Happy Diwali!

ISSUE 3 OCTOBER 2008
Happy
Diwali!
cover Founder’s
message a great 75!
MPP Visitors future
eye laurels
Reva electric
cartwheels eco in
dublin reign in spain
ok! brussels bustle
art electric dilli haat
sit down celebration
MMM cemat nudrive
air fare
csr restoration mskk
volunteer employee
welfare reva
recognition
Back MAINI DIVAS ’08
editor’s note
The celebrations for Dr SK
Maini’s 75th birthday had all
the right ingredients. Family,
friends and other well-wishers
gathered from far and near to
sing, cheer the cake-cutting and
offer prayers. There was fun,
food, laughter and, especially,
music with stellar performances
by Anup Jalota and Usha Uthup.
FOUNDER’S
MESSAGE
E
ver since my relinquishing the
Chairmanship of the Group,
I have been more actively
involved in enhancing the pace of
Corporate Social Activities. Maini
Samaj Kalya Kendra which was started
in 2000 has been looking after various
activities of the Village – Lakkenahalli
which was adopted by us last year.
We are also in the process of starting
‘Gramothan Yojana’ along with Ekal
Vidyalaya Movement for the upliftment
of the villages in HD Kote Taluk,
Mysore by providing them clean water,
electricity and various means to earn
while in the village. The village of
Mandya Koppal has been selected to
convert into an ideal eco-village by
converting waste into useful energy.
Similarly, plan to educate school
children in Bangalore on Environment
is underway.
The Group has decided to concentrate
on Education and Environment as
part of Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR). Once again this November, we
are organizing the ‘Annual Prestigious
Environment Seminar’ in association
with Loughborough University. Plan to
plant a Tree a day is now in Progress.
People say one’s 75th birthday is a
landmark for different reasons. What
makes it one for me is the enormous
amount of good wishes and warmth I
have been so fortunate to receive from
my family and everyone in the Group.
My heartfelt thanks and best wishes for
a blessed Dussehra and a joyful Diwali.
The Group has entrusted Shri U.R.
Madhyasta a very senior company
executive to coordinate all CSR
activities. I encourage all group family
members to actively engage in these
activities. Those who are willing to
participate, please get in touch with my
Secretary – Shubha at
[email protected] or Mr. Madhyasta
directly at [email protected].
I was overwhelmed by the affection
shown to me in various ways by the
Group Family in celebrating my 75th
Birthday!
A
Great
75!
VISITORS’
BOOK
Flag
Hoisting
2nd Sept ’08. Maini
Corporate Social
Responsibility initiatives
are as well-known as they
are well-defined, having
been in practice for over
two decades. Our proactive
approach is one our clients
and associates identify with
and our programs are often
used as reference points.
This was clearly reiterated
during the visit from Malin
Ripa, Director-Public Affairs,
and Rao Harikrishna of
Volvo.
Gautam Maini, at Rajyostava Day ’07
FUTURE
EYE
8
th Sept ’08. During Eye
Donation Fortnight, an Eye
Camp by Narayana Netralaya
was held where more than 500 of our
employees from Peenya and Luggere,
and members of their families, pledged
their eyes. NS Subramaniam, VP, MPP,
was the first to do so and the gratifying
overall response is a worthy initiative,
especially when a pair of healthy eyes
can help six other people in various
ways and more than 30 lakh Indians
have a sight disorder or are blind.
22nd Oct ’07. The Bavarian delegation headed by Herbert
Kroll, at MPP.
D
elegation Head Herbert Kroll is
an old India hand and a treasured
friend of the Maini Group,
particularly of Dr. and Mrs. SKM Maini.
Mr. Kroll has spent much of his career
in senior management positions in the
Indian operations of European companies.
Currently he’s an adviser on Indo-German
business and also President of the Indian
Institute in Munich.
Laurels!
AWARDS 0708 include
2nd June ’08. 2nd Runner-Up:
Dun & Bradstreet and ECGC
Indian Exporters’ Excellence
Awards in Engineering Goods
(Medium Exporters)
Electric
Cartwheels
On British streets Generation X celebrates Reva during a
Goingreen promotion
LONDON NEWS
D
uring a speech at
the Union of the
Mediterranean
Summit held in Paris, the
British Prime Minister
Gordon Brown signaled
his clear commitment to
electric vehicles.
