Bits and Bytes: Know about startup and business news in Pune
UKG announced the opening of its centre in Pune
UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group), the largest US-based private SaaS firm dealing in HR, payroll, and workforce management solutions, announced the opening of its centre of excellence in Pune. The new India office is designed to deliver cutting-edge solutions to customers in 150 countries worldwide, leveraging the city’s highly skilled and diverse talent pool. With 80,000 organisations using its cloud solutions around the world, UKG supports a customer base across the world and in India to optimize workforce strategies, drive better business outcomes, and help every organization become a great place to work through technology built for all. UKG has been present in India since 2007. The new space in Pune will complement UKG’s existing offices in Noida, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, contributing to the company’s growing presence in the country. “Our continued India expansion, starting here in Pune, will play a pivotal role in driving the next chapter of our global growth success,” said Nitin Chandel, Group Vice President & India Country Manager, UKG.
Girls from economically weaker section to get free training in AI
In a bid to provide training in AI to the young girls for the economically weaker section, Rotary Club of Bibwewadi Pune has joined hands with HG Foundation, Serrala India and Pune Institute of Computer Technology (PICT) to launch the initiative titled ‘Asmita Next. An official announcement to this effect was made during a special program at Hyatt Regency organized to mark the completion of a decade of Rotary Club of Bibwewadi, Pune. Prachi Pandya said, “Two batches of 60 girls each would be given training in AI from the basic to the advanced level. The duration of the training for each batch would be 6 months and the training will happen at the PICT campus. The cost of training and the ultramodern laptop required for this training shall be taken up by the Rotary Club of Bibwewadi – Pune. The cost that will be incurred on each girl for training and the laptop will come to about ₹1 to ₹1.25 lakhs.” “A special drive shall be launched amongst all the Rotary Clubs of the Rotary District 3131 to run a campaign to identify the girls that are eligible to be a part of Asmita Next initiative. The girls should belong to the economically weaker section of society, should be from the science stream and should possess the basic knowledge of coding. This training will also have on-job training modules and assistance for placements”, she added.
Inclusion of AI, cyber laws to make law courses more practical
Inclusion of subjects such as Artificial Intelligence (AI)-related laws, cyber laws, intellectual property rights, and environmental law in the legal education curriculum will make law courses more relevant and practical in today’s digital age, said Rishi Raj Bhardwaj, assistant professor at the School of Law, Mahindra University. Bhardwaj was interacting with the media person in Pune recently. Bar Council of India’s circular issued last year to all universities and Centres of Legal Education, direct the inclusion of emerging subjects like blockchain, electronic discovery, cybersecurity, robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and bioethics in the law curriculum. Bhardwaj further stressed the need to enhance legal literacy among common citizens through digital platforms. “Digital mediums have a wide reach today and can be effective in creating legal awareness,” he said. He also said that offering law education in bilingual formats would be beneficial for future legal professionals, especially for students who have completed their schooling in Hindi or other regional languages.