What does it take to govern a nation well? This question has risen to the top of my list of concerns during these challenging Covid-19 days. And yes, it has increased my level of anxiety about the future of our nation and its citizens. Like me, you’re probably experiencing nagging anxieties about staying safe. Will I find toilet paper rolls today? Am I protecting myself enough when I bring groceries into the house, or after handling the pump at the gas station? But a much broader and significant issue for me is leadership – leadership that secures the future of our well-being as individuals, families and a healthy nation. I know leadership theories and training can vary greatly, but I have found a common denominator of leadership excellence. I call it “Maturity of Self-hood.” It’s a leader who is secure as a person, who knows her strengths as well as what triggers negative reactions in her. It is someone who is passionate about new possibilities, but tempers this by listening to ideas

The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred efforts to control the spread of the virus through development of innovative digital contact tracing tools. In Singapore, Israel and India there is already an app for that. In Europe there’s debate between two competing frameworks, which have names that sound like Star Wars’ droids: PEPP-PT and DT-3T. And in the US, Apple and Google recently announced collaboration on a contact tracing feature that will eventually be integrated with updates to the mobile device operating system. Although providing promising solutions, these technologies are not without problems. First, the privacy protections for such systems need to be carefully scrutinized. The US currently does not have a general data protection law, like the EU's GDPR, that would permit government oversight and review of these contact tracing solutions. Second, contact tracing only works when a significant number of users opt-in and agree to use the technology. But there is no guarantee that

“Come look!” announced my husband on an early spring morning over a month ago. “I have a surprise!” I followed him out to the backyard, and there rising up out of the cold brown earth, were a myriad of green stems with sheathed yellow flowers just beginning to make themselves known. “Two hundred daffodils!” my husband beamed brightly. “I planted them last fall in honor of our 50th wedding anniversary. Looks like they made it through the winter.” Although our 50th anniversary isn’t till June, we had scheduled a celebration trip to the island of Kauai in March, but as the frightening days of the corona virus quickly escalated, that trip was canceled. So many others have had to do the same, canceling weddings, spring breaks, graduations, and sadly, even funerals. So instead of sitting on a beach looking out at the blue Pacific as a rosy sun slid into the sea, we are sheltered at home looking out the windows to our leafless backyard. The bright spot, however, is that those 200 daffodils

If you have ever skimmed a self-help book, you will be familiar with the current trend to plan ahead, strategize and focus. In a world where so much seems beyond our control, they advise we channel our efforts into well-defined goals. Unfortunately, such advice never seems to take into account the Enrique Solares approach to life. Enrique Solares was my husband's uncle and a gifted musician. When, in 1936, he was awarded a scholarship to study music in Belgium, his father threated to disinherit him. As a founder of a successful pharmaceutical company in Guatemala, Enrique's father was adamant that he abandon music and dedicate himself to the family firm. On the boat to Europe, he met a young Czech actress. Two days later the captain married them, so when he arrived in Brussels, he was not only disinherited and almost penniless, but he had a young wife in tow when Europe was on the cusp of World War II. As Viera would confess later: "most people would think we were foolish". And

As you listen to or read this essay, you will be celebrating the beginning of a brand-new month. But it is being written and recorded on another milestone -- the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. I was present for the very first one, as a student at the University of Illinois. Seminars, programs, speeches and leaflets urged the protection of our environment and an appreciation of the outdoors. For me, that appreciation would continue for a lifetime. This was the era of the "back to the land" movement and Mother Earth News. REI and Backpacker Magazine. Community cleanups and widespread tree planting. I would be fortunate enough to acquire a small hobby farm in Northern Wisconsin, if only for a few years. I often think about that property and can imagine in my mind how the land has changed, and how it hasn't. I will celebrate today not only by getting outdoors, but also by revisiting some of my favorite outdoor writers: Henry David Thoreau, Aldo Leopold, and Sigurd Olson. Their thoughts are

