TRANSTOPICS

India’s only transport weekly commanding largest circulation

49 VOLUME LVIII, NO 48, THURSDAY, June 02, 2022. PRICE Rs 25 49

Tata Motors Finance –

Empowering the Drivers
of the economy

Mahindra introduces the Centre notifies new

New Bolero City Pik-Up in vehicle insurance
Maharashtra rates
Editorial
Facilities for
Drivers in
Transport
Companies
 Contents
Editorial:
Facili es for Drivers in Transport Companies 06
Tata Motors Finance – Empowering the Drivers of the economy 12
Burden of fuel excise cut en rely on Centre, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman 15
Rajasthan government approves EV policy 16
AI to make roads in India safer to drive 17
Centre no fies new vehicle insurance rates 19
Tata Motors files a record number of 125 patents in FY22 20
Allcargo Logis cs revenue grows 91% to cross ₹ 20,000 Cr 21
WB announces exemp on of registra on fees, motor vehicle and addi onal taxes 22
Ashok Leyland expands and strengthens its presence in Southern Africa 24
Daimler Truck Completes a Successful Decade in India 25
Mahindra partners with Repos Energy & Navankur Infranergy to make mobile diesel
delivery available in Nagpur 27
FreightFox wins Na onal ULIP LogiX cs Hackathon
hosted by Ni Aayog, NICDC and NLDS 30
Mahindra introduces the New Bolero City Pik-Up in Maharashtra 32
Petrol under-recovery at Rs 13, diesel Rs 24.... 35
Supply Chain Management - The backbone of a successful business
Vishal Jain 37
Work on installing 100 public charging sta ons for
EVs in Delhi nearing comple on: officials 38
Ecom Express appoints Vishwachetan Nadamani as COO 40
Aiming to achieve Rs. 1500 crore revenue, cargo-partner
is expanding to 10 Indian ci es by FY 2025 41
Centre proposes manda ng use of cost saving techniques to build highways 42
Record bookings pour in for luxury cars in India 43

