Dynamics at their most beautiful - Sporty spearhead the new Audi RS 7 Sportback races into India

• Audi
  
  Matrix LED headlamps with dynamic indicators introduced for the first time on the new Audi RS 7 Sportb
• Striking from every angle - new design details for the five-door Sportback set sporty accents
• Sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.9 seconds; top speed of 305 km/
• Powered by 4.0 TFSI® Bi-Turbo V8 with 412 kW (560 hp) of power and efficient COD technology
• Priced at INR 14,020,750/- (ex-showroom Mumbai and Delhi)

Mumbai, May 11, 2015: Audi, the German luxury car manufacturer, today introduced the latest version of its popular sporty spearhead – the new Audi RS 7 Sportback in India. With aesthetic design and impressive sportiness, the new Audi RS 7 Sportback fascinates at first sight. Priced at INR 14,020,750/- (ex-showroom Mumbai and Delhi), the powerful new Audi RS 7 Sportback was unveiled by Mr. Joe King, Head, Audi India and is available at all Audi dealerships across India.

“Embodying our philosophy of “Vorsprung durch Technik”, the Audi RS 7 Sportback is Audi’s superlative illustration of sportiness, progressiveness and sophistication - combining the practicality of a large, five-door Sportback with strengths and fun of a sportscar. The combination of a powerful four‑liter V8 engine with cylinder on demand technology, quattro drive and intelligent lightweight design makes the Audi RS 7 Sportback an outstanding piece of sports equipment for our discerning customers in India, who desire a dynamic, yet efficient driving experience. This beautifully superior car has delighted many customers since its launch last year and we are confident that the new Audi RS 7 Sportback will further entrench our brand as the leader in the luxury sportscar segment in India,” said Mr. Joe King, Head, Audi India.

For the first time, Audi has introduced the Audi Matrix LED headlamps on the new Audi RS 7 Sportback. The LED headlamp cluster dynamically alters the high beam on a real time basis with the sole aim of not dazzling the oncoming traffic and the vehicle(s) in the front. The dynamic Sportback also includes integrated dynamic turn signals on the front and the rear, as well as new tail lights design.

The new Audi RS 7 Sportback also sets new standards with its hybrid aluminum design, making it weigh roughly 15 percent less than a comparable all-steel body, thanks to Audi’s lightweight construction technology.

The quattro® permanent all-wheel drive system gives the powerful five-door Sportback a decisive advantage in traction and driving safety. The twin-turbo V8 4.0 TFSI® engine displaces 3,993 cc and produces 412 kW (560 hp) between 5,700 and 6,600 rpm, with a constant 700 Nm of torque available from 1,750 to 5,500 rpm. Despite the supreme power of the Bi-Turbo V8, the Audi RS 7 Sportback consumes on average just 9.8 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers, thanks to its efficient Cylinder on Demand technology (COD).

Audi Cylinder on Demand technology unites dynamic performance characteristics with low fuel consumption and emissions. By deactivating four cylinders in part load operation, the new Audi RS 7 Sportback achieves comparatively low fuel consumption and low CO2 emissions without compromising on the superb performance potential.

The new Audi RS 7 Sportback sports a superior design with striking edginess. Specific details on the exterior of the five-door coupé set sporty accents. The long engine hood, the sporty and flowing C‑pillars and the sharply sloping rear end form an aesthetic overall impression. Slight modifications have been made to the bumper, with its distinctive air inlets. The Singleframe grille with the black honeycomb, typical of the RS models, now sports even sharper and more distinctive corners. The headlights are also adapted to the new Singleframe grille. Three optional packages – matt aluminum, gloss black and carbon – make the look of the new Audi RS 7 Sportback even more distinctive. The central front air inlet bears the quattro® lettering. Modifications have also been made to the bumper, with its distinctive air inlets.