The G Wiz, as Reva
is known in the UK,
continues to rule as a
London icon. It’s the
best-selling EV in the UK
and a two-time winner of
the Best City Car award
LLOYALTY: Sir Victor Blank, Chairman, Lloyds TSB, emerges
from the Environmental
from his EV of choice. The Times London 19 Sep ’08
Transport Association.
Eco in Dublin
At the St Patrick’s Day Parade, Dublin
At Dublin’s Spring House &
Garden Show
D
ublin, 7 March ’08. The Spring
House and Garden Show was held
in Simmonscourt for the sixth
year running, with Reva-i featuring in the
eco-section.
D
ublin, 30 June ’08. A
new initiative which
will see charging
facilities for electric cars on
the streets of Dublin was
introduced. The Minister for
Communications, Energy and
Natural Resources Eamon Ryan
predicted, “By 2020, electric
cars will be the norm.”
Save
Energy
Cyprus.
March ’08.
This eco-event
had Reva-i as
a noticeable
presence.
Mr. Avram
briefs the
media.
Reign in Spain, OK!
Madrid, Barcelona
March ’08.
S
pain being one of our strongest markets, any
outdoor event with Reva-i is sure to grab a lot of
eyeballs and win even more converts to the Euro
eco-cause we’ve been spearheading especially in Madrid
and Barcelona.
OK!, the world’s biggest celebrity lifestyle magazine,
appears in 19 countries and boasts more than 30 million
readers worldwide. It launched its Spanish edition with
Reva-i’s emblazoned with the OK! logo as part of a
promotion in the two cities.
Brussels Bustle
Brussels Jan ’08.
T
his year’s
European
Motor Show
was marked by the
launch of the
Reva-i. The European
markets are already
quite familiar with
Reva and how it is
redrawing the map
of where we’re going
ecologically.
Mrs.Evelyne Huytebroeck, Minister of the
Environment, Belgium
Chetan Maini, Deputy Chairman, RECC, and his team were there to
interact with public and media whose lively curiosity was typical of the
enthusiasm that greets the Reva-i wherever it goes.
EUROPEAN MOTOR Show: REVA in Brussels, Jan ’08. The formal
show launch on the 15th was attended by the former Prime Minister
of Belgium Mr Guy Verhofstadt, shown seated above
All of this was heightened by the visit to the Reva stand of the then
Prime Minister of Belgium Mr. Guy Verhofstadt, accompanied by
Mrs.Evelyne Huytebroeck, Minister of the Environment. His own keen
interest, both as a head of state and as an ordinary citizen, reminded
us how truly inspiring Reva is to those who encounter its potential
firsthand.
ART
ELECTRIC
Gallery Reva: Cars painted by Ratan
Batliboi, Bose Krishnamachari, Hafeez
Contractor and Pavitra Rajaram.
Krishnamachari, and architects Ratan J
Batliboi and Hafeez Contractor.
Kala Ghoda Festival, Mumbai
V
isitors to Mumbai’s Kala Ghoda
Festival in February could see some
of Reva’s true eco-friendly colours
courtesy artists Pavitra Rajaram and Bose
Peripheral Vision
M
r. Ram Agarwal, MD and CFO of
WeP Peripherals, was on hand
for the formal delivery of the new
WeP fleet of 25 Reva-i’s.
And so another customer was welcomed
Each was given a Reva to paint (with
vegetable dye-based paints) their
interpretation of the theme of Earth Care
Initiative, a fund-raiser by RECC and Jindal
Steel Works.
WEP
SIGHT
into the fold. The impressive WeP line
up with Revas in their new corporate
colours signalled the furthering of the
green concept, the more the merrier, and
healthier, ecologically speaking.
The vivid results ranged from Ratan
Batliboi’s black sun to Hafeez Contractor’s
multi-coloured bricks and Pavitra
Rajaram’s grafitti, inspired by her kids.
The four cars were auctioned, one to
Sangita Jindal from JSW, their proceeds
going to various eco-organizations.