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 04

 Editorial

Facilities for
Drivers in
Transport Companies

Mentality of ofcials
to pull up only
trucks to check docs
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 06
For some reason many people in the road
transport industry, the government circle and
me would like to believe that road transport
s ll con nues to be the backbone of the
economy and s ll con nuous to fuel every
household and every industry in the country.
Although ignored, one cannot change the fact
that road transport industry is the equivalent
of of the air that we breathe and the water
that we drink. If the above two elements are
considered to be cri cal, road Transport
without doubt would fall in this category.
A li le more than two years ago the world it
was face to face with a pandemic that le
many people and many households
sha ered. People were scared to move out of
their homes and everybody was religiously
wearing a mask, following covid protocols
and as suggested washing the hands every
now and then. Work from home became a
culture and apart from manufacturing
facili es, other industries were doing good
managing their work responsibili es from the
Comforts of their home.
Not even once during the lockdown did we
hear stories about food supplies not reaching
the remotest loca ons in the country. At the
same me medical supplies reached hospitals
well in me, subject to loads being offered by
the producing companies.
While we may con nue to talk about the
efforts of the road transport industry, how
can we forget the contribu on of a segment
of this industry that happens to be the lifeline
of road transport? We are referring to the
unsung hero of every industry and every
household - THE TRUCK DRIVER.
As soon as the lockdown was announced,
everyone was forced to stay indoors.
However they were few segments that did
not have the luxury or the safety of staying in
doors. The so-called frontline workers, which
primarily included doctors, nurses and police
force, had to stay outdoors to perform their
du es. It was very heartening that the
government as well as the common man
acknowledged the services of of the above
Frontline workers and it was very
encouraging to your words of apprecia on
from the Prime Minister of the country.
But some mes it seems, even in the toughest
of mes, you cannot change history and the
a tude towards truck drivers is one such
thing that hasn't changed over decades. To
date we haven't heard a word of apprecia on
for the truck drivers who stayed away from
their homes for weeks and months together
to ensure that the supply chain was not
disrupted. While the other Frontline workers
One thing that the road
transport industry should
realise by now is that the truck
drivers are their life line and
hence they should start
thinking seriously about this
community. Eventually the road
transport business depends
largely on truck drivers and
therefore it becomes our
responsibility not only to
ensure that they are taking
care of, but also to ensure that
there are enough truck drivers
in the country. For a long time
now the industry has been
looking towards the
government and other
companies for support - but
that has not been of enough
help.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 07
had the op on of going back home either
everyday or once in a few days, the truck
drivers could only go back once in a few
months. However this is not something new
for the truck drivers, but driving during the
early days of the pandemic was something
very new for them and it s ll gives them
shivers when they think about the days and
night when they draw relessly on empty
highways.
Just to remind people what the drivers went
through during this period - the dhabas all
along the highways were shut and it was only
a er a few days that associa ons and
transport companies started providing food
supplies to the drivers on the highways. It is
very shocking and sad that the drivers
ensured food supplies and medicines to
homes and hospitals across the country, but
there was no one to make sure that this
soldier on the highway also got his share of of
food.
One thing that the road transport industry
should realise by now is that the truck drivers
are their life line and hence they should start
thinking seriously about this community.
Eventually the road transport business
depends largely on truck drivers and
therefore it becomes our responsibility not
only to ensure that they are taking care of,
but also to ensure that there are enough
truck drivers in the country. For a long me
now the industry has been looking towards
the government and other companies for
support - but that has not been of enough
help. A fortnight ago in our editorial we had
men oned that the customers of road
transport should make provisions for basic
needs for truck drivers at their loading /
unloading points. But that also raised another
very per nent ques on. How many
Transporters have facili es for their truck
drivers at their offices or godowns? I have
personally seen many such facili es for truck
drivers, but that number needs to grow.
But at the same me the road transport
industry needs to widen its vision and start
building or adop ng facili es along the
highways that support the truck drivers in
every respect. There are a lot of things that a
truck driver may need during his journey and
it becomes our duty to ensure that these
