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Chandigarh University Launches Heritage Tree Conservation Project to Digitally Map and Preserve Centuries-Old Heritage Trees in Mohali

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Department of Biosciences at Chandigarh University receives a grant of ₹11-Lakh from Punjab Biodiversity Board; 100 Heritage Trees in Kharar already Mapped

CHANDIGARH, India, Aug. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — As rapid urbanization and infrastructure expansion continue to threaten centuries-old trees of ecological, cultural and religious significance, the need for a systematic scientific approach for their identification and conservation has become essential. Taking a significant step towards the scientific conservation of heritage trees, Chandigarh University has launched an initiative to identify, document and conserve ecologically, religiously and culturally significant tree species across SAS Nagar (Mohali) district.

The project will establish the district’s first comprehensive GIS-based database of heritage trees, providing a scientific foundation for evidence-based management and long-term conservation planning while protecting invaluable natural assets for future generations.

The ₹11-lakh project, funded and sanctioned by the Punjab Biodiversity Board (PBB) under the National Biodiversity Authority is being implemented by the Department of Biosciences at the University Institute of Biotechnology (UIBT), Chandigarh University.

Led by Prof (Dr) LK Attri, Head of the Department of Biosciences, along with Dr Shailika Sharma, Assistant Professor, the initiative combines field surveys with advanced Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies to scientifically map and assess heritage trees across the district.

Sharing details about the project, Prof (Dr) LK Attri, Head of the Department of Biosciences, Chandigarh University said, “The project is primarily aimed at documenting the present status of heritage trees, including their ecological, cultural and religious significance, through GIS-based digital tagging, geospatial mapping and assessment of key characteristics such as height, trunk diameter, health, biomass and carbon sequestration potential. By integrating field observations with geospatial technologies, the initiative will generate reliable scientific data to support long-term conservation and environmental planning. The project idea was conceived and executed in collaboration and support of Dr Gurharminder Singh, Principal Scientific Officer, Punjab Biodiversity Board.”

Prof Attri further added, “Beyond the documentation part, this project is aimed at establishing a heritage trees list for Mohali highlighting mature trees of exceptional ecological, historical, religious and cultural importance. The database will help government agencies and local authorities prioritize conservation measures including protecting root zones from excavation and soil compaction, monitor tree health and implement preventive interventions such as lightning protection for vulnerable heritage trees.”

Notably, the project has already documented more than 100 heritage trees across Kharar Tehsil, the largest tehsil in SAS Nagar (43.5 per cent) of the district’s geographical area. Using advanced Remote Sensing and GIS technologies, the identified trees are being scientifically classified, geotagged and assessed for their height, trunk diameter, biomass and carbon sequestration potential to build a reliable geo-spatial database for long-term conservation. A dedicated team of research fellows is carrying out extensive field surveys, documentation, geotagging, GIS mapping and spatial analysis of heritage trees.

Highlighting the significance of the initiative, Dr Attri, who is the Principal Investigator, said, “Heritage trees are living symbols of our environmental, cultural and spiritual legacy. Many of these trees have survived for decades and in some cases centuries providing ecological services while remaining deeply connected with local traditions and communities. Through scientific mapping and documentation, we aim to create a strong knowledge base that will support evidence-based conservation and encourage society to recognize and protect these invaluable natural assets.”

The project is expected to deliver multiple public benefits extending well beyond biodiversity conservation. The geo-spatial database can be instrumental in assisting government agencies in environmental resource management, sustainable urban and rural development planning and climate resilience initiatives. By estimating the biomass and carbon sequestration potential of heritage trees, the study will also provide valuable insights into the role of mature trees in mitigating climate change and maintaining healthy ecological balance.

Moreover, the initiative further highlights the importance of preserving trees that hold religious and cultural significance for local communities, ensuring that conservation efforts protect not only biodiversity but also Punjab’s rich social and cultural heritage.

Emphasizing the role of technology in conservation, Dr. Shailika Sharma, Co-Principal Investigator, said, “Modern geospatial technologies allow us to understand our natural resources with far greater accuracy and efficiency. By combining field-based scientific surveys with GIS mapping, we are creating a digital resource that can support informed policy decisions, conservation planning and community awareness. We hope this initiative inspires greater public participation in protecting heritage trees and the ecosystems they sustain.”

By combining scientific research with advanced geospatial technologies, Chandigarh University’s heritage tree mapping initiative is creating an important foundation for biodiversity conservation, climate action and sustainable development. The project demonstrates how technology-driven environmental research can help protect Punjab’s natural heritage while supporting evidence-based planning and encouraging greater public awareness about the need to protect the state’s irreplaceable ecological treasures.

