Technology

PMI In India Hails Track & Trace (T&T) Mechanism Roll Out In The Country Aimed At Curbing Illicit Tobacco Trade

Published

1 year ago

May 21, 2025

The advent of Track & Trace technology heralds a transformative era in curbing illegal trade of cigarettes and other tobacco products

NEW DELHI, May 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Philip Morris International Inc.’s (PMI) India affiliate, IPM India, today hailed India’s decision to roll out pack-level Track and Trace (T&T) as a game-changing move against illicit tobacco trade and a major step towards modernizing regulatory enforcement. Approved under Section 148A of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, this reform marks a bold move to protect revenue, tighten enforcement, and bring greater transparency and accountability to India’s tobacco market. Starting with cigarette packs, the government has chosen a smart, high-impact strategy to curb illicit tobacco trade. The proposed mechanism may incorporate Unique Identification Markings on packs, which will enable enforcement agencies to easily distinguish tax-paid products from illegal ones—strengthening oversight across retail shelves, supply chains, and field operations. The proposed T&T mechanism will be a practical, real-world solution designed for immediate impact—and a critical foundation for a more modern, technology-driven regulatory system.

With operations across multiple markets, PMI brings deep, practical experience from some of the world’s most advanced T&T systems & implemented it voluntarily in 140+ markets worldwide. In the European Union, PMI operates under the Tobacco Products Directive, where every pack is digitally tagged and monitored through the supply chain. Similar systems have been successfully deployed in UK, Russia, Jordan, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), where PMI has worked with national authorities to build scalable, locally adapted traceability frameworks. Across all markets, the outcome have been consistent: better visibility, stronger compliance, and measurable reductions in illicit trade.

Illicit tobacco trade isn’t just a revenue problem—it’s a public health threat, a blow to lawful businesses, and fuel for the informal economy. Track and Trace is a proven tool for modernizing supply chains and enforcement. By clearly separating legal from illegal products, it not only protects consumers but also secures tax collections and promotes a level playing field for compliant operators.

Emphasising the need for a stringent T&T mechanism, Navaneel Kar, Managing Director, IPM India said, “This is a landmark reform and a visionary step towards a cleaner, more modern, and a transparent market. With thoughtful execution, India’s T&T system can reshape the fight against illicit tobacco trade—boosting public trust, strengthening government revenues, and accelerating the modernization of enforcement practices. Eliminating illicit tobacco trade has been a longstanding priority for us and remains integral to our broader efforts in driving operational excellence and building a sustainable future. PMI has long invested in technologies that protect supply chain integrity globally, and we are committed to partnering with the Indian government to make this initiative a success.”

India’s move to ratify the illicit tobacco trade protocol, also aligns with international standards. T&T is a core requirement under Article 15 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) and the 2014 Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. As one of the world’s largest tobacco markets and a key transit hub, India’s leadership sends a powerful global signal toward modernization and digital oversight.

Implementation of the proposed T&T systems should allow interoperability, facilitate innovation and the optimization of enforcement activities along with independent, cost-effective solutions that do not disrupt the manufacturing and distribution environment.

But technology alone won’t deliver results. Collaboration is essential. Effective systems require close cooperation between governments, industry players, and technology providers. Solutions must be flexible enough to reflect India’s enforcement realities and dynamic enough to stay ahead of evolving risks.

India’s T&T mechanism rollout is just the beginning. It sets the stage for a broader modernization of supply chain regulation—expanding across more products, deeper distribution layers, and even into other sectors facing similar challenges. With smart partnerships and sustained innovation, India can build one of the world’s most resilient, transparent, and future-ready regulatory ecosystems.

About IPM India

IPM India Wholesale Trading Private Limited is a joint venture between Philip Morris Brands SARL of Switzerland and two Indian entities, Godfrey Phillips India Limited and K.K. Modi Investment & Financial Services Private Limited.

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Technology

Monnit Introduces NIST Detachable Leads to Streamline Compliance Monitoring

Published

42 minutes ago

June 18, 2026

New hot-swappable lead architecture reduces downtime, simplifies recertification, and helps organizations maintain continuous monitoring.

SALT LAKE CITY, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Monnit announced new NIST Standard and Low Temperature and Humidity Detachable Leads for compatible ALTA® Sensor Bases designed to simplify sensor recertification, reduce downtime, and support continuous compliance monitoring.

“Organizations shouldn’t have to choose between maintaining compliance and operational continuity,” said Brad Walters, Founder and CEO of Monnit. “Our detachable lead architecture allows customers to hot-swap certified leads in minutes while preserving traceability and keeping trusted monitoring programs running.”

Each NIST Detachable Lead is uniquely calibrated and designed to support traceability requirements aligned with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards.

Rather than removing and shipping an entire sensor for recertification, customers can disconnect only the lead, connect a certified replacement, and send the original lead for recalibration. This approach is ideal for pharmaceuticals, healthcare facilities, laboratories, food storage operations, manufacturing environments, and other applications that require calibration records.

In addition to these hot-swappable, removable leads or cables with probes, we offer short Monnit Standard Temperature and Humidity Detachable Non-Leaded Probes that you can connect to compatible sensor bases.

Each NIST Detachable Lead or Probe connects to compatible ALTA Industrial and Enterprise Sensor Bases via sealed, keyed M8 6-pin connectors designed for field installation. Embedded memory within the lead stores unique lead and sensor identification, calibration data, certification information, and traceability records.