facili es are are created for the truck drivers
to secure their journey.
I would like to reiterate once more that truck
drivers are our employees and there should
be no reason why we should depend upon
someone else to look a er them.
The one significant change that I have seen
for the truck drivers is improvement in
infrastructure - be it highways or vehicles,
both have undergone a lot of change in the
last few years. Trucks and roads are two
elements that the truck drivers have to
maneuver and un l a few years back both
these elements were tough to handle. But
with the government focusing a lot on
Suresh Khosla pointed out that
he had observed that officials
on the highways always pulled
up trucks to check the
documents. However these
officials never pull up
passenger cars for the same
reason. Suresh questioned that
how can these officials be so
sure that the cars have all the
documents in order while the
trucks do not have them. Also
why is it necessary to check
the same documents over and
over again?
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 08
infrastructure development, the road
condi ons have improved dras cally. At the
same me the vehicle manufacturers too,
have been focusing on improving driving
comfort and facili es within the cabin,
keeping in mind that driver shortage would
somewhere affect their business as well. In
fact on a number of occasions we have come
across transport companies who admit that
they had to defer their purchase plans
because they had no drivers.
From whatever indica ons we are seeing
currently, road Transport seems to have a
very bright as well as exci ng future. But this
would also mean that we would need more
number of trained drivers to cater to the
growing demands. It is therefore important
that the industry needs to work out a
strategy that would not only keep the current
drivers within the industry, but also a ract
new ones to join this trade.
I am certain that the industry can seek a li le
help from the government - only to the
extent that the officials on the highways need
to change their a tude and start looking at
the truck drivers as human beings. That
would be a good start.
The road transport industry is a vast network
and the one aspect that would set a part this
industry from others is the large number of
associa ons spread across the nook and
corner of the country. The industry, if it
wishes to, can ac vate and mobilize these
associa ons to reach out to the truck drivers
in distress. We have seen this happening in
large parts of of Southern India, but this
needs to be transformed into a movement
where the truck drivers would know no that
they have someone to reach out to.
During a recent interac on with Mr Suresh
Khosla (former General Secretary of of
Bombay goods transport Associa on), he
made a very thought provoking observa on.
Suresh pointed out that he had observed that
officials on the highways always pulled up
trucks to check the documents. However
these officials never pull up passenger cars
for the same reason. Suresh ques oned that
how can these officials be so sure that the
cars have all the documents in order while
the trucks do not have them. Also why is it
necessary to check the same documents over
and over again?
The above ques ons are very per nent and
this is something that the road transport
industry needs to take up at the highest level.
One of the reasons why this industry may not
be taking up this issue is because at the end
of the day it is the driver who has to face the
brunt of these officials. But the industry also
needs to take into account that it is losing on
produc vity as well as incremental costs.
But sometimes it seems, even
in the toughest of times, you
cannot change history and the
attitude towards truck drivers
is one such thing that hasn't
changed over decades. To date
we haven't heard a word of
appreciation for the truck
drivers who stayed away from
their homes for weeks and
months together to ensure
that the supply chain was not
disrupted. While the other
Frontline workers had the
option of going back home
either everyday or once in a
few days, the truck drivers
could only go back once in a few
months.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 09
We have seen so many strikes by transport
associa ons in the past, but none of them
have taken this up as an issue which effects
every player in the road transport industry.
With so much of Technology at its disposal,
the government can surely come up with
systems that allow minimal checking of
trucks. At the same me we would also
suggest strict ac on against those trucks that
are flou ng the rules, so that it can be a
deterrent for others. But one thing that
surely needs to change is the frequent
checking of trucks and the a tude of officials
on the Highways.
If road transport is the lifeline of the
economy, the truck drivers play the same role
for road transport. They cannot be neglected
and they cannot be ill-treated. We would
urge the road transport industry to advise its
members to have facili es for the drivers
within their offices and godowns, and at the
same me treat them properly. Only when
we have our own house in order can we ask
others to provide similar facili es for the
truck drivers. We are headed towards a very
exci ng future where the role of road
transport will be very crucial and this is the
me where we have to prepare for the
future.