STRAWBERRY PATCH: Ram Agarwal, MD &
CFO, WeP Peripherals, with Sandeep Maini
Dilli
Haat
The promotion was held in two
sessions. The first, in the morning, was
at the Secretariat which was branded
by Reva for the occasion, with a media
interaction with the Hon’ble Chief
Minister of Delhi Sheila Dikshit, the
Secretary for the Environment and the
Secretary, Central Govt.
Publicprivate
incentive
in June:
the govt and
Reva
W
The Hon’ble Chief Minister
of Delhi Sheila Dikshit
hat do Reva and the
Delhi government
have in common? The
greening of the city would be the
answer that comes to mind. On the
25th of June, a joint initiative was
announced at the Secretariat with a
package of incentives amounting to
a 29.5% discount on the showroom
price.
An ideal that’s close to the Chief
Minister’s heart is the Bhagidari
Scheme which fosters citizen participation
in governance, an ideal that echoes what
Reva stands for. In fact, the Chief Minister
said on the occasion that were anyone to
buy a second car, it should be a Reva.
In the evening, the action shifted to a
well-attended reception at the Taj Palace
Durbar Hall, where keys were handed
over to new Reva owners.
REVAs for
GlobeGround
ramp operations
at Bengaluru
International
Airport
G
lobeGround India uses five
REVA’s at BIAL for ramp
operations and ferrying ground
staff. International airports are factoring
more environmentally-friendly mobility
solutions into their operations and BIAL’s
own daily operations are completely in line
with this universal objective.
Sit-Down
Celebration
REVA received a delegation from GlobeGround
India in February. that included Patrick Tschirky
and Sebastine Krugmann (first two from left)
(Clockwise from top
extreme left)
Geoffrey Leonard
presents Dr SK
Maini a memento
Chetan Maini at the
mike
Lon Bell and
Mohanjit view the
memorabilia
Mrs Rakhe (left) and
Kim Maini
H
anding over charge of
responsibility and a mission
is always a solemn occasion.
However, when the Reva Board of
Directors sat down to dinner on June 6th
at the West End Hotel to commemorate
Dr SK Maini’s stepping down and Sandeep
Maini’s assuming Chairmanship, the
evening was anything but solemn.
The speeches touched an emotional chord
in their references to how much everyone
involved, especially Dr SK Maini and
Chetan Maini had accomplished. This
was echoed in the nostalgia evoked by the
memorabilia on display about the triumphs
of the people behind Reva.
This apart, the celebrations had a rare
culinary dimension with a customized fourcourse menu imaginatively planned and
dished up by the West End’s chefs.
Among the evening’s speakers were Lon
Bell and Geoffrey Leonard, as well as
Chetan Maini, whose wife Kim also was
there, as was the rest of the family, at this
very special corporate rite-of-passage.
saluting
karnataka
L
ast Rajyotsava Day
was memorable for
the fact that it was
the first after Sandeep Maini
became Chairman. The State
flag was hoisted and his speech to company employees in
Kannada followed his being presented a gift from them.
Dec ’07, Bangalore
B
For MMM, this was not just the best way
to network with customers from India and
abroad, but also to launch the IT 20
Air Fare
Feri in-terminal at Mumbai and
Hyderabad airports
M
MM was awarded first-of-theirkind contracts by the Hyderabad
and Mumbai International
A
major innovation we’re privileged
to be associated with is NuDrive,
the world’s first lever-drive
accessory for manual wheelchairs which
MMM is manufacturing for PureGlobal of
the UK where it’s just been launched.
With NuDrive, users no longer have to
push their chair wheels by hand. Instead,
they manipulate the attached NuDrive
levers to move their wheelchairs forward,
backwards, manoeuvre or to brake. This
easy-to-install-and-operate device reduces
the force needed for these movements by up
to 40% and also protects hands, improves
posture and eases the burden on shoulders.
CeMAT
’lore Dec 07. The first CeMAT
India at the Bangalore International
Exhibition Center was a unique
platform for material handling, traffic
engineering and intralogistics products
and services. (The original CeMAT is held
yearly in Hanover and China.)
NuDrive for wheelchair users
Industrial Tugger. Also attracting
considerable attention were the SST 15
sit-on stacker and other stackers, and our
pallet vehicles.
Sandeep
Maini,
Carlo
Fannati,
MD Armes
Maini and
another
guest
Airport Authorities to supply, operate and
maintain a fleet of Feri four-seaters.