Key features and benefits include:

Hot-swappable lead replacement that minimizes downtime and monitoring interruptionsNIST-traceable calibration support and ISO 17025-accredited lab certificationSupport for FDA 21 CFR Part 11 workflows and audit programsAutomatic synchronization of calibration information with iMonnit® SoftwareLogging of lead connection and disconnection events in iMonnitHot-swapping capability while powered on or off for easier servicing

Monnit and its accredited lab partner, Sensor Calibrations, provide 25-month certificates for NIST Detachable Standard Temperature Leads and 13-month certificates for NIST Detachable Low Temperature and Humidity Leads.

Compatible ALTA Sensor Bases automatically recognize connected lead types and maintain digital maintenance records, helping organizations avoid monitoring gaps caused by traditional recertification.

About Monnit Corporation
The origin story of the Internet of Things (IoT) begins with Monnit. Before our inception in 2010, we were already at the forefront of embedding technology into machines and devices to enable them to talk and deliver valuable data to business leaders. Monnit Remote Monitoring Solutions for nearly any industry use case have delivered 72B+ data points in 130+ countries for 90K+ customers. Monnit’s 80+ long-range IoT sensors remotely monitor many conditions such as temperature, light, humidity, water, vibration, pressure, and more. You can analyze data using iMonnit cloud software and get alerts via email, text, push notification, or call when our sensors detect a change you should know.

Media Contact:
David Hill
Marketing Communications
801-505-8172
417089@email4pr.com

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SOURCE Monnit

Technology

Monnit Introduces NIST Detachable Leads to Streamline Compliance Monitoring

Published

42 minutes ago

June 18, 2026

New hot-swappable lead architecture reduces downtime, simplifies recertification, and helps organizations maintain continuous monitoring.

Each NIST Detachable Lead is uniquely calibrated and designed to support traceability requirements aligned with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards.

Key features and benefits include:

Compatible ALTA Sensor Bases automatically recognize connected lead types and maintain digital maintenance records, helping organizations avoid monitoring gaps caused by traditional recertification.

Media Contact:
David Hill
Marketing Communications
801-505-8172
417089@email4pr.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/monnit-introduces-nist-detachable-leads-to-streamline-compliance-monitoring-302803906.html

SOURCE Monnit

Technology

deepset Joins HPE’s Unleash AI Program to Accelerate Sovereign Agentic AI

Published

42 minutes ago

June 18, 2026

SAN JOSE, Calif., June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — deepset, the company behind Haystack, the production-ready open-source AI agent framework and platform, today announced it has joined the HPE Unleash AI partner program to help government, defense, and regulated enterprises deploy production-grade AI systems in sovereign, self-hosted, and air-gapped environments.

As part of the collaboration, deepset will leverage the Haystack Enterprise Platform, deepset’s platform for building, orchestrating, and governing AI agents and applications, and HPE’s AI ecosystem and infrastructure portfolio to help organizations rapidly identify and operationalize high-value AI use cases while reducing deployment complexity and risk. This enables customers to access AI-ready infrastructure, strategic guidance, and accelerated pilot execution to address their most challenging AI adoption and operationalization needs.

Together, the companies enable organizations to deploy AI agents, multi-agent systems, and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) applications on self-hosted, sovereign, and air-gapped infrastructure while maintaining full ownership over sensitive and classified data, models, and AI operations.

Customers can leverage the joint architecture to operationalize governed AI applications faster while maintaining the security, compliance, and deployment flexibility required for sovereign and mission-critical environments.

The HPE Unleash AI partner program is a curated ecosystem, combining ISV solutions that go through comprehensive validation testing with engineered HPE AI systems, including HPE Private Cloud AI and the broader HPE AI Factory with NVIDIA solutions, to deliver the performance, security, and scalability enterprises need for production AI. By joining the program, deepset expands access to governed AI platform capabilities designed for organizations operating in highly regulated environments, including public sector, defense, cybersecurity, and enterprise industries.

The Haystack Enterprise Platform enables organizations to:

Build and govern AI agents, multi-agent systems, and RAG applicationsDeploy AI on self-hosted, private cloud, and air-gapped infrastructureOrchestrate modular AI pipelines across models, databases, and enterprise systemsEnforce governance, auditability, and lifecycle management for production AISupport sovereign AI initiatives aligned with European and national security requirements

The collaboration builds on deepset’s experience supporting sovereign AI initiatives with organizations including the European Commission, the German Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), and other government, defense, and enterprise organizations deploying sovereign AI systems under strict governance and security requirements.

“With agentic AI moving into operational deployment, organizations need infrastructure and AI platforms they can control and trust,” said Milos Rusic, CEO and co-founder of deepset. “The challenge is getting agentic systems into production while maintaining control over infrastructure, governance, and sensitive data. Together with HPE, we’re helping customers deploy governed AI systems faster across highly regulated and mission-critical environments.”

Use cases supported through the joint architecture include:

Sovereign AI platform for public sector & regulated industry institutionsSovereign AI intelligence and decision-support systems for classified operationsCybersecurity investigation and threat analysisAI agents for technology, manufacturing, research, legal, and financial workflows

“The Unleash AI program is designed to help organizations deploy AI solutions faster and with greater operational confidence,” said Robin Braun, Vice President of AI Business Development, Hybrid Cloud, HPE. “Together, HPE and deepset are delivering secure, governed AI solutions that combine enterprise-grade infrastructure with flexible and governed AI agent capabilities to help customers operationalize AI across hybrid, sovereign, and classified environments.”

For more information, visit https://www.deepset.ai

About deepset

deepset is the company behind Haystack, the leading open-source framework and platform for building production-grade AI applications and agentic systems. deepset enables enterprises and public sector organizations to develop, deploy, and govern flexible AI applications powered by their choice of large language models, enterprise data, infrastructure, and governance policies across cloud, hybrid, and sovereign environments.

Media Contact
Steph McGuirk
417109@email4pr.com
845.269.8868

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SOURCE deepset