Making recycling accessible; Mega incubator in Tamil Nadu

Hello,

It’s a busy week ahead.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present her seventh straight Budget on Tuesday for the fiscal 2024-25.

YourStory spoke to industry insiders to get a sense of their hopes from the Budget. Lower taxes and increased investments remain the top key wishes. Read our pre-Budget coverage, here. 

Investors, both domestic and foreign, are keenly watching for possible tweaks in the long-term capital gains tax in the Budget. Foreign investors injected Rs 30,772 crore into Indian equities so far this month, driven by hopes of continued policy reforms, sustained economic growth, and a better-than-expected earnings season.

Elsewhere, investors will keep a close eye on Google-parent Alphabet and Tesla on Tuesday as the tech giants kick off the earnings season. Other Big Tech companies such as Microsoft and Apple will report their earnings the following week.

Quick question: If a person were to time travel to Wall Street in 1925 with the sole purpose of buying the stocks with the highest long-term returns, which ones would be the best options? University of Arizona finance professor Hendrik Bessembinder has done the number crunching to find the answer.

Speaking of tech, Microsoft has released a recovery tool designed to help IT admins repair Windows machines that were impacted by CrowdStrike’s faulty update that crashed 8.5 million Windows devices on Friday. 

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Making recycling accessible and efficient
• A mega incubator for TN startups 

Here’s your trivia for today: The longest bridge in the world is located in which country?

Environment

Making recycling accessible, efficient

India ranks among the top 10 countries globally in municipal solid waste (MSW) generation, producing over 62 million tonnes (MT) waste annually, according to a report by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). However, only 43 MT of waste is collected, with 12 MT treated, while 31 MT is improperly discarded, posing significant environmental and public health risks. 

Founded in 2023, Delhi-based startup Scrapbuddy wants to change this by making recycling efficient and accessible.

Go green:

• Initially bootstrapped with Rs 10 lakh from personal savings, the startup has recycled over one million kilograms of PET scrap in Delhi-NCR.
• Scrapbuddy offers a dual approach to waste collection through its website and mobile app. Users can schedule waste pickups at their doorstep for recyclable items, including plastic bottles, paper, polythene, cans, electronic items, vehicles, and old furniture. 
• To ensure smooth operations, the startup has onboarded around 250 informal waste pickers across 80 segregation centers in Delhi-NCR. 

Incubator

A mega incubator for Tamil Nadu startups

The Tamil Nadu government plans to launch a mega incubator for startups focused on design, marketing and sales, said Sivarajah Ramanathan, Mission Director, Startup TN. 

Established in 2021, Startup TN is the state government’s initiative to foster innovation and entrepreneurship in Tamil Nadu and establish the requisite ecosystem within the state. 

Close ties:

• The state today has 8,952 startups, and the Tamil Nadu startup policy aims to take this number to over 15,000 by 2028. 
• Addressing the challenge of income inequality in the country, Ramanathan highlighted the Tamil Nadu government’s efforts to promote inclusivity in the startup ecosystem through initiatives like SC/ST equity fund; funding for women entrepreneurs, self-help groups, micro-enterprises, and women-led startups; and funding for transgender and differently-abled people. 
• He also spoke about the state government’s initiative to offer GST and incorporation support to enterprises and efforts to build startup hubs in cities such as Madurai, Thirunelveli, Cuddalore, Salem, Hosur, and Thanjavur. 

News & updates

• Flying taxis: Electric aircraft maker Eve has showcased for the first time the full-scale prototype of its "flying taxi," achieving a milestone. The company aims to obtain certification and launch its service in 2026 in Brazil.
• Power up: Boeing expects its supply chain–which has struggled to keep up with the company’s requirements–to soon get back on track. The US planemaker is trying to restore the output of two key commercial programmes by the year’s end.
• Steel deal: Japan's biggest steelmaker, Nippon Steel has hired former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to help with its effort to acquire US Steel, the Japanese company said.

What you should watch out for

• Economic Survey: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be tabling the Economic Survey 2024-25 on July 22, on the first day of the monsoon session of Parliament.
• Fresh funds: Low-cost carrier SpiceJet’s board will meet on July 23 to consider raising fresh capital through qualified institutional placement (QIP) basis.

The longest bridge in the world is located in which country?

Answer: China. The Danyang–Kunshan Grand Bridge is 164.8 kilometres long. 

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