“Many of the documented heritage trees, including Peepal, Banyan and Neem are valued not only for their ecological services such as improving air quality, supporting biodiversity and storing carbon, but also for their deep cultural, religious and medicinal significance. For generations, these trees have served as community gathering spaces while continuing to play an important role in traditional healthcare, local livelihoods and environmental sustainability. We also intend to prepare a comprehensive Heritage Tree List for Mohali, a coffee table book highlighting the ecological, cultural and religious significance of these trees, and a web-based GIS platform to make this valuable information accessible to researchers, policymakers and the public,” added Dr. Shailika.

About Chandigarh University

Chandigarh University is a NAAC A+ Grade University and QS World Ranked University. This autonomous educational institution is approved by UGC and is located near Chandigarh in the state of Punjab. It is the youngest university in India and the only private university in Punjab to be honoured with A+ Grade by NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council). CU offers more than 109 UG and PG programs in the field of engineering, management, pharmacy, law, architecture, journalism, animation, hotel management, commerce, and others. It has been awarded as The University with Best Placements by WCRC.

Website address: https://www.cuchd.in/

 

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Sagility India Enters Asia’s Top 60 Best Workplaces, Ranked 57 in 2026

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With over 22,000 employees in India and over 49,000 globally, Sagility continues to expand its workforce Employee initiatives span learning, leadership development, wellbeing and engagement, including STRIDE, PACE, STEP, S.H.E. Leads Program. S.H.E. Circle & Abilities Circle ERG, Wonder of Wellness and Healthcare Academy.  

MUMBAI, India, Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Sagility India has been ranked 57 among Asia’s Best Workplaces 2026 in the Large Companies category by Great Place to Work. The company was ranked 11 among India’s Best Companies to Work For 2026, following previous Great Place to Work recognitions. 

The Asia ranking is based on confidential employee feedback, with more than 3.8 million individual responses representing nearly 8.9 million employees across the region. Employees evaluated their workplace experiences across areas including trust, innovation, company values, and leadership. Of the 100 organizations recognized in the Large Companies category, 34 operate in India. 

The findings also point to the importance of everyday employee experience. Overall sentiment among employees at the Best Workplaces in Asia remained high at 93%, while the Trust Index Grand Mean stood at 91%. More than 95% of employees reported positive sentiment on areas such as feeling safe, being welcomed, being treated fairly, and feeling proud to belong. 

Against this backdrop, Sagility’s workforce has grown to over 22,000 employees in India and more than 49,000 globally. Its people initiatives span career development, continuous learning, wellbeing, and employee engagement. Key programmes include the STRIDE, PACE, and STEP leadership development programmes, the S.H.E. Leads Program for women in junior and mid-level roles, S.H.E. Circle and Abilities Circle Employee Resource Groups, Wonder of Wellness initiatives, employee surveys, hobby clubs, and Healthcare Academy. Sagility also operates a hybrid work model.

Speaking about the recognition, Tina Vas, Chief Human Resources Officer, Sagility, said, “At our scale, culture is about what employees experience every day. Can they learn, speak up, get support, and see an opportunity to grow? Those are the things we pay attention to. We are thrilled to be recognised as the 57th Best Workplace in Asia, building on our earlier recognition as the 11th Best Workplace in India. These recognitions reinforce our commitment to our employees and their well-being, particularly because they are grounded in what employees themselves say about their experience.”

The latest recognition reinforces Sagility’s focus on building a workplace where employees have opportunities to learn, develop and contribute, while fostering an environment that supports wellbeing, inclusion and engagement. As the organization continues to evolve, these priorities remain an important part of its people strategy. 

About Sagility Limited

Sagility is a tech-led, U.S. healthcare-focused business operations solutions and services company that supports payers, providers, and their partners in delivering best-in-class operations, enhancing member and provider experiences, and improving the quality of care, all while ensuring cost-effective financial and clinical outcomes. With over two decades of experience, Sagility’s dedicated experts address complex healthcare challenges through deep domain expertise and technology innovations. The company serves six of the top ten payers in the U.S., utilizing its advanced technology, processes, and solutions to ensure efficient operations and minimize additional administrative costs. The company delivers these services through its skilled talent pool of nearly 50,000 professionals across five global service delivery centers located in the US, India, the Philippines, Jamaica, and Colombia.

To learn more, visit: https://sagility.com/ 

Media contact details:

Srushti Rao | press@sagility.com

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New Research from Kai: UK CISOs Face a Widening AI Security Gap as Attackers Gain the Advantage

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59% of UK CISOs say attackers already hold the advantage, while 67% take more than a week to remediate critical vulnerabilities

SAN JOSE, Calif., Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Kai, the company behind the first agentic AI cybersecurity platform designed to execute security work end-to-end at machine speed with human expert accuracy, today announced UK findings from its inaugural 2026 State of Autonomous Defense Report.