What day is it today? The woman on the other end of the phone asked, “How’s your day going?” “Oh, about the same as yesterday...” “Good one,” she says. At least I could inject a bit of humor. I don’t know about you, but for those of us quarantined at home, it seems as though every day is Sunday: one yawning day without very many milestones. I consider receiving the mail a major event. The governor’s daily address at 2:30 ish in the afternoon is another. At the beginning of this stay at home order I told myself that I would use noon as a cutoff: I had to be out of my pajamas by noon. Do I dare tell you that it is past 4:00 and I’m still in my nightgown? Let’s just say I’m getting in touch with my inner sloth. This order also breeds laziness. At one point I was counting out the number of underwear I had until I had to do laundry. What is wrong with me? I used to be a productive member of society: I read the newspaper daily. Now I collect the newspaper from the driveway every two days, I

Volume growth in India’s spirits industry was just 3% last year, compared to 10% a year earlier, impacted negatively by the national elections and subsequent sagging consumer demand. With two months of lockdown, about 16% of annual sales have literally vanished this year.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman had announced about a 10% cut in corporate income tax in September 2019 to boost the economy.

Experts says India needs to avoid ‘vice versus virtue’ dichotomy with regard to alcohol.

Chief minister BS Yediyurappa has been exploring revenue opportunities, and plans to also auction off plots of land in and around Bengaluru to mobilise funds. The revised retail prices will take effect Thursday. The CM has, however, spared beer and wine.

The company, which has a portfolio of more than 50 beer brands including Stella Artois, Corona and Harbin, reported quarterly revenue of $956 million, down from $1.6 billion last year.

Green Visor Capital backed-Simpl, that allows users to buy now and checkout with pay-later function, said the surge in the number of transactions done for daily essentials increased despite supply and workforce issues by merchant partners.

Assam finance minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “We had an informal discussion with these states and we may increase the tax on liquor. Tomorrow we are having a cabinet meeting in Assam and a decision in this regard will be taken.”

The five southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala together consume as much as 45 per cent of all liquor sold in the country, the report by Crisil said. While Tamil Nadu and Kerala top the list in revenue percentage terms at 15 per cent each, for Kerala the tax on liquor is its single largest revenue source.

According to an official statement, the government released a web link - www.qtoken.in - where people will be designated specific time for purchasing liquor after they fill personal details. The e-tokens will be sent on the mobile phones of the registered persons, it said.

Currently, owing to the ongoing lockdown, kirana (corner) stores on JioMart serve limited inventory. But that will be a thing of the past once restrictions are lifted.

Pernod Ricard, estimated to have revenues of Rs 21,000 crore in India in 2019-20 on sale of around 55 million cases, sells imported brands such as Chivas Regal, ABSOLUT, Glenlivet and Jameson, apart from the locally-made large-selling ones such as Royal Stag, Blenders Pride, and 100 Pipers.

Following instructions from Excise Minister Ram Naresh Agnihotri, principal secretary (excise) Sanjay R Bhoosreddy said that a rate higher than the fixed MRP cannot be charged by liquor vendors under any circumstances.

The Supreme Court refused to pass any orders to this effect, but suggested that it could be a better alternative than the chaos which has followed the government decision to open liquor shops during the lockdown.

The High Court passed the interim order on Friday as a result of the blatant violation of the conditions that the court had prescribed under which liquor shops could function. These conditions included adhering to social distancing norms while also deploying additional staff to manage the crowd.

Thousands of people standing outside the vends across the city said they had been trying to access the website since Thursday but decided come out and queue up for their turn when the online link didn't open. Delhi government officials confirmed the website crashed due to heavy rush and the glitch was being fixed.

Under the e-token system, customers are given specific time for purchasing alcohol so that there is no violation of social distancing norms by people queuing up outside liquor stores.

The five per cent increases, which will take the tariffs to 15-25 per cent, and are due to roll out in stages through December and target some popular items, such as laptops, mobile phones and some shoes.

Sharing the reasons for the slowdown in the shoe industry, shoe manufacturer Pradeep Kumar said: "The main cause is the flood that most part of the country is facing. Due to sluggish sales, we are also short of funds."

