Reapit is offering the wider agency market a unique opportunity to access Front-End Sales and Lettings training courses for their multi award-winning property CRM software.

The offer will provide non-customers with complimentary access to a specially curated curriculum of learning resources on Reapit IQ the online training platform.

Content includes more than 20 bite-sized learning tools, ranging from 3-minute videos to end-of-course quizzes.

A certification in Reapit software is a regarded skill in the industry and can be specified in job posts, making this a valuable extra to add to any agents skillset.

Completion of the curriculum will also provide up to 3 CPD hours of accreditation 1.5 for NAEA Propertymark and 1.5 for ARLA Propertymark, valid for up to 24 months from the date of issue, all free of charge.

Gary Barker, Chief Executive Officer, Reapit, said:

The silver lining to this crisis is how it has moved people and companies to keep finding ways in which we can help each other.

The significant number of agency staff on furlough, that they are still able to undertake learning and training in this time, has motivated our Training Department to also find a way to help, and the result is this no-strings-attached learning and development opportunity to the wider agency market.

Kieran McGurk, Head of Training, Reapit, added: More people than ever are using this time for training and personal development, and we hope that this offer will appeal to agents who wish to bolster their skills, especially as our certifications are highly valued across the industry.

Click here to apply for the complimentary membership.

Join thousands of industry colleagues and subscribe to our free daily news email.

Original post:
Reapit offers free sales and lettings training to agents - Property Industry Eye

Like running, cycling has become one of the nations favourite pastimes since we were instructed to hunker down at home. Weve seen an unprecedented growth in bike sales since the beginning of March with triple digit growth across all types of cycling, says Michael McHale, road cycling commercial leader at Decathlon UK. We had anticipated seeing an increase in the sales of childrens bikes as parents try to keep their children active and entertained during lockdown and school holidays. However, as key workers continue to cycle to work and people take advantage of the nice weather and empty roads, weve seen a boom in bike sales across the board, beyond what we had envisaged.

The dedicated female bike brand, Liv, has also seen sales increase. From road racing machines to mountain bikes for off-road adventures and lifestyle products for a pedal around the neighbourhood, weve seen a rise in interest in all sorts of bikes, says Livs Collette Clensy. Weve also seen a change in the age groups searching online, with a much younger audience looking for bikes.

Cycling starts to seem a lot more technical once you start researching, and it can be overwhelming. Its also worth considering how you plan to use your bike if youre looking at making a new purchase. Remember a bike isnt just for keeping fit now; you might want to start using it for your commute once lockdown is lifted, too. Liv Cycling, which was founded by a woman and employs only female engineers to design bikes for women from the ground up. To ensure happy riding experiences, we build bikes that fit a womans body for the best fit possible. Beyond this, we demonstrate a commitment to women throughout their cycling journey through events and community projects, Clensy explains. How much you spend depends on the style of bike and the type of cycling you want to do but, according to Clensy, you can pick up a bike for less than 500.

If youre looking for a speedy, lightweight bike that works for your commute, long weekend rides or as a static exercise bike, look for a road bike. If youre looking for a bike to bridge outdoors and indoor training, wed recommend a road bike, says Clensy. However, remember that theyre purely for road cycling and wont be able to handle off-road riding due to the thinner wheels and more fragile, agile frame. Brands to look at include Liv, Decathlon and Specialized.

This will take you off-road and down to the local shops as well as on a nice ride with friends and family. Some models will offer suspension for those looking to be more adventurous. They also have straight handlebars if you prefer a more upright position. Mountain bikes are ideal if youre travelling over tough terrain. They have tyres that grip and suspension that absorbs shocks, plus a wider range of gears to help you climb. Theyre ideal if you want to get off-road and tackle rocky paths and grassy hills, says Tim Ellis, bike expert at Halfords.

Unsure whether to buy a road bike or an off-road bike? This is the compromise. In the style of racing drop-handlebar bikes but with thicker tyres than a straightforward road bike, youll be able to ride on gravel paths and bumpier tracks. You can also use it as an at-home bike on a turbo trainer, turning it into more than just an outdoor bicycle.