Completely silent and non-polluting
with zero emission, Feri’s are the most
convenient way to carry passengers,
especially those needing wheelchairs. In
Mumbai for over a year and Hyderabad
since June, they shuttle between
aerobridges and terminal exits, with
uniformed drivers trained by MMM.
Selecting MMM as
manufacturer for NuDrive
was an easy decision,
with their proven track
record. We’re thrilled
and truly blessed to have
a partner who believes
in what we do as much
as us and give us the
support we need. Thank
you Maini!
Robert Orford, NuDrive
designer and CEO, Pure
Global Ltd.
Feri at BIAL
F
or the first time ever, a fleet of
Feri’s was inducted as airport tugs
about three months ago by Indigo
Airlines at Bangalore International Airport.
Customized for Indigo for a two-ton towing
capacity, the fleet tows baggage trolleys,
ladders and ground process units. Equipped
with battery quick-change mechanisms,
the Feri’s can operate round-the-clock, as
extensions of BIAL’s Go Green initiatives.
Fact Sheet
CSR
CORPORATE
S O C I A L
RESPONSIBILITY
I
N our Founder’s view,
for an industrial group that
manufactures environment-friendly
vehicles, material handling equipment
and other components, corporate social
responsibility is not something that we must
strive to integrate into our functioning.
Since this is what we do, it’s already there
encoded in our DNA, a definite presence
and influence that shapes and directs our
daily thinking, planning and working.
For over twenty years, a policy of giving
back whether through relief funds, schemes
such as for worker assistance, PCO ‘s
for the physically challenged, or blood
donation drives has kept us grounded in
the need to share and thus to serve the
community.
In the last decade, as the environment
has become a primary priority, the
integration of our business objectives
with the imperatives of zero pollution and
environmental awareness has, in its turn,
focused our working towards making the
world a better, greener place.
1984 1st Indian co. to
manufacture zero-pollution,
battery-operated, inplant material handling
equipment: electric pallet
trucks, stackers etc
MMM develops electric
6-& 8-seater golf carts
1995 1st Indian co. to
manufacture electric cars
emission
50 million kms
2500+,
cars in use
in India and 27 other
countries
Each Reva car reduces
on CO2
completed cumulative
equivalent to reduction of
16,000 tonnes of CO2
emission
330 gms/kms
RURAL DEVELOPMENT
Adopted Ullalu Village (near Jnanabharati
Campus, Bangalore)
Assisting Two schools for differently abled
Conducted Several ayurvedic camps
Projected
Support for planned model village
Mandya Koppal, Mandya Dist:
To improve sanitation and health by
installing biogas plants
To provide smokeless energy for
domestic use
To increase tree and forest cover
To propagate organic fertilizer use
Restoration:
400 year old
temple.
REVA RECOGNITION
GREEN BUILDING: MPP Bommasandra
features: Rainwater harvesting • Water
treatment & recycling • Natural lighting &
ventilation • Waste oil recycling
environment-friendly
product range
It’s encouraging to have our CSR initiatives
acknowledged: hopefully we can sustain the work
and, just as importantly, show other people how a
little effort can go a long way.
DR MS SWAMINATHAN
THE BEST TRUE VALUE
AWARD ’01
CAR ’04
For Environment
Overdrive Magazine
Protection for the year
MONTE CARLO
THOMAS ALVA EDISON
SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY
AWARD FOR INNOVATION AWARD: EVS 21: 21st
’02
Worldwide Battery, Hybrid
Category Stop Innovating and Fuel Cell Electric
and Start Playing
Vehicle Symposium and
47 nominees from 8
Exhibition, Monaco ’05
countries, 27 finalists
MOST ETHICAL CAR
GOLDEN PEACOCK
AWARD, UK
AWARD ’03
For Innovative Product In BUSINESS WORLD-NID
Automotive Sector
DESIGN EXCELLENCE
14th World Congress on AWARD ’05
Total Quality ’04
Institute of Directors,
ICELAND ’07
New Delhi
Reva NXG: Overall Best
Least CO2 emission
Least energy use
SESI BUSINESS
Least expensive in
LEADERSHIP AWARD
(ELECTRIC VEHICLES) ’04 100-km circle
Solar Energy Society
EUROPEAN AUTOMOTIVE
of India affiliated to
International Solar Energy POWER TRAIN AWARD ’08
Frost & Sullivan
Society
Maini Samaaj
Kalyan Kendra
Founded ’00
Unique holistic, integrated four-pronged
approach to sustainable development
Primary Education
One village-based teacher (Classes 1-3)
Health Care Education
Village-based community health worker
Development Education
Solar/LED lamps, compost incense
sticks, organic vegetables,
bio-digesters etc
Advocacy Programme
Implementation of Govt. Welfare
Schemes in about adopted 100 villages in
HD Kote in last eight months
Village Project
Lakkena Halli 25 km from Bangalore.