According to the survey of 100 UK CISOs, a growing gap is emerging between the speed of AI-powered attacks and the ability of security teams to respond. As AI makes it faster and easier for attackers to find and exploit vulnerabilities, many UK organisations are still relying on manual processes that can take days or weeks. The findings point to a looming challenge for defenders: security operations built around human speed may not be able to keep pace as attackers become faster and more automated. If organisations fail to close vulnerabilities quickly, attackers could strike before defenders have a chance to act, increasing the risk of a major security incident.

While UK CISOs recognise the need to move toward machine-led security, many organisations aren’t there yet. Barriers including trust, governance and operational readiness could slow that transition as attackers continue to accelerate their use of AI.

“AI is changing the speed of cyberattacks, and security teams can’t afford to fall further behind,” said Nick Degnan, Chief Revenue Officer at Kai. “The concern is that attackers are getting faster while many defenders are still operating with processes built for a different era. UK organisations know they need to change, but moving from human-led to machine-led security takes trust, governance and a willingness to let machines take on more of the work. The longer that transition takes, the more room attackers have to pull ahead.”

UK CISOs understand the AI threat, but many security processes remain human-led

UK security leaders overwhelmingly acknowledge that AI has changed the threat landscape. Nearly all UK CISOs (94%) say their organisation is prepared to defend against AI-accelerated vulnerability exploitation, yet only one-third (33%) describe themselves as very prepared.

That confidence comes as UK CISOs see attackers gaining the upper hand. Fifty-nine percent believe attackers currently have the advantage given current levels of AI adoption and advancement, compared with just 13% who believe defenders have the advantage. As attackers increasingly leverage AI to accelerate exploitation, many UK organisations continue to rely on human-led security workflows that struggle to keep pace.

Slow remediation leaves a growing window for attackers

The research found that vulnerability management remains heavily dependent on manual effort, leaving UK organisations exposed and security teams under pressure. More than half (54%) of UK organisations report their vulnerability and exposure management processes are at least half manual, while 67% require more than one week to remediate critical vulnerabilities. More than half (54%) say at least one-quarter of known vulnerabilities go unremediated for more than 30 days.

These operational challenges are taking a measurable toll on UK security teams. Eighty-four percent of UK CISOs say vulnerability and exposure management contributes at least moderately to security team burnout, including 19% who describe it as a major contributor.

The findings suggest it’s not just the threat landscape creating risk, but the operating model itself.

UK organisations want more automation, but barriers remain

While UK organisations increasingly see automation as essential to keeping pace with AI-powered threats, confidence in autonomous decision-making has yet to catch up. More than half (51%) of UK CISOs identify lack of trust in automated decisions as one of the biggest barriers to broader automation adoption in vulnerability and exposure management, followed by governance or compliance concerns (45%) and skills or talent gaps (45%).

UK organisations are already embracing automation for lower-risk activities such as vulnerability prioritisation (57%) and asset discovery and inventory (55%). However, only 32% currently permit automated remediation actions without human approval, underscoring that most organisations remain cautious about letting machines change the environment.

UK CISOs are also clear about what would give them greater confidence in machine-led security. More than half point to vendor accountability and liability protections (54%), auditability and explainability (53%), and regulatory clarity (52%) as factors that would increase their confidence in allowing machine-led systems to execute remediation actions without human approval.

UK organisations are moving toward machine-led security, but attackers are moving faster

Despite today’s challenges, the research shows UK organisations are further ahead in adopting machine-led approaches. Today, 46% of UK organisations describe their vulnerability and exposure management approach as mostly or primarily machine-led, compared with 35% of organisations globally.

The foundations for further adoption are also being put in place. Ninety-four percent of UK CISOs say their organisation’s governance approach is either already designed to support machine-led security actions or is being adapted for greater machine-led operation.

Looking ahead 12 to 18 months, 40% expect humans to supervise machine-led systems that lead prioritisation and execution, while 25% expect most vulnerability and exposure management workflows to be machine-led and 14% expect autonomous security operations to become the primary operating model.

The findings suggest UK organisations are not waiting for machine-led security to become a future reality. Many are already putting it into practice, while adapting governance and operating models for a more autonomous approach to cyber defence. But as attackers gain speed through AI, the pressure to make that transition is only growing.

Read the full 2026 UK State of Autonomous Defense Report here.

Methodology

The Kai Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research among 500 CISOs at private sector companies with a minimum annual revenue of $500 million, including 100 CISOs in the United Kingdom. The research was conducted in four markets between June 15 and June 29, 2026, using an email invitation and an online survey. All UK findings cited in this release are based on the 100 UK respondents.