A combination of road and mountain bike, this is the best all-rounder. Its probably the best choice if youre unsure what type of riding youll be doing the most of, Ellis explains. Hybrids are a great starter option. They tend to give the rider a more upright and comfortable sitting position, which also means that youll have a good view of the road or path in front.

Remember to read the sizing chart carefully and use a measuring tape. Without the ability to visit a bike shop and try, you need to make sure you get the fit right. Online bike suppliers like Rutland Cycling are still taking calls and offering advice if youre unsure. Ellis says: Knowing what size bike you need is really important. Learning how to measure for a bike is important so you can ride a model thats right for you. Most websites now offer sizing guides to help you decide.

If you want to turn your bike into an indoor exercise bike, then investing in a turbo trainer, a tool which converts your bike into a stationary trainer, is well worth it. McHale has also seen a rise in turbo trainer sales. Somewhat ironically, its the regular cyclists who are now indoors on their interactive training apps. We saw over 1000 per cent sales growth of turbo trainers in March as social distancing measures began, forcing group rides and races to meet up online instead.

Paul Derbyshire, cycling accessories expert at Halfords, explains: When it comes to choosing a turbo trainer, its all about what you want to get out of your training. For the casual user looking to stay fit and active, a standard mechanical turbo trainer is a great, cost-effective option for turning your bike into an indoor trainer and the perfect solution for taking part in online virtual spin classes. Halfords has just partnered with global gym fitness classes Les Mills, to provide access to their at-home Les Mills On Demand platform for just 8.95 a month. But for those seriously into their cycling and missing their training routine, or in the middle of training for an event, wed recommend a Smart Turbo Trainer. You can link your trainer with a third party app like Zwift, which makes serious training much more fun and structured.

Clensy agrees there has been a significant spike in interest. During the lockdown, weve noticed a surge in people purchasing bikes for indoor training. The great thing about training indoors is it allows you to avoid bad weather and focus on targeted training particularly if time is of the essence. We also offer training plans at Liv Cycling. Luckily, most turbo trainers fit most bikes, but Derbyshire recommends double checking with the store that the one you want is compatible with your bike. He also recommends thinking about where you will install your turbo trainer; If you live in a flat or a place where noise travels, wed recommend investing in a fluid or direct drive turbo trainer, which are much quieter than their traditional wheel on counterparts.

Linking your at home set-up to an app can make your bike work harder, as it morphs into an indoor trainer. Peloton is currently offering a free 90-day trial, with access to thousands of classes available whenever you want to take them. Then theres Zwift, which Liv has seen a big migration towards within its community, and which connects to your turbo trainer (check your trainer has Zwift connectivity here). Zwift offers video game -like training programmes, races and group rides for a monthly subscription. Also try Technogyms MyCycling, a smart trainer thats extremely quiet and offers routes, training and coaching. Strava is a monthly subscription app that logs your rides and connects you to the cycling community, allowing you to follow friends so you can compete and compare your progress.

More from British Vogue:

Read the rest here:
How To Find The Best Bike For You - British Vogue

NEWARK, N.J., May 5, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --The Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership (IFEL) launched today the Small Businesses Need Us initiative to mobilize and activate business professionals to pool expertise to help small businesses survive and recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Small businesses face tremendous uncertainty as state and local leaders determine when and how to re-open an economy that has been shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Small business owners will have to figure out how to operate in an environment with fewer customers transacting business on-site, and with the ever-looming threat of new shutdowns should the death toll surge again.

Jill Johnson, IFEL CEO said, "While financial capital is critical in this crisis, small business owners also have to steady the ship and consider new destinations. We are calling on business professionals to volunteer their expertise and skills to help small business owners address immediate needs, create pivot strategies, and develop a plan to operate in a social distancing environment. It's time for us to get off the sidelines and get in the game to help save small businesses."

According to the SBA Office of Advocacy, small businesses comprise 99.7% of U.S. employer firms and account for nearly 50% of private-sector employment. Through the Small Businesses Need Us initiative, volunteers are organized into cross-functional teams and matched based on the needs of each business. All work is done remotely via phone and video conferencing. Volunteers can choose short projects, a set number of hours, answering questions online, or offering in-kind products or services. Business professionals may apply individually or through partner Adopt-A-Business corporate volunteer programs. Learn more and sign up at SmallBusinessesNeedUs.org. #SBNU

Business professionals can offer their knowledge and skills in key areasincluding: Accounting/Bookkeeping, Copywriting/Content development, Restaurant management, Human resources, Marketing/PR/Social Media, Merchandising/Packaging, Operations, Sales strategy/Sales training/Presentation development, Strategic consulting/Business model reinvention, Supply chain management, Technology hardware/software, Website development, and more!