The elegant dynamics of the exterior design carry over to the interior of the                  new Audi RS 7 Sportback as well. The salient element is the “wrap-around” – an arched, horizontal line below the windshield. The cockpit is tailored for the driver, with the center console oriented in the driver's direction. In the elegant black interior, dominated by the RS sport seats, the designers have revised the instrument cluster: the air outlet controls of the vent nozzles, the shift paddles behind the steering wheel and the quattro® emblem on the instrument panel. The standard MMI® navigation plus with MMI® touch now uses the modular infotainment platform of the latest generation; its highlight is an efficient graphics processor from Audi’s partner, Nvidia.

“The new Audi RS 7 Sportback reinstates the reputation of the RS models as the superior, top athletes of our brand. With the new Audi RS 7 Sportback launch on the heels of the limited edition Audi R8 LMX and the all-new Audi TT Coupé, we are confident of strengthening our leadership and accelerating our growth in this segment. We are ready with a few more surprises for Audi fans and will be launching some more fantastic products this year soon,” added Mr. King.

The Audi model range in India includes the Audi A3 Sedan, Audi A3 Cabriolet, Audi A4, Audi A6, Audi A7 Sportback, Audi A8 L, Audi Q3, Audi Q5, Audi Q7, Audi S4, Audi S6, Audi RS 5 Coupé, new Audi RS 7 Sportback, all-new Audi TT Coupé, Audi R8, Audi R8 Spyder, Audi R8 V10 plus and Audi R8 LMX.

Synthite’s Kitchen Treasures Enters Pickle Market, Launching 6 Varieties

• Kitchen Treasures has launched four vegetarian varieties including cut mango, tender mango, lime and garlic and two non-veg variants namely prawn and fish, in packs of 150 gms and 400 gms

•  With over 100 people in new product development at its headquarters, Synthite group plans to launch new products covering more pickles, cooking paste, RTE, RTC, Seasonings, RTD and sauces targeting pan Indian tastes in the coming months

Kochi, May 9, 2014: Following the encouraging response it received for its Kitchen Treasures curry masalas and spice powders launched recently, Intergrow Foods, the domestic arm of the Kochi-based Rs.2000-crore Synthite, one of the largest spice companies in the world, launched six varieties of pickles as per the strategy it chalked out to enter the ready-to-eat food products segment in a big way. Mr. Ashok Mani, CEO & Managing Director, Intergrow Foods launched the pickles by handing over a set to Mr. M.G. Rajamanikyam, District Collector, Ernakulam and Ms. R. Nishanthini, Police Commissioner, Thrissur.  Launched in flavors and varieties appealing to the Malayali palate in the initial phase, the Kitchen Treasures pickles are now available across Kerala and in the consumer markets of Europe, US, Gulf countries, Singapore, Australia, etc. targeting the Malayali diasporas. Kitchen Treasures has launched four vegetarian varieties including cut mango, tender mango, lime and garlic and two non-veg variants namely prawn and fish, in packs of 150 gms and 400 gms.

Speaking on the launch, Mr. Ashok Mani said the pickles offer the same non-compromising quality which have made Synthite one of the most-trusted ingredient giants world over. “Continuing the quality tradition that we maintain for our spice ranges, we have made these pickles from the best of ingredients. Kitchen Treasures products provide the customers with 100% pure products, absolutely free of any kind of adulteration,” he said. He also said the company had tried and tested the pickles by sharing it with hundreds of randomly picked housewives across Kerala before its commercial launch. “Each product has been improvised and made as per the suggestions given by them to ensure homely tastes. So we can proudly claim that our pickles match the homely taste of Kerala,” he added.

“For the past 40 years, we have been supplying to the global market under stringent quality control standards like BRC and European HACCP among others. Quality begins at the source and to maintain global standards, we source our spices from our contracted network of 10000 acres of farms ensuring only the best gets into every Kitchen Treasures pack,” Mr. Ashok Mani explained.

“We have gone to great lengths to keep our products 100% pure and yet keep it priced at market prices and coming from one of the same Synthite factories in Kolencherry which served the world for decades and has seen timely modernizations and valued accreditations like European HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) and BRC (British Retail Consortium) standards for quality and production processes, Kitchen Treasures would be a totally new experience in quality, unheard of in Kerala,” he added.