Adopted one year ago.
Programmes include:
New school building built in place of old
and equipped for Classes 1-7
VOLUNTARY
EMPLOYEE
WELFARE
- Uniforms, subsidised
lunch
- Accident insurance
cover
- Medical insurance
(self & family)
- School fees for all
workmen’s children
- Scholarships for
employees’
children
- Free medical
examinations
- HIV Aids/TB
awareness
programme
CSR
AGENDA
Global leaders in value-driven
engineering solutions to continually
enhance prosperity of humanity and
environment.
Committed to eco-friendly practices &
resource conservation
Concern and care for health, safety,
environment and community welfare
Maini Divas!
bouquets
O
and the variety entertainment, a
highlight of which was the orchestra
that played everything from songs
from Mungaru Male to more current
chartbusters such as Bombaat.
And so Maini Divas this year was held
at the Bangalore Palace Grounds,
a location truly worthy of what has
become one of our biggest – and most
anticipated – events.
What’ll be remembered: a birthday
felicitation by Team MPP who held a
puja and presented Dr SK Maini with a
Ganapathy. There followed a welcome
for new members to the Group and
awards handed out for Company sports
achievers. There were clowns on stilts,
theme-coloured balloons, refreshments
Cultivating gardens that score
aesthetically as much as ecologically
is a longstanding tradition started by
Mrs Reva Maini and carried on by
Gita Maini: a tradition that blooms
ever more lavishly each passing year.
School Scorers Honoured
Scholarships were handed out at Maini
Divas ’08 to employees’ children scoring
over 90% in the SSLC or PUC in ’07-’08
NameClass
%
M.A. Yohan Plus 2 (PUC)92
Bridget Maria Abraham ICSE (X Std) 91.71
Swathi.U
SSLC
97.12
Aboli C. Koranne
SSLC
95
Twins Sangeeta & SSLC
91.36
Santhosh S.K
SSLC
91.52
EDITOR’S
NOTE
during the twelve months since then;
after thirty-five years of the Group’s
existence, and the Founder Chairman’s
landmark birthday, this would be a
year for looking back and certainly for
looking forward as well.
his is our third Maini Varta.
Enough time to consider how
this newsletter in its own small
way has become a part of the Maini
Group’s daily life, as a kind of diary.
As we assembled this issue’s images
and text, we saw that so much has
happened, after last Diwali’s issue,
that we felt that maybe it’s time to
make it two issues a year.
My thanks to Priya at my office and
John Abraham for helping to collate
material for this issue and to Dr SK
Maini for moulding Varta’s content and
for his always invaluable feedback. Of
course, I look forward to hearing from
you at [email protected].
T
Warmest regards for Diwali.
This Maini Varta provides a snapshot
of the ground the Group covered
The Maini Group, 38 Maini Sadan, 7th Lavelle Cross Road, Bangalore 560001 India.
Ph +91 80 2224 5287 • www.mainigroup.com
Contact [email protected]
J Abraham/ H Paul • Diwali greetings image courtesy Radhika Chand
T
his was a milestone year with
our Founder Chairman’s 75th
birthday and the 35th one of
the Group. With more members of the
Group family attending than before,
the occasion called for a larger venue.
A definite showstopper, though, was
Gautam Maini’s onstage high-stepping
with the folk dancer.
n behalf of the Group, BR
Ramesh received five trophies
for Best Garden at the Mysore
Horticultural Society Independence
Day Flower Show at Lalbagh. We’ve
always been major contenders at this
annual event and this year saw the
four Maini companies – MPP, RECC,
MMM and Armes Maini – and Maini
Sadan making a sweep of first prizes.