About Kai

Kai is the AI company rebuilding cybersecurity for the machine-speed era. Trusted by Fortune 500 and Global 2000 enterprises, the Kai Autonomous Defense Platform replaces fragmented tools and human-limited workflows with agentic AI that works continuously across cyber asset management, application security, infrastructure vulnerability management, and detection engineering. It contextualises, reasons, and acts at machine speed and enterprise scale. What takes human-led teams weeks, Kai executes in hours, driving risk toward zero through Auto Remediation. Human defenders don’t just keep up. They become superhuman.

Media contact: kai@inkhouse.com 

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Bloomsbury Money Group appoints ex-SAP engineer as CTO to head global banking platform

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LONDON and ST HELIER, Jersey, Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Bloomsbury Money Group today announced the appointment of Thomas Holst as Chief Technology Officer. Holst joins from SAP’s health technology ecosystem, and brings more than a decade of experience building data-intensive, privacy-critical technology platforms. As CTO, he will lead Bloomsbury Money’s technology strategy, engineering and platform architecture as the Group builds out its banking platform across its existing markets and the new jurisdictions it plans to enter.

The appointment comes as Bloomsbury Money moves from a regulated money services and virtual asset business run from Jersey and London to a multi-jurisdiction financial network. The group’s current services span multi-currency accounts, foreign exchange, cross-border payments and regulated virtual asset custody and transfers. Under Holst, these are being brought together on a single platform designed from the outset to run in several regulatory environments with one standard of control.

A single network for cross-border value

Bloomsbury Money’s ambition is a global cross-border payment network in which fiat currencies, regulated digital assets and local payment rails sit side by side. In practice that means a customer can hold, convert and send value in the form that suits the transaction, whether a wire, a card payment, a domestic instant payment or a digital asset transfer, and the network selects the fastest compliant route. The group intends to extend its regulatory footprint and rail connectivity market by market to deliver this, starting in Jersey and the Channel Islands.

Manu Choudhary, co-founder, Bloomsbury Money Group, said:

“Thomas is joining at the right moment. We have a regulated business, live customers and a clear view of where cross-border money movement is heading. What we need now is someone who can turn that view into infrastructure that behaves the same way in every market we enter. Thomas has spent thirteen years building software where getting the data wrong is not an option, and that is the mindset we want at the centre of this platform. Our ambition is a network where a business in one country pays a supplier in another in whatever form of money and over whatever rail makes sense, without ever thinking about the plumbing.”

Chris Park, CEO, Bloomsbury Money Group, said:

“I have spent over decades in banking and the pattern never changes: the firms that last are the ones whose technology is boring in the right ways. Resilient, auditable, fast, and built by people who assume a regulator will one day ask to see how every decision was made. Thomas comes from SAP and from healthcare technology, one of the few sectors where the bar on data protection and control is as high as it is in finance. He has shipped enterprise software to hospitals and research institutions and built and run the cloud infrastructure underneath it. Bringing that discipline to a platform spanning fiat, digital assets and local rails across several jurisdictions is exactly the point. This is an infrastructure hire, and infrastructure is what we are building.”

Thomas Holst, Chief Technology Officer, Bloomsbury Money Group, said:

“Most fintechs bolt new products onto an old core. Bloomsbury Money is building the core with the network in mind from day one: multiple currencies, multiple asset types, multiple rails and multiple regulators, all held to the same standard of control. That is a rare engineering brief and it is why I said yes. I spent more than a decade in SAP’s health technology ecosystem in Germany, building products for hospitals and researchers and health data applications and the cloud infrastructure they run on. Both taught me that trust is a technical property. It comes from architecture, testing and auditability, not from a marketing deck. I will bring the same standard here.”

About Bloomsbury Money Group

Bloomsbury Money Group provides multi-currency accounts, spot foreign exchange, cross-border payments, Visa debit cards and regulated virtual asset services to businesses and individuals, with offices in St Helier, Jersey and London. Its regulated business, Bloomsbury Money Jersey Limited, is a money service business and virtual asset service provider regulated by the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC registry reference 210054). Bloomsbury Money Group Limited is a Jersey private company (registered number 165853). The group is building a global cross-border network for fiat, digital assets and local payment rails, and trades under the strapline Better Global Banking.

www.bloomsburymoney.com

Forward-looking statements

This announcement contains some forward-looking statements about Bloomsbury Money Group’s strategy, plans and intended products, including the development of its platform, the extension of its services into additional jurisdictions. These statements reflect current intentions and expectations and are subject to regulatory approvals, technical development, market conditions and other factors outside the group’s control. They are not a guarantee of future performance or of the availability of any product or service in any jurisdiction, and the group undertakes no obligation to update them.

Media contacts: Bloomsbury Money Press Office
Email: press@bloomsburymoney.com
Website: www.bloomsburymoney.com

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SOURCE Bloomsbury Money

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