participate in the journey, write stories, experiences, anecdotes related to RGIP, work, human resource matters, operational issues, fun about office and anything that you would like….we will interject it along with the updates and make the document enjoyable. Till then leaving you with a sincere wish for a Wonderful New Year 2022 and may we soon rid ourselves of the COVID pandemic and restart our lives as hitherto fore…..……. Cheerio and Best Wishes !!!