Johnson said, "Just as medical professionals are on the front lines saving lives, business professionals must join together to save our small businesses. Already capital-starved small businesses in our most resource-poor communities are facing the threat of extinction. If we don't act today to pave the way for economic recovery, tomorrow may be too late to save for the vast majority of small businesses and the jobs they represent."

ABOUT THE INSTITUTE FOR ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIPFounded in 2002, the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership (IFEL) is an independent, notforprofit organization that supports economic development through entrepreneurship. We are experts in creating and implementing small business programming in support of larger economic development objectives. Our mission is to eradicate the systemic barriers that prevent entrepreneurs of color from being able to access the knowledge, networks, and capital required for business success. Visit us at http://www.weareifel.org.

For additional information, please contact:Jill Johnson, 239188@email4pr.com, 973-353-0611x101

Read more:
The Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership Launches Small Businesses Need Us Initiative to Save COVID-19 Impacted Small Businesses - The Trentonian

Training and development companies provide an outsourced method of imparting skill enhancements to employees.These companies offer onsite and visual modules of training in industry-specific developments and innovations, soft skills, and team-building exercises. Such companies can even customize training workshops and programs based on the needs of the companies.

They generally coordinate with Human resource professionals to work out training programs based on a company's needs or even individual employee needs. They work out training solutions and show ways to implement and track the results.

It is a training, coaching and consulting company in operation since 1992. They believe that the real value a training company provides is in the impact that the training has on the companys employees and bottom line.

Aegis Learning has individual training programs, team solutions, customer service training, HR and talent management solutions, and professional and personal upskilling methods, high performance and teamwork training.

The company has figured in the top 10 training and development company list for 2018 and 2019. It is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

It is a training and coaching company based in Silicon Valley with offices in China, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Finland, and Spain.

They help clients build, design and scale up their sales and customer services.

They can even overhaul the whole systems by doing a complete data and people analysis of the company and give a quick turnaround solution in three months with program implementations for long term benefits.

They do a revenue assessment, training coaching, designs for improvement, customer service enhancement modules, SKO training, and tech implementations.

For over a century, Dale Carnegie has been the go-to person for people wanting to improve personal skills, develop and progress professionally and to improve their personality overall. The Dale Carnegie training institute is carrying on this tradition.

The institute runs leadership training, presentation training, customer service and sales training, people skills, and organizational development training workshops and programs.

They are known for providing confidence and competence to interact with others. Dale Carnegie works with the United States local and national governments to help them provide better service.

The Dale Carnegie training programs are in operation since 1912 and have a long heritage of providing professional and personal improvement skills. The company is headquartered in Washington and has offices almost all over the world.

JBarrows is a leading sales training company. It has sales training models that are high impact and drive results.They have programs designed to help the sales team find the targeted audience by leveraging structure, process, and techniques.

They also have a training module for closing deals with training providing interactions throughout the sales process. Employees are taught to carry out the sales, negotiate trouble, find solutions and in effect, see that every order is executed to the customers satisfaction.

As with all training provided nowadays, they have online courses, on-site interactions and even remote access to their courses. They have some big clients like Twillo, LinkedIn, box and Salesforce. It is a Boston-based company.

Boston Manager Company provides leadership coaching for all managers. They provide tech-enabled solutions that have worked for some of the largest and most successful organizations out there.They have a manager Acceleration Program designed to up-level the organization's leadership development.

Real-time feedback is given to make sure that HR/L&D departments can monitor the progress of each client. Data analysis of client behavior and responses is used to identify patterns and issues.

They have a lecture series on leadership where issues, problems, and solutions are discussed along with the HR.They have personalized coaching classes where individuals are guided through their day-to-day work problems, issues are identified, and feedback is given. The company is based out of San Francisco and has a presence in eight countries.

