Page 33 - Industry News

Hospitality sector needs reforms, infra status to drive growth: HAI

Hotel Association of India on Wednesday called policymakers to prioritise sector-specific reforms to drive growth and resilience in the hospitality sector, while reiterating demand for infrastructure status and allowing of industry benefits to hotels. Sharing the hospitality industry's expectations in the upcoming Union Budget, Hotel Association of India (HAI) President K B Kachru said the hotel sector should be given due recognition for its significant contribution to GDP, jobs, and foreign exchange earnings. Kachru, who is also Chairman, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group, urged "policymakers to prioritise sector-specific reforms to drive growth and resilience in the hospitality sector". "The hotel sector should be given due recognition for its significant contribution to GDP, jobs, and foreign exchange earnings. The key policy interventions are according the infrastructure status and allowing industry benefits to hotels," he said in a statement. This will encourage investments in

Nvidia CEO Huang says next generation of chips is in full production

To get the new performance results, however, Huang said the Rubin chips use a proprietary kind of data that the company hopes the wider industry will adopt

Green cave in Chhattisgarh's Bastar district soon to boost tourism

Tourism in the region largely remained unexplored as the route to reach the green cave passes through terrain once controlled by Maoists

Par panel examines impact of US tariff hikes on key Indian industries

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce is assessing the impact of enhanced tariffs by the United States on the entry of various Indian products and seeks to understand the challenges faced by various sectors. It also seeks to assess the various measures taken by financial institutions, central and state governments to mitigate the adverse effects of US tariffs. The committee members are currently on a study visit to Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Coimbatore from January 6-8 to evaluate India-US trade relations. The committee is chaired by Rajya Sabha MP Dola Sen. In Visakhapatnam, the committee on Tuesday met with stakeholders and state government representatives, focusing on the Indian marine sector. A statement by the committee said the members of the panel interacted with representatives from fisheries, export councils, and financial institutions, and visited the Fishing Harbour and Sea Cages off Ramakrishna beach. On January 7, the committee will travel to Chennai to dis

Saudi cuts crude oil prices again amid growing competing supplies

This comes amid the International Energy Agency forecasting a supply this year of 4 million barrels per day, equivalent to 70 per cent of India's oil demand

Steel stocks under pressure on CCI investigation into price collusion

The news report further suggested that the CCI probe has also held 56 top executives liable for price collusion over varying periods between 2015 and 2023

Indian IT companies in LatAm remain unaffected by Venezuela turmoil

Some of these companies, such as Infosys and Wipro, do not even operate there. While Infosys does not have a presence, Wipro's Venezuelan unit was liquidated many years ago

Big capex challenge: Few sectors left to absorb infra spending push

With roads and railways nearing capacity limits and aviation largely privatised, the government is turning to ports and shipping to sustain its capex push in FY27

Steelmakers rework production, strengthen compliance as CBAM kicks in

Companies secure emissions verification, shift to low carbon routes even as lawyers flag risks for small exporters

India's diagnostics pivots to precision tests as high-value segments grow

Industry leaders say demand for these higher-value tests aimed at early disease detection, personalised treatment and long-term health management has been expanding far faster than routine pathology

Annapurna Swadisht to buy 75% stake in Andri Agro Foods for ₹150 million

Packaged food manufacturer Annapurna Swadisht Ltd on Tuesday announced that it would acquire a majority stake in West Bengal-based Andri Agro Foods Pvt Ltd for a total enterprise value of Rs 15 crore. The company has entered into an agreement to acquire 75 per cent of the equity share capital in AAFPL. Post-acquisition, Andri Agro Foods will become a subsidiary of ASL, a company statement said. The move is aimed at strengthening ASL's product portfolio and enabling its entry into the soya-based food products market both in India and overseas. AAFPL manufactures a range of products, including soya chunks and textured vegetable protein (TVP). "The acquisition of AAFPL will enable us to establish our presence in the soya-based product markets both in India and overseas. Besides, it will enable us to enter the groceries segment through bulk and premium namkeen products," Annapurna Swadisht CMD Shreeram Bagla said. The deal would also open export opportunities for the company's existi

Land acquisition proof no longer mandatory for non-coal mining green nod

Non-coal mining project developers will not have to show proof of land acquisition as a pre-requisite for environmental clearance now, according to a recent environment ministry memorandum. So far, the ministry required proof of land acquisition. However, the norm was reconsidered following requests that consent from landowners should not be insisted upon at the time of grant of environmental clearance (EC) for non-coal mining projects and the status of land acquisition should not be linked with the grant of the clearance. "The matter was referred to the non-coal mining Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) for consideration. After due deliberation the sectoral EAC observed that the request for delinking the consent from landowners at the time of grant of EC for non-coal mining projects, appears to be reasonable and can be accepted," an official memorandum of the ministry said. "Further, the EAC, inter alia, also observed that there are many mining projects where mining operations have

MatchLog joins Softlink Global to boost container asset optimisation

Container reuse platform MatchLog on Tuesday said it has entered into an agreement with logistics solutions provider Softlink Global to integrate its container equipment optimisation capabilities with the latter's enterprise resource planning platform Logi-Sys. The integration would help container reuse and asset optimisation for freight forwarders, third-party logistics providers, and shipping companies. The integration is designed to scale across more than 100 countries where Logi-Sys is already deployed, using Softlink Global's footprint to standardise container reuse practices while adapting to regional operating realities, it said. Softlink Global is a digital backbone platform powering freight and logistics operations for more than 5,100 companies globally, while its enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform serves as the system of record for freight forwarding, customs, warehousing, and financial operations. By embedding container optimisation within Logi-Sys, customers ga

Indian FMCG set for stronger quarters with 5% volume growth: Report

The FMCG sector is witnessing a strong pick-up, helped by robust macroeconomic indicators, and a 5 per cent volume growth is expected in the 'first few months' of this year, a Worldpanel report said. According to the December FMCG Pulse report from Worldpanel by Numerator, India's GDP expectations have been revised upwards, inflation is low, and food inflation is negative, and many manufacturers are passing on these benefits to shoppers. Moreover, the banking sector regulator, the RBI's consumer confidence index, also indicates that consumer confidence is returning. "With the macro-economic indicators being strong and FMCG also seeing an uptick correspondingly, we expect the coming quarters to strongly build on the momentum. A 5 per cent FMCG volume growth from a household perspective is possible within the first few months of the next year (2026)," the report from Worldpanel by Numerator, said. Worldpanel by Numerator provides currency-grade consumer data representing nearly 6 ..

India's vehicle retail sales jump 7.71% to 28.1 million in 2025: Fada

Retail sales of vehicles across categories in India in 2025 grew by 7.71 per cent at 2,81,61,228 units as compared to 2,61,45,445 in 2024, with GST 2.0 helping overcome a subdued start to the year, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations said on Tuesday. Passenger vehicle (PV) retail sales stood at 44,75,309 units in 2025 as against 40,79,532 units in 2024, a growth of 9.7 per cent, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) said in a statement. Similarly, two-wheeler (2W) sales also grew by 7.24 per cent at 2,02,95,650 units last year as compared to 1,89,24,815 units in 2024. In 2025, three-wheeler retail sales were at 13,09,953 units as compared to 12,21,886 units in 2024, up 7.21 per cent. Commercial vehicles (CV) retail also witnessed a growth of 6.71 per cent at 10,09,654 units in 2025 as against 9,46,190 units in 2024. Commenting on the performance, FADA President CS Vigneshwar said 2025 was a tale of two halves -- January to August remained subdued despite .

Telecom industry wants another technology evaluation of D2M broadcasting

Telecom players have claimed that D2M broadcasting has direct implications for spectrum bands identified for existing and future 5G use

NCCCL bags ₹112.5 crore construction contract from Lodha Developers

New Consolidated Construction Company Ltd (NCCCL) has bagged a Rs 112.5 crore contract from realty firm Lodha Developers. In a statement on Monday, the company said it has received a Letter of Award from Lodha Developers Ltd for the construction of Tower 1 and associated non-tower ancillary structures at a residential development in Alibaug near Mumbai. "Awarded through a competitive bidding process, the mandate involves a total built-up area of approximately 7.26 lakh sq ft, with an estimated contract value of Rs 112.5 crore (exclusive of GST)," NCCCL said. Construction at the Alibaug site is expected to commence around mid-January 2026, with an estimated execution period of approximately 24 months. This is NCCCL's third contract with the Lodha Group, following the completion of a residential project at Palava spanning about 13 lakh sq ft across 11 towers, and a commercial building in Thane. Established in 1946, Mumbai-based NCCCL is an engineering and construction company. It ..

No shortage of urea in state: Rajasthan Agriculture Minister Meena

The agriculture minister's statement came after former chief minister and senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot criticised the state government for its failure to provide fertilisers to farmers on time

Highway sector at crossroads as low central awards boost state role: Ind-Ra

India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) on Monday said India's highway sector is facing challenges, with muted central road award activity for the past two years, leading to increased competition and persistent project execution issues. The rating agency further said that although state awards have come to the rescue, the sector is likely to witness subdued revenue and margins. "The muted central award activity has altered the sector's dynamics, pushing states into the driver's seat. While this shift ensures continuity, it also introduces complexities around execution and financing," said Krishan Binani, Director, Corporate Ratings, Ind-Ra. Moreover, Ind-Ra said the sector is likely to witness a higher number of build-operate-transfer (BOT) projects at both the centre and state levels, necessitating increased private capital. Ind-Ra said it projects modest year-on-year revenue growth of 6 per cent to 8 per cent for the overall engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) sector in .

COAI raises red flags over Prasar Bharati's direct-to-mobile tech test

Telecom industry body COAI on Monday raised concerns over a direct-to-mobile service technology test commissioned by public broadcaster Prasar Bharati without involving telecom operators and mobile device companies. The direct-to-mobile broadcast service technology, if successful, will enable direct transmission of live TV channels on mobile phones without cellular connectivity. Prasar Bharati had signed a pact with IIT Kanpur 2019 to technically verify concerns regarding interference of direct-to-mobile (D2M) broadcast service with telecom services and heating of mobile devices due to the operation of the D2M broadcast service. IIT Kanpur conducted the test through Telecom Engineering Centre, authorised technology partner Aracion Technology, by involving Tata group firm Tejas Networks and a D2M smartphone. The test report, published in November 2025, refuted the concern raised by some stakeholders. "COAI has expressed serious concerns regarding the manner in which recent technical