Mr. Ashok Mani also said the launch of these pickles in Kerala-taste is just the beginning of the group’s giant leaps to become the country’s largest fully integrated packaged foods company. “With over 100 people in new product development in our group headquarters, we would seek to launch new products covering more pickles, cooking paste, RTE, RTC, Seasonings, RTD and sauces targeting pan Indian tastes in the coming months,” he said.

Price List

Sl No:	Product	MRP
1	Cut Mango Pickle 150g	37.00
2	Cut Mango Pickle 400g	75.00
3	Tender Mango Pickle 150g	60.00
4	Tender Mango Pickle 400g	127.00
5	Lime Pickle 150g	36.00
6	Lime Pickle 400g	74.00
7	Garlic Pickle 150g	39.00
8	Garlic Pickle 400g	85.00
9	Fish Pickle 150g	67.00
10	Fish Pickle 400g	148.00
11	Prawn Pickle 150g	83.00
12	Prawn Pickle 400g	190.00

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

About Synthite group: Established in 1972, Synthite’s has five processing and extraction units in India and one in China now, plus an additional unit for the spice business with a total capacity of 20,000 tons. Among Synthite’s key overseas customers are seasoning and flavouring firms like Givaudan, IFF, Griffith Laboratories and Kerry Group.

Synthite has two divisions — bio ingredients and spices. Its five bio ingredient units with a combined capacity of 275 tons a day, convert raw spices (chilli, pepper, turmeric and cardamom) into oleoresins. These are supplied to flavouring and seasoning firms and they, in turn, sell seasonings and flavourings to food processing companies.  At its spice division, which came up in 2006, spices are crushed and granulated and then steam-sterilised for  supply to companies.

A bulk of Synthite’s sales comes from exports to the US, Europe and the Far East, where the processed food business is well developed.  Synthite through its 100 crore group company, Symega Savoury Technolgies is in the savoury business for the past 8 years-. Symega makes seasonings and savoury ingredients that are used in snack foods, processed cheese, convenience foods and processed meats. Synthite through its group company Simega Flavours is in the sweet flavor business, making products for the bakery, beverage, confectionery, dairy, pharma and food processing sectors, including names like Nestlé, ITC, Kellogs and HUL.   Of Kerala’s annual spices production of 1-1.25 lakh tons, around 12-15% are exported annually in various forms while the rest is consumed by the domestic market, mostly as curry powders, masalas, ready-to-eat gravy products and flavored food items. But according to C V Jacob, the legendary founder of Synthite and the group’s Chairman, per capita consumption of flavourings and seasonings is just $1 in India and China. This can only grow in the future and being a global leader, the group, with its Kitchen Treasures brand, is all set to grab a major share of it targeted to serve every Indian household by one product or the other in five years.

It may be also recalled that Synthite has been continuously bagging the top most export award from the Spice Board of India every year since 1976. “Built on our global reputation, Kitchen Treasures is the strategic homecoming of Kerala’s best kept secret that is Synthite. For the domestic customer also, we are committed to our global food quality standards and integrated pest management policy as well as good agricultural practices,” said George Paul.

By 2020, Synthite group targets to achieve a turnover of Rs.3,000 crores.

GEMS Education makes a foray into Kerala; Lays Kochi School's Foundation Stone

Kochi, May 8, 2015: GEMS Education, the world’s largest K-12 education provider, set foot in Kerala as part of expanding its global and Indian footprint as Padma Shri Dr. Sunny Varkey, Founder & Group Chairman of GEMS Education and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Education Partnerships, laid the foundation stone for GEMS Modern Academy at SmartCity Kochi, signaling the group’s academic journey into Kerala to offer world class education in the state.