Cognician is a digital change management platform. It builds bite-sized change and learning activities, uses gamification to deliver change as an innovative concept in the workplace, and is mobile, blended, insightful, data-rich, simple, and user-friendly.

They boast clients like Accenture and other Fortune 500 clients who have used the Cognician capabilities to shift the way their employees work. They utilize digital coaching, multi-day quests, surveys, reminders, reflections, adaptive learning paths, gamification, assessments & more to bring about change in the workforces habits and way of looking at assignments.

It can be customized to meet any companys needs. It has an adaptive learning path, i.e. it responds to individual capacities of learning and requirements.It gives feedback, has round-the-clock customer support and gives advanced analytics based on usage of its platforms programs.

Cognician has offices in San Francisco and South Africa.

American Management Association is a world leader in professional development, advancing the skills of individuals to drive business success.It helps people develop the skills needed to progress in the professional field.It provides training and development in leadership, Human Resources, Communications, Project Management, Analytics and more.

It has remote and offline classes and training modules. It has been in the business for 95 years and has a presence in 40 cities all over the world. It has 160 courses and training programs on offer.

FranklinCovey is a global Human Resource training company specializing in performance improvement. They focus on bringing change in human behavior. They provide content, tools, methodology, training and thought leadership that helps in bringing about change at the core of any organization, the people.

It has a robust leadership program where it helps focus on the inner strength and helps bring out hidden talents to the fore. The company has a presence in more than 150 countries, with over 2,000 associates working toward a common mission of enabling greatness in people and organizations everywhere. The company lists some qualities that a great leader should have:

The company is headquartered in Salt Lake city, Utah.

Besides being a leader in networking, LinkedIn also has a training and development platform called LinkedIn Learning. It takes advantage of users' job history, connections, social profiles, and inferred skills to personalize lesson recommendations.

It has training modules for business and leadership programs, creative training schedules like graphic designing, photography; software learning, sales business analysis and many more.

The company is a leading global provider of, innovative, cloud-based learning and performance support resources. They help organizations to achieve competitive advantages through superior enterprise-wide knowledge and skills.

Skillsoft has modules that are available on any device and helps bring employees up to speed with engaging content and powerful technology in a time of digital transformation. This platform offers certificate exams, on top of its online learning content.

Its various learning modules intuitive design engages modern learners and its consumer-led experience assists in accelerating learning.

It helps the HR process by helping in talent acquisition, learning management and talent management.

It is a leading provider of integrated human capital management solutions for human resources, payroll, benefits, and insurance services.

It imparts learning that helps an employee's entire journey from onboarding, HR processes, and more. It has a personalized, AI-powered learning management system (LMS) that recommends courses based on an employee's job role, professional interests, and learning history in terms of courses done.

They have personal and professional development sessions that help employees strengthen soft skills such as emotional intelligence, critical thinking, and the ability to navigate crucial events and occurrences. Paychex serves approximately 670,000 payroll clients across more than 100 locations in the U.S. and Europe.

The companys headquarters are in Rochester, New York.

employee trainingT&D CompaniesTop training and development companies

Read this article:
Top Training & Development Companies of 2020 | The HR Digest - TheHRDigest

GILBERT, Ariz. (BRAIN) Fifteen USA BMX tracks in six states held "soft" reopenings for practice and races last week under state and city social distancing guidelines established during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This weekend, about 10 additional tracks will open for racing and/or practice, said Craig Barrette, USA BMX's creative director, who noted all schedules are subject to change. USA BMX sanctions 320 North American tracks.

Last weekend, four tracks held races in Oklahoma and Texas, "which is small, obviously, but significant as everybody begins ramping up and reopening their local programs," Barrette said.

At the Katy and Cowtown tracks in Texas, racing was held in groups of four. U.S. practices took place on 11 tracks, with the Florida venues in Cape Coral and Daytona limiting it to groups of 20 and 10 per session, respectively.

This weekend, 14 U.S. tracks will hold races. States opening tracks this week will be Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Wyoming. At the Bonzai track in Little Rock, practice will be held only on Fridays, Sundays and Tuesdays for now. At County Line track in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, practice will be held this weekend in groups of nine.