There is a lot of deal activity because businesses are looking for capital.

Bata has already identified 180 such markets in smaller cities pan-India.

The commission said that the bag which was made available by Bata in Rs 2 to the consumer had the company’s logo and accessories printed on it.

The actor will endorse 2020 collections of the casual footwear brand.

On a yearly basis, the Kolkata-based company's share price, which stood at Rs 1127.35, as of January 1, 2019, has gained around 55.32 per cent.

Industry players say premium and luxury buying sees an uptick in two cases — purchase for occasions by the aspirational millennial and by a growing cohort of marathon runners.

Every year, leather shoes worth over Rs 3,000 crore are exported to European countries from Agra. The US and several African countries are also important destinations for Agra footwear, say industry sources.

The outbreak that has infected over 24,000 people and killed nearly 500 in mainland China has forced many stores and factories to close and airlines to cancel flights.

"Our topline was around Rs 1,250 crore (FY19) and is growing by 10 per cent every year, which is a quite healthy and sustainable," Aero Club Managing Director Harkirat Singh told .

Dutch news agency ANP, citing an internal email, reported overnight that the office in Hilversum would be disinfected. The employee was staying home in isolation for 14 days, it said.

Founded in 2017 by Taran Chhabra and Amar Preet Singh, Neeman’s is a sustainable shoe brand that uses completely natural, renewable, recyclable and chemical-free materials to reduce the carbon footprint.

Russia has imported leather and footwear worth USD 3.9 billion in 2018, and India's exports to that country stood at only USD 52.6 million, said Panaruna Aqeel Ahmed, chairman of Council for Leather Exports (CLE).

"The newly launched footwear range is available in 90 stores. We plan to further expand and make it accessible at more stores in the coming seasons," said Somdeb Basu, head of foot apparel and accessories at W.

The donation will impact a number of countries in Europe, Latin America, Africa, Asia-Pacific, including India.

The pandemic is also likely to catalyse the shift to e-commerce.

The production of high-tech running shoes at its so-called speedfactories in Germany's Ansbach and in the US city of Atlanta "will be discontinued by April 2020 at the latest", Adidas said in a statement.

The brand will expand into Hyderabad, Goa, Kochi, Pune and Mysuru next year by introducing products through a mix of exclusive and multi-brand outlets, Xtep India director Vijay Chowdhary said at an event here organised in memory of US-born boxing legend Muhammad Ali.

Chhetri joins the brand's roster of global players like Antoine Griezmann, Romelu Lukaku, Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero among others.

French retailer Decathlon’s refusal to do business with customers who refuse to share their contact details has sparked a wave of protests on social media.

Campus Activewear is part of the Synergy Action Group that sells 100,000 pairs of shoes every day through more than 50,000, mostly third-party, outlets, according to Action Shoes’ website.

"Our business activity in Greater China has been around 85 percent below the prior year level since Chinese New Year on January 25," Adidas said in a statement.

“The Puma and First Mile programme has diverted about 40 tonnes of plastic waste from landfills and oceans, just for the products made for 2020. This roughly translates into 1,980,286 plastic bottles being reused,” said Stefan Seidel, head of corporate sustainability for Puma, in a press statement

Puma operates 365 owned stores in India, and over the past three years, has signed up cricketer Virat Kohli, boxer Mary Kom, footballer Sunil Chhetri and actress Sarah Ali Khan to endorse its products.

According to the company, Puma's collaboration with the Indian cricket captain saw a massive rise in sales in FY2019 with sales through One8 accounting for almost 10 per cent of its overall sales, and cementing the leadership position by a wider margin.

Vatika has leased this space to French firm Decathlon, which is into retailing of sports goods, at its project 'Shopper's Village INXT' in New Gurugram, Haryana.

In a letter to the brand’s business partners, Bjorn Gulden, global CEO of Puma SE, announced Ganguly’s elevation in the company adding that that he will continue to work out of Puma’s India head office in Bengaluru.