The first school from the GEMS Education in Kerala to come up at SmartCity Kochi will offer CBSE curriculum with an option of International Baccalaureate (IB) in senior classes.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Sunny Varkey, Founder & Group Chairman of GEMS Education, said that India will play a principal role in leading the Group’s global expansion,. “The global scenario is changing every day and so are our expectations for our children. By bringing in values and skills-based approaches to education, we want to ensure that our children are truly prepared for tomorrow. India is one of the key destinations where we already lead several educational initiatives including 17 schools in major cities. We plan to own or manage over 100 schools in India over the next few years,” he said.

From Middle East to Asia, GEMS Education now operates leading international independent schools in six regions globally, namely Middle East & North Africa, Europe, Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific and South Asia. 

The GEMS school is one of the major co-developments in the 246-acres SmartCity Kochi project. GEMS Education has also been given the building permit by the state government's single-window clearance system.

“Creating supporting infrastructure around the business township we envision at SmartCity Kochi is very crucial. Within this township, developing opportunities for education is of utmost importance to enhance community development. We couldn’t have asked for a better partnership than to have a prestigious institution like GEMS Education be a part of Kerala’s dream project” said Gigo Joseph, CEO, SmartCity Kochi.

“GEMS Modern Academy is the first major initiative of GEMS Education in Kerala and we are excited that we are making rapid progress towards making this initiative a reality. The approval for the GEMS School project in SmartCity Kochi comes at a time when GEMS Modern Academy in Gurgaon has successfully begun operations setting the stage for the launch of GEMS Modern Academy in Kochi soon,” added C. N. Radhakrishnan, Senior Executive Director - Varkey Group & Head of Group Chairman’s Office-GEMS Global.

“Education has been undergoing a dramatic change in recent times and as educators, our challenge is to provide our future generations the skills they need to succeed in the 21st century. By bringing in values and skills-based approaches to education based on our research and learning over the last 5 decades, we want to ensure that our children are truly prepared for tomorrow,” said Amitabh Jhingan, Chief Executive Officer, GEMS Education India.

Recipient of Padma Shri award and Rajiv Gandhi Award for Eminent Educationist, Dr. Sunny Varkey transformed 'Our Own English High School,' the school set up by his parents, Mariamma Varkey and the late K. S. Varkey, 54 years ago in Dubai, into a global enterprise through his acumen, vision and dynamic leadership. In 2012, Dr. Varkey was named UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Education Partnerships.

GEMS Education, which has set a Global benchmark for quality education, has been operating for over 50 years now and has a global network of international schools with over 1.4 lakh students from 160 countries. GEMS Education employs more than 13,000 education professionals, specialists and staffs from across 115 countries. GEMS Education employs the largest number of teaching professionals from the UK & India outside their home countries.

GEMS Modern Academy, at SmartCity Kochi

Spread over 8 acres, the school offering World class infrastructure, international standards and facilities, GEMS Modern Academy (GMA) SmartCity Kochi, shall provide a built-up area of 2.2 lakh sq ft with the ability to house 3,400 students. Having a strong focus on experiential learning, the GMA in Smart City Kochi will offer a CBSE Curriculum with the International Baccalaureate (IB) option in Grades 11 & 12 providing tremendous exposure for its students on an international platform.

The school by GEMS Education will be built in the city’s Non-Processing Zone that will house residential, hospitality and education facilities. Not just the children of City’s knowledge workers, the school also aims at reaching out to the children of nearby areas as well. As GEMS Education believes, this confluence of minds will add to the sense of community. 

The school will have Little GEMS Programme for Early Years, based on the UK’s Early Years Foundation Stages (EYFS) Curriculum. The programme is based on play-based exploration and inquiry establishing cross-curricular learning across 7 key learning areas, identified internationally as being key to early childhood development and preparing children for lifetime success. Using Montessori, Reggio Emilia and Lev Vygotsky’s teaching approaches to deliver the curriculum the programme is based on children developing new skills.

Being a part of the intended education infrastructure within SmartCity Kochi, the school by GEMS Education will dot the skyline along with technical colleges, higher education institutions and specialized training centres in future. All aimed at creating an environment where quality education, students and hiring companies are all situated close to one another.