MAM
Vedantu & Airtel DTH take quality education to TV screens
NEW DELHI: The DTH arm of Bharti Airtel (Airtel) and ed-tech brand Vedantu have announced a tie-up to enable students across India to access quality education.
Under the partnership, two dedicated DTH channels – Vedantu Masterclasses – will be available exclusively to 17 million Airtel Digital TV customers at Rs 4 per day. The channels will cater to students from classes 6 to 10 and slasses 11 to 12 respectively and will cover maths and science. The learning will be delivered by best-in-class faculty including graduates from IIT and AIIMS with a proven track record in teaching. The medium of teaching will be a mix of English and Hindi with plans underway to add regional language content, where possible.
Bharti Airtel CEO and director Sunil Taldar said: “The TV screen is evolving beyond entertainment to becoming a hub for interactive education and learning that can be delivered in a safe and affordable manner, especially in these unprecedented times. We are confident that this service will be well received by students and parents and education on TV will become a permanent feature, which will benefit millions of students.”
Vedantu CEO and co-founder Vamsi Krishna added, “Having established Vedantu as the unanimous choice for LIVE online learning in the metros and key cities, our next mission is to make our highly curated teachers and content available to a vast majority of Indian students. As a brand we are going the extra mile to make quality education accessible. Our partnership with Airtel DTH is in this direction and we are delighted to use our collective strengths to sustain India’s learning needs in smaller towns and villages.”
India has a total of 260 million school-going children. In particular, those in small towns and villages have little or no access to high-quality learning due to limited broadband access as well as a shortage of faculty. Some even travel long distances for tuitions and this is challenging especially during the current pandemic. Airtel and Vedantu believe that with its deeper penetration, the home TV screen will provide a ubiquitous medium to impart knowledge and bridge the gap between quality teachers and students.
Brands
Wipro hires 7,500 freshers, withholds FY27 hiring outlook
Profit rises to Rs 3,522 crore, Rs 15,000 crore buyback announced.
MUMBAI- Hiring may be on, but visibility is off, Wipro is adding talent even as it pauses the crystal ball. The company hired 7,500 freshers in FY26 but stopped short of offering any hiring outlook for FY27, underscoring the uncertainty gripping the IT services sector as it pivots towards an AI-led operating model.
The disclosure came alongside its fourth-quarter earnings, where management flagged volatile demand conditions and refrained from committing to future workforce expansion. Chief human resources officer Saurabh Govil noted that over 3,000 of the total hires were onboarded in the March quarter alone, signalling continued intake despite a lack of clarity on deployment pipelines.
This divergence active hiring without forward guidance reflects a broader industry pattern where talent acquisition continues even as deal conversions remain uneven and client spending cycles stretch. Wipro expects its IT services revenue for the June quarter to range between a decline of 2 per cent and flat growth sequentially in constant currency terms, reinforcing near-term caution.
Chief executive officer Srini Pallia pointed to artificial intelligence as both a disruptor and an opportunity. He said evolving client priorities are pushing the company towards outcome-driven engagements, with Wipro increasingly focusing on a services-as-software model through its AI Native Business and Platforms unit. The shift marks a structural change from traditional headcount-led growth to AI-enabled delivery frameworks.
The company has already committed over $1 billion to its AI ecosystem, with investors closely watching how these investments translate into revenue. For now, the numbers present a mixed picture. Net profit rose sequentially to Rs 3,522 crore, while revenue grew 3 per cent to Rs 24,236 crore. However, core IT services performance remained under pressure, with full-year revenue declining 0.3 per cent in dollar terms and 1.6 per cent in constant currency.
Large deal bookings offered a counterpoint, rising 45.4 per cent year-on-year to $7.8 billion, highlighting a widening gap between deal wins and actual revenue realisation. On a quarterly basis, IT services revenue slipped 1.2 per cent sequentially, signalling continued softness in execution.
Margins, however, told a more optimistic story. Operating margins expanded to 17.3 per cent in the fourth quarter, up from 14.8 per cent in the previous quarter, reflecting improved cost discipline. That said, the company cautioned that upcoming wage hikes and the ramp-up of large deals could exert pressure going forward.
Attrition stood at 13.8 per cent in the March quarter, indicating stabilisation after periods of elevated churn. Alongside its earnings, Wipro also announced a Rs 15,000 crore share buyback, reinforcing its focus on shareholder returns, with a payout ratio of 88 per cent over the past three years.
Taken together, the numbers capture a company in transition investing in AI, maintaining hiring momentum, but navigating a demand environment where growth is uneven and visibility remains limited.