Facilities for Drivers

Does your transport company have provisions for truck
drivers at offices / godowns? Send us pictures & details
of facilities. We’ll be happy to share.

Write to us at:
girishtranstopics@gmail.com
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 10

Tata Motors
Finance –
Empowering
the Drivers
of the
economy
Tata Motors Finance, a leading Non-Banking
Financial Company, and India's largest financier of
Tata commercial vehicles, has always believed in
empowering the driver community – one of the
key pillars of India's vast transport and logis cs
industry. The brand recently took yet another
step in this endeavour with the launch of Project
Akanksha – its flagship skilling program that aims
to impart relevant skill-based trainings to over
25000 drivers across the country, by collabora ng
with Collec ve Good Founda on (CGF), Samhita.
The project is designed as a holis c and
comprehensive upli ment program that covers
cri cal aspects like financial literacy,
entrepreneurship, occupa on-related skills as
well as life skills. The project involves conduc ng
a comprehensive mul -city upli ment and cash
flow maintenance program for safeguarding the
financial future of the drivers. The program is a
combina on of academic and prac cal sessions to
help the drivers gain relevant exper se.
The Indian Commercial Vehicle industry is
an cipated to grow at a CAGR of 18%, to reach
11,80,000 units by FY2025. With consumer
demand bouncing back to pre-pandemic levels, a
host of infrastructure projects lined up especially
in Tier2 & Tier 3 ci es, coupled with a massive
government spending on capex projects, the
demand for commercial vehicles is expected to
surge in the next 2-3 years. Through 'Project
Akanksha', Tata Motors Finance aims to equip the
driver community with the requisite arsenal to
leverage the upcoming opportuni es. The focus is
~Under Project Akanksha, in
association with CGF Samhita, the
brand plans to impart skill-based
trainings to 25,000+ commercial
vehicle drivers in India over the
next 3 years, in line with National
Skill India Mission
to ensure high impact by not only increasing the
scale of training year-on-year, but also enhancing
the quality of trainings in order to ensure that the
drivers are not just prepared but are more than
ready to thrive in any environment. So far
trainings have been carried out in 15 ci es viz
Ambala, Anuppur, Bhojpur, Guwaha , Gwalior,
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 12
Hyderabad, Lakhimpur, Lucknow, Mumbai,
Muzaffarpur, Nammakkal, Patna, Pune, Vizag
and Vijayawada, covering over 8000 drivers.
Punit Puri, Chief Human Resources Officer, Tata
Motors Finance shared, “Thanks to the rapidly
expanding road network and fast pace of highway
construc on, along with a booming e-commerce
sector, the Indian Commercial Vehicle Market is
all set to witness a massive bull-run in the next
few years. Increasing urbaniza on and growth of
SMEs are further substan a ng the rise of Indian
CV industry and we want to ensure that the driver
community is able to make the most of the
opportuni es ahead. As per ASDC and EY's recent
report, there are numerous skills required by
drivers like basic mechanics, financial
management, vehicle detailing, transport
management, etc., as a complementary skill to
driving. The report also highlights that road
transport segment would require an incremental
human resource of 26.36 million to meet its
requirements by 2026. On the occasion of
Interna onal Professional Drivers Day, we are
happy to share that Tata Motors Finance has
pledged to train 25,000 Indian drivers under
'Project Akanksha' in the next 3 years, bridging
the financial literacy and skill gap in the driver
community, carrying forward the Na onal Skill
India Mission.”
“The Indian commercial vehicle driver community
is severely underserved and vulnerable to safety
issues. Equipping them with skills that can help
them build sustainable enterprises is a high
priority in our country. By focusing on crucial
aspects of their lives - professional, health and
financial, we are confident that we can change
their a tude and prac ces with regard to their
profession, peers and the industry at large. This
partnership will immensely benefit the driver
community, empower them through the
acquisi on of relevant skills and poten ally lead
to entrepreneurship or community enterprise.”
Priya Naik, Co-Founder, Samhita
Project Akanksha aims to enhance knowledge,
address growth barriers and strengthen the driver
community through the following focus areas
Ÿ Financial Literacy: Sensi ze and train them on
developing financial acumen and discipline
Ÿ Entrepreneurial skills
Ÿ So Skills for Business and enhancing
Employability
Ÿ Digital Literacy: Enable them to track and
manage their expenses through digital tools.
Ÿ Occupa on related: Road safety, Substance
abuse, Health & Wellness.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 13