"As always, the safety of our athletes and their families, our staff, and the entire USA BMX community is our priority," said USA BMX CEO B.A. Anderson in a statement. "Like you, our team is dreaming of getting back to the track, and we are focused on being a resource for our membership and tracks to ensure a safe return. We are communicating with our members and tracks more than ever and have been overwhelmed by the positive communication and constructive feedback that has been received. We have strategically taken this time to focus first on the safe return of BMX on the local level, and secondly, on completing the rest of the Gold Cup and National Series. Additionally, we are using this unique opportunity while there are no events to work on creative solutions and programming to grow the sport."

USA BMX's statement encourages sanctioned clubs to work with local governments to make decisions based on state and local health departments, athletic administrations, state governments, and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

USA BMX's Ready to Race guide will be used in conjunction with state and city guidelines. It can assist tracks in ensuring social distancing, managing their events, providing strategies to reduce the number of attendees if required through block racing, reducing staging lanes, limiting operation to small group practices and other measures.

Additional resources offered to tracks include a training course for marketing relaunch, block racing template, and four-rider class templates.

USA BMX, which has tracks in 49 states and also owns BMX Canada, held its last national event on March 6-8 in Houston before the pandemic led to stay-at-home orders.

"There's been a lot of changes in all of this, including adjustments to how races are put together with fewer or limited riders, to the way race registration is handled," Barrette said. "Many tracks (are) switching to online pre-reg only, etc."

USA BMX also announced that its members will receive an additional two months of free membership. In addition, USA BMX and BMX Canada developed two discounted membership promotions to encourage new riders to join, citing the surge in youth bike sales during the pandemic. The offers are good until July 1.

Original post:
USA BMX resumes racing and practice in several states - Bicycle Retailer

Sanjay BumbrooTribune News Service Mohali, May 1

Residents of Akal Ashram Colony in Sector 77, near the district administration complex here, are facing a shortage of safe drinking water for the past 10 days.

Due to the curfew restriction, they have been unable to meet any official concerned about the problem.

Colony residents, including Jaspal Singh Negi, Ravinder Singh Sohal, Surjit Kaur Kalra and others, said they had been fetching water from taps in Sri Harkrishan Sahib Charitable Eye Hospital, Sohana, and the Samadhi of Bhagat Asa Ram. However, GMADA and water supply officials are playing blame games.

Residents said due to lack of coordination between the Water Supply Department and GMADA officials, they had been facing the problem since the time the colony was established. They said the problem worsened during the summer months. They said a few houses were using submersible pumps and many houses had taps, but their water was unsafe for drinking and could only be used only for washing bathrooms or utensils.

Residents said earlier, they were supplied water by the Water Supply Department and in January this year, the responsibility was handed over to GMADA. However, officials concerned say the charge of supplying water was not handed over to GMADA.

Residents said streetlights in their area were also non-functioning and the condition of roads was also bad.

They say they had informed the Cabinet Minister, Deputy Commissioner and others about the problem in writing and in person, but to no avail.

GMADA XEN Pankaj Mehmi clarified that the Water Supply Department did not hand over the charge to GMADA. Area JE Ravinder Singh has written to GMADA in this regard and also submitted a field survey report, but the issue was yet to be settled. He said GMADA was supplying water, but the pipeline in the colony was old and could not bear the pressure, thus, causing leakage at various places.

Meanwhile, Water Supply Department XEN Sahil Sharma said supplying water was the responsibility of GMADA.

Originally posted here:

Akal Ashram Colony residents rue shortage of drinking water - The Tribune India

The 159th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore was celebrated without fanfare this year amid the coronavirus-triggered lockdown, with netizens taking to social media to mark the day with live discussions and cultural performances.

Taking to Twitter, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee quoted the lyrics of one of Tagores songs (Rabindrasangeet) to pay tribute to him.

Chironutaner dilo daak, pochise boisakh (this dawn invokes the new, marks new beginning). Homage to Kobiguru Rabindranath Tagore on his birth anniversary, she tweeted.

The Creative Arts, a performing arts group, hosted an online programme on Facebook for children.

Visual designer and graphic artist Aniket Mitra shared an illustration of Tagore on social media, where the bard is shown discussing his ideas with other literary figures, including Shakti Chattopadhyay, Sunil Gangopadhyay, Nabanita Dev Sen, Bangladeshi writer Humayun Ahmed, at the iconic Coffee House on College Street.

Children from different countries, including US, England, Canada and Australia, recited Tagores Bharat Tirtho in a video presented by elocutionist-actor-presenter Sujoy Prasad Chatterjee.

Various cultural organisations hosted online events on Zoom, Skype and similar other platforms on the occasion.

At Rabindra Bharati Universitys Jorasanko campus, the ancestral home of the Tagore family, the usual crowd and flurry of activities were missing on Friday. Vice Chancellor Sabyasachi Basu Ray Choudhury paid floral tributes to the bust of the poet in a brief ceremony.

The scene was similar at Santiniketans Visva Bharati University, founded by Tagore, with Vice Chancellor Bidyut Chakraborty, accompanied by a few ashramites (ashram members), gathering at the prayer hall, Rabindra Bhavan and Chhatimtala to fondly remember the Nobel laureate and his contributions.

The SFI unit of Visva Bharati posted a video of song- recitals by the students of the varsity on YouTube.

A short programme has been organised at Rabindra Sadan-Nandan area here later in the day, which will be conducted maintaining social distancing norms, sources in the information and cultural affairs department said.

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An 83-year-old hotelier, Ashok Kumar, running a prominent hotel chain in Rajasthan and many educational institutes in Haryana, UP and Punjab, has used the lean period of lockdown to find out the itinerary of Lord Ram during his exile period in the atlas of present times.

Speaking to IANS, he said, "We have found 195 places which still have the memorials connected to the events narrated in the Ramayana which directly relate to the life of Ram and Sita. These include Tamsa Tal (Mandah in UP), Shringverpur (Singraur in UP), Bhardwaj Ashram (located near Allahabad), Atri Ashram, Markandaya Ashram (Markundi in UP), Chitrakoot, Pamakuti (on banks of the Godavari), Panchvati, Sita Sarovar, Ram Kund in Triambakeshwar near Nasik, Shabari Ashram, Kishkindha (village Annagorai in Karnataka), Dhanushkoti and Rameshwar temple (in Tamil Nadu) and many others.

"Today, when people watch the Ramayana serial which is smashing many TRP records, they often ask if it is a myth or a reality that Ram went for Vanvaas for 14 years", says Kumar.

"His travel itinerary is clearly seen on today's atlas. Lord Ram started from Ayodhya (still exists) to Janakpur (Nepal), returned through Bihar to go south via Chhattisgarh (Bastar region), Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and finally through Tamil Nadu, reached a non-descript place where he established a Shiva-lingam which was finally called as Rameshwaram. Nearby was the stone-bridge he created to walk up to Jaffna region in today's Sri Lanka," says Kumar.

In Ramayan, it is mentioned that Ram's army constructed a bridge over the sea between Rameshwaram and Lanka. After crossing this bridge, Ram's army defeated the demon king Ravana.

Recently, NASA had put out pictures on the Internet of a bridge, the ruins of which are lying submerged in Palk Strait between Rameshwaram and Sri Lanka, he says.

"The Ashok Vatika or Sita Vatika exists in Sri Lanka even today and has been maintained as a popular tourist destination. It is over the highest hills in south of that country. They call it Sita Eliya. One has to first go to Lanka's hill station named as Nuwara Eliya. From there, people drive further up and reach Sita Eliya," says Kumar.

So Sri Lanka has maintained Sita's place "even 7,078 years after a historical incident" when Ram had to fight against Ravana to bring back his wife, Sita who was abducted by Ravana, Kumar says, adding that he followed Tulsidas Ramayan to track his itinerary.

He says the geography has naturally undergone a change over so many centuries. So to revive the same grandeur may be out of question. "But something may always be better than nothing", he says.

Running many prominent educational institutions in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab, he has also asked a few professors to conduct a research on Ramayana, Mahabharat and Chanakya period to evaluate what kind of world existed in those years and how those times were different from today's.

"We are trying to bring out four maps of the four different periods to know how the world has changed," he says.

"I am also conducting a research on the period somewhere around 1200 years ago before the Mughal invasion of India", he says.

Ashok Kumar is the chairman of Seth Mukund Lal Memorial Institutions which have some 23,000 students. With around Rs 85-crore turnover, he runs his hotel chains -- Mansingh Hotels in Rajasthan.

Read this article:

83-Year-Old Hotelier Maps Lord Ram's Exile Itinerary on Atlas to Pass Time in Lockdown - News18

ON Monday, April 27, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declared that the country had won the battle against the coronavirus.

With cases trending downward to the point that the New Zealand health care system can handle any new infections, Ardern is confident that they had successfully flattened the curve and are ready to reopen some businesses.

Continue reading below

The day after, a coalition of three fitness groups the Exercise Association of New Zealand, the NZ Register of Fitness Professionals, and Yoga New Zealand sent a document to gyms and fitness studios around the country.

The document, Key Items to Consider When Considering Physical Re-opening, posed a set of questions to gym owners about things they should consider to avoid COVID-19 cases from flaring up again because of their operations.

Continue reading below

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How will your facility limit the number of people to comply with social distancing requirements?

How will you enforce social distancing?

How will you deal with equipment shared between members?

What are your new cleaning protocols?

Will you continue to offer virtual classes?

In the Philippines, gyms will still remain closed, even after the enhanced community quarantine eases into a more relaxed general community quarantine. (However, Interior Secretary Eduardo Ao has said that this might change, pending further discussion.)

Continue reading below

To talk about how gyms will transition to the new normal, SPIN Life talked to two different studios.

The first, Evolution Wellness Philippines, might not be immediately familiar, but its one of the biggest players in the local fitness industry. It runs both Fitness First and Celebrity Fitness in the Philippines, and is one of the biggest gym chains in the nation, with about 30,000 members.

Meanwhile, Urban Ashram is an independent yoga studio founded in 2011, with two branches around Metro Manila.

Heres how both gyms will transition to a new normal in fitness.

COVID-19 has not been kind to Evolution Wellness.

This is understatement at a massive scale. The pandemic has not been beneficial to business, period. But gyms, which by definition operate on a face-to-face model where members show up to have a good sweat, have been hit particularly hard by shelter-in-place orders.

Continue reading below

A lobby at one of Fitness First's branches. PHOTO: Courtesy of Fitness First Philippines

Our business model is built on monthly membership dues as a source of revenue, explained Mark Ellis, country manager. Since the ECQ was imposed, we have not been billing our members and have therefore not been able to generate any income since March.

Continue reading below

Thats two months with no money. It employs hundreds of team members as the company calls its staff in multiple locations across the country. Full-time rank-and-filers can still continue to receive financial assistance, but senior executives have volunteered to take a pay cut over the next few months.

Like most of the fitness industry, Fitness First and Celebrity Fitness also had to make the tire-screeching swerve into an all-digital business. They were better prepared than most, as they were the local arm of a regional brand. Both gyms tapped into their Asia-Pacific network for online classes and content yoga lessons streamed from Malaysia, for example, or a lower body workout with a Singaporean coach.

To date, we have made available more than 200 classes, generating more than 5 million views, said Ellis. Some of these classes have even been opened to the public via their social media pages.

Continue reading below

But, he continued, We recognize that nothing can replace the experience of working out inside the gym.

In the early days of the virus, Fitness First was among the first gyms to publish a public advisory on the safety measures they were taking against COVID-19. Perhaps, at the time, they were only playing it safe who knew, then, that enhanced community quarantine would happen? But when their gyms finally reopen, members can expect a new level of stringent safety measures beyond temperature checks and barbell wipedowns.

Continue reading below

Contactless seems to be Evolution Wellnesss new watchword in the post-pandemic new normal. Personal trainers will have a no-contact policy, and some equipment will be rearranged and isolated. Numerous signs, both actual and on social media, will remind members, over and over, to maintain physical distance. It is even developing apps for both Fitness First and Celebrity Fitness for members to pre-book floor space and slots in group classes making it easier for club managers to make sure sessions remain at socially distanced levels.

Even as the final reopening date of gyms is still up in the air in the Philippines, Ellis is hopeful that demand will come roaring back.

The coronavirus scare has affected the attitude of Filipinos positively towards health as they became more concerned about keeping fit, he told SPIN Life. We expect this to translate to an increase in the number of individuals wanting to join a gym to sustain their physical and mental wellness.

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Of course, the reopening of gyms is a matter of "when" and not "if." In the meantime, as their gyms lie empty, doors chained and padlocked, some Fitness First team members are practicing a new way of improving community health: by donating food packs and household goods.

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The Taal eruption in January already feels so long ago. But it was that event an ashy foreshadowing of things to come that already sounded the alarm bells for Maricar Holopainen, who operates Urban Ashram.

News of infections at the tail end of Lunar New Year further convinced Holopainen that the situation would change rapidly.

A class at Urban Ashram, pre-COVID-19. PHOTO: @urbanashramyoga | Instagram

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Fearing that a health scare would kill a face-to-face business like Urban Ashram, We started recording our classes late February and provided online recorded classes to our community as early as mid-March, she said to SPIN Life.

And then the hammer dropped. Enhanced community quarantine closed down Urban Ashram, as well as many other gyms and businesses all deemed dispensable as the number of COVID-19 cases began its deadly upward climb.

In this time of pandemic, Holopainen credits the studios close, tight-knit community for keeping the bonds strong, even outside the four walls of the studio.

Because of the strong ties our team have with our student base, we were able to shift our loyal students to our virtual platform seamlessly, she said.

She continued: Members of our front line staff have been with us for at least three to five years. So they know our students well, and we have a very active social media and newsletter campaign that has allowed us to reach out to as many members as we can to bring them together.

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The virtual world is nothing new to Maricar. She and her husband Lasse a Finnish-Filipino who grew up in Cebu founded Urban Ashram back in 2011, but moved to New Zealand in 2017 in search of better opportunities. However, they still run the studio remotely; a challenging task that, nevertheless, prepared the studio for what was to come.

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[We had] to make the business as automated as possible: reports, transactions, finance and accounting and operations, she said, and yet keep the human connection by ensuring that we made the digital communication as personal as possible.

They now offer three to four online sessions a day. By April 15, Urban Ashram was confident enough in its offerings that it began to offer paid classes by April 15.

Maricar said, We continue to keep our staff doing the same work online that they did in the studios welcoming the students in class, taking attendance, answering their questions, and just checking in on them.

In these classes, trainers and instructors are still paid the same, even on an online platform. The studio is also looking into offering corporate and public yoga classes, funded by companies and other large groups.

For the foreseeable future, Holopainen believes that Urban Ashram will continue online.

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We most likely will be one of the last studios to reopen, to ensure that guidelines for the health and safety of our team are all effective, she admitted to SPIN Life. As such, we are prepared to stay virtual for the near term.

Its been a difficult, painful 2020 for Urban Ashram. When we asked how the coronavirus has affected the financial side of the business, Holopainen could only answer: Terribly.

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But she sees hope in a new virtual platform a new kind of fitness community that transcends the physical. Whether in face-to-face classes or through the glass of a devices screen, Urban Ashrams mission will remain the same.

The new normal is for us to even heighten our programs to help and heal more so now in these extraordinary times, she said.

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How will the 'new normal' look like for two gyms? - Sports Interactive Network Philippines

Prasar Bharati will be telecasting the play The Prophet and The Poet on May 7 at 10 pm, the birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore. Designed and directed by Vijay Padaki, a Founder-Trustee of Bangalore Little Theatre Foundation, The Prophet and The Poet is an internationally acclaimed play developed by Bangalore Little Theatre (BLT). It is based on the exchange of letters and articles between Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore over 25 years, against the backdrop of the Indian freedom struggle. The exchanges reveal how the two personalities differed significantly on many matters, including the form and content of the freedom movement. The differences widened over the years. However, they maintained genuine respect and love for each other in spite of the deep differences. It was the political maturity that prevailed in those times in India.

BLT was invited to stage the opening shows of the play at the places frequented by Gandhi and Tagore in their lifetime Sabarmati Ashram, Santiniketan (Visva Bharati) and Thakurbadi-Jorasanko (Rabindra Bharati). The play had a command performance for the President of India.

There have been over 108 performances of the play since its opening all over India and abroad. The play has had productions outside India as well. In 2014 Prasar Bharati commissioned a tele-film of the play. The film was telecast several times over Independence Day and Gandhi Jayanti.

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Prasar Bharati to telecast Bengaluru play - The Hindu