Burden of
fuel excise
cut entirely
on Centre,
says FM
Nirmala
Sitharaman
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday
said the reduc on in central taxes on petrol and
diesel has been in road and infrastructure cess
that is not shared with states, rebu ng
opposi on's cri cism that the move will impact
states' share in central revenues.
The Centre had on Saturday slashed excise duty
on petrol and diesel by ₹8 and ₹6, respec vely.
Some opposi on leaders including former finance
minister P Chidambaram alleged that the duty
cuts would reduce the share of states in central
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
taxes. However, Chidambaram on Sunday
retracted his statement, saying the cut in the
levies accrues to the central government alone.
Sitharaman took to Twi er to share facts about
the levies on petrol and diesel. "Basic excise duty
(BED), special addi onal excise duty (SAED), road
and infrastructure cess (RIC), and agriculture and
infrastructure development cess (AIDC) together
cons tute excise duty on petrol and diesel. Basic
ED is shareable with states. SAED, RIC and AIDC
are non-sharable," she said.
The excise duty reduc on of ₹8 per litre on petrol
and ₹6 a litre on diesel has en rely been made in
RIC, she said. This was the case even in November
2021 when tax on petrol was cut by ₹5 and that
on diesel by ₹10, she said.
As per the Centre-state tax sharing formula, 41%
of taxes collected by the Centre go to states.
Some opposition leaders including
former finance minister P
Chidambaram alleged that the
duty cuts would reduce the share
of states in central taxes.
However, Chidambaram on Sunday
retracted his statement, saying
the cut in the levies accrues to
the central government alone.
Cess Mopup not Shared with States
These, however, do not include collec ons from
levy of cess. Most of the tax on petrol and diesel
is made up of cess.
While total incidence of central tax on petrol prior
to Saturday's cut was ₹27.90 per litre, basic excise
duty was only ₹1.40 a litre. Similarly, out of
₹21.80 a litre total central tax on diesel, basic
excise duty was only ₹1.80.
SAED on petrol stood at ₹11 a litre on petrol and
at ₹8 per litre on diesel while AIDC was levied at
₹2.50 a litre on petrol and ₹4 per litre on diesel.
Addi onal excise duty in the form of RIC on petrol
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 15
stood at ₹13 a litre and at ₹8 on diesel. This has
been now cut to ₹5 and ₹2, respec vely.
"Basic ED which is sharable with states has not
been touched. Therefore, the en re burden of
these two duty cuts (made in November 2021
and yesterday) is borne by the Centre,"
Sitharaman said.
SAED, AIDC and RIC are not shared with states.
“The duty reduc on made yesterday has an
implica on of ₹1,00,000 crore a year for Centre.
The duty reduc on made in November 2021 has
an implica on of ₹1,20,000 crore a year for
Rajasthan
government
approves
EV policy
Centre. Total revenue implica on to Centre on
these two duty cuts is thus ₹2,20,000 crore a
year," the finance minister said.
Chidambaram had on Saturday evening stated
that the cut in excise duty was "equal to rob Peter
more and pay Peter less!"."FM's exhorta on to
states is meaningless. When she cuts central
excise by one rupee, 41 paise of that rupee
belongs to the states," he had stated.
On Sunday, he retracted, saying contrary to what
he had said on Saturday, "The en re burden of
the reduc on falls on the Centre. To that extent, I
stand corrected."
The Rajasthan government has approved the
Rajasthan Electric Vehicle Policy (REVP) to
encourage EVs in the state. The government has
approved an addi onal budget provision of Rs 40
crore for the State Goods and Services Tax (SGST)
reimbursement on the purchase of such vehicles.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok
Gehlot has approved this policy,
and its implementation will reduce
the pollution caused by diesel and
petrol vehicles in the state, an
official statement said.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has
approved this policy, and its implementa on will
reduce the pollu on caused by diesel and petrol
vehicles in the state, an official statement said.
Gehlot had announced the introduc on of the
Electric Vehicle Policy in the budget for 2019-20.
He said that the state government is commi ed
to encourage the opera on of all types of e-
vehicles.
The state government has announced to
reimburse Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 SGST amount for
two-wheelers and Rs 10,000 to 20,000 for the
purchase of three-wheelers according to the
ba ery capacity of the vehicle.
E-vehicles have been kept out of the purview of
Motor Vehicle Tax in the state.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 16

AI to
make
roads
in India
safer to
drive
Ar ficial Intelligence (AI) powered solu ons, such
as collision alert system, may soon make roads in
India safer to drive.
A unique AI approach that uses the predic ve
power of AI to iden fy risks on the road, and a
collision alert system to communicate mely
alerts to drivers, is being implemented here with
an objec ve of resul ng in a significant reduc on
of accidents.
The project, 'Intelligent Solu ons for Road Safety
through Technology and Engineering' (iRASTE),
will iden fy poten al accident-causing scenarios
while driving a vehicle and alert drivers about the
same with the help of the Advanced Driver
Assistance System (ADAS).
It will also iden fy 'grey spots', i.e., by data
analysis and mobility analysis by con nuously
monitoring dynamic risks on the en re road
network. Grey spots are loca ons on roads, which
le un-addressed, could become black spots
(loca ons with fatal accidents). The system also
conducts con nuous monitoring of roads and
designs engineering fixes to correct exis ng road
black spots for preven ve maintenance and
improved road infrastructure.
The iRASTE project is under the I-Hub Founda on,
IIIT Hyderabad, and a Technology Innova on Hub
(TIH) set up in the technology ver cal - Data
Banks & Data Services - supported by the
Department of Science and Technology (DST)
under its Na onal Mission on Interdisciplinary
Cyber Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) along with INAI
(Applied AI Research Ins tute). The project
consor um includes CSIR-CRRI, and Nagpur
Municipal Corpora on (NMC), with Mahindra and
Intel as the industry partners.
The Hub is working to coordinate, integrate, and
amplify basic and applied research in broad data-
driven technologies as well as its dissemina on
and transla on across the country.
Currently, talks are on with the Telangana
government to adopt the technology in a fleet of
buses that ply on highways. There are further
plans to extend the scope of iRASTE to Goa and
Gujarat as well.
I-Hub Founda on has also used techniques
ranging from machine learning, computer vision
and computa onal sensing for several other data-
driven technological solu ons in the mobility
sector.
“One such solu on is the India Driving Dataset
(IDD), a dataset for road scene understanding in
unstructured environments captured from Indian
roads, which stands out by devia ng from the
worldwide assump ons of well-delineated
infrastructure such as lanes, limited traffic
par cipants, low varia on in object," the official
said.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 17

Centre
notifies
new
vehicle
insurance
rates
The centre on Wednesday approved the new
base premium rates for third party motor vehicle
insurance. These revised rates will be applicable
from June 1, 2022. These rates were last revised
for financial year 2019-20 and were kept
unchanged during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a gaze e no fica on from the
Ministry of Road, Transport, and Highways, the
annual rate of third-party insurance for private
cars not exceeding 1000 cc has been fixed at Rs
2,094, up from Rs 2,072 in 2019-20.
Under the new rates, third party insurance for
private cars with an engine capacity between
1000 cc and 1500 cc has been raised to Rs 3,416
from Rs 3,221 in 2019-20. Larger private vehicles
that have an engine capacity above 1500 cc will
see the premiums fall to Rs 7,897 from Rs 7,890.
For two wheelers over 150 cc but not exceeding
350 cc, the insurance premium will be Rs 1,366
while two-wheelers over 350 cc will command a
premium of Rs 2,804.
Under the new rates, third party
insurance for private cars with an engine
capacity between 1000 cc and 1500 cc
has been raised to Rs 3,416 from Rs
3,221 in 2019-20. Larger private
vehicles that have an engine capacity
above 1500 cc will see the premiums fall
to Rs 7,897 from Rs 7,890.
The three-year single premium for a new car not
exceeding 1000 cc has been fixed at Rs 6,521,
while for a car between 1000 cc and 1500 cc it
has been fixed at Rs 10,640. A new private vehicle
exceeding 1500 cc will be insured at Rs 24,596 for
three years under the newly no fied rates.
The five year single premium for two wheelers
not exceeding 75 cc is Rs 2,901, exceeding 75 cc
but not 150 cc is Rs 3,851, and exceeding 150 cc
but not 350 cc is Rs 7,365. A two wheeler
exceeding 350 cc can be insured for five years at
Rs 15,117 under the new rates.
A new private electric vehicle (EV) can be insured
at Rs 5,543 for three years if it is not exceeding 30
KW. If the EV exceeds 30 KW but is less than 65
KW, the three year premium will be Rs 9,044.
Larger EVs exceeding 65 KW will be insured at Rs
20,907 for three years.
New two wheelers EVs can be insured under five
year single premiums for Rs 2,466 if they are not
exceeding 3 KW. EV two wheelers exceeding 3 KW
but not 7 KW will be insured for Rs 3,273, and
exceeding 7 KW but not 16 KW for Rs 6,260.
Higher powered EV two wheelers with a capacity
exceeding 16 KW will be insured at Rs 12,849 for
five years.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 19

Tata Motors
files a record
number of 125
patents in
FY22; Secures
56 grants in
FY22
Continues to set
the standard in
the automotive
industry
Reaffirming its commitment towards fostering
innova on, research, and advanced engineering,
Tata Motors Ltd (TML), India's leading automobile
company, today announced that it has
accelerated its drive for engineering excellence
and innova on by filing a record number of 125
patents in FY22, which is the highest ever in its
history. The patents filed entail a diverse range of
innova ons & developments in tradi onal & new
energy powertrain technologies, safety,
connected vehicle technologies, body in white
(BIW) & trims along with other vehicle systems.
The company has also received a grant of 56
patents during the same period.
With a rich history of pioneering technology and
engineering solu ons, TML has been consistently
making “ahead- of-the-curve” investments in new
age technologies, with a focus on enabling future
ready mobility. Its intrinsic capabili es in R&D,
technology incuba on and success in developing
segment-defining vehicles in both commercial
and passenger vehicles has resulted in the
introduc on of several innova ons over the years
in its vehicles. These innova ons are cherished by
the customers leading to improved market shares
and have since become industry benchmarks.
TML remains commi ed to sa sfy the rising
mobility aspira ons of our customers by
delivering high quality, smart features at
affordable costs.
Speaking about Tata Motors' commitment
towards innova on & new technology, Rajendra
Petkar, President & CTO, Tata Motors, said,
“We have established a legacy of se ng new
benchmarks with cu ng-edge technologies and
features in the areas of new energy solu ons,
safety, product performance, cost of ownership
and digitaliza on. An enabling culture and
ecosystem to foster innova on amongst our
workforce and the drive to keep challenging the
status quo in pursuit of excellence has been the
key to delivery. We remain commi ed to use our
engineering prowess in crea ng top class mobility
solu ons to serve the evolving aspira ons of our
customers.”
The R&D centres of Tata Motors have won several
pres gious accolades and honors recently. These
include:
Ÿ Two CII GreenCo awards for the Tata Motors at
the 8th Edi on of CII Na onal Award for
Environment Best Prac ces (2021)
Ÿ The IP Excellence Award, 2021 accorded by
Questel, in recogni on of Tata Motors'
valuable contribu on as an Innova on-Driven
Organiza on
Ÿ The “Special Apprecia on Award” in “7th CII
Industrial Intellectual Property Award
Ceremony” in November 2021
Ÿ Excellence award at the 46th Interna onal
conven on on Quality Circles -2021
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 20
 Allcargo
Logistics Key highlights:
revenue grows Allcargo Logis cs reported consolidated revenue
of ₹ 20,072 Crores for the year and EBITDA stood
91% to cross ₹ at ₹ 1,516 Crores. Profit before tax stood at ₹
1,186 Crores, including ₹ 81 Crs share of profit

20,000 Cr, from associates and JVs. This has been the best
ever performance recorded by the company
se ng stage for next phase of growth on the back
reported of strategic acquisi ons and transforma onal
ini a ves undertaken by the company. There has
EBITDA ₹ 1,516 been a sustained increase in revenues coming
through digital pla orm ECU360, which now
accounts for nearly 60% of export booking across
Cr for FY22 all key markets. The company has divested project
transporta on business in line with asset light
strategy and made strategic acquisi ons in India
and across the world.
The Board of Directors of Allcargo Logis cs Ltd, at The interna onal supply chain business (MTO
its mee ng held today, approved the audited segment) opera ng under ECU Worldwide
financial results for the financial year ended witnessed robust growth on the back of volume
March 31, 2022. growth driven by expansion in market share in
favorable market condi ons. Company set up a JV
in Scandinavian region, which has grown
Consolidated Net Profit* significantly post acquisi on and ECU Worldwide
grows to 900 Cr for is now consolida on market leader with near 40%
market share in Sweden, Norway, Finland and
FY22, consolidated Denmark. The JV in South Korea has also
EBITDA up 139% YoY performed exceedingly well alongside key regions
of India, China, Europe and Americas - all

Summary of Consolidated results FY 22 compared to FY 21

(₹ in Crs)

Financial Year ended Financial Year ended % Increase /

Par culars
Mar 31, 2022 Mar 31, 2021 (Decrease)

Revenue from opera ons 20,072 10,498 91%

EBITDA 1,516 634 139%
Reported Net profit* 900 200 349%
* Adjus ng for excep onal items

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 21

exhibi ng best ever business performance.
The CFS-ICD business was bolstered with
acquisi on of Speedy Mul modes and the
company is now market leader in CFS business in
India. Volume handled for the year stood at
450,549 TEUs as against 282,595 TEUs handled
last year. The express logis cs business under
Ga 's subsidiary GKEPL reported its highest ever
volume and ₹ 1,252 Crores for the year. The
company is building quality infrastructure to drive
next phase of growth. The contract logis cs
business has successfully diversified across new
business segments to record highest ever revenue
and profit. The business is under ACCI, where
Allcargo owns near 61% shareholding. ACCI also
has customs clearance business. ACCI witnessed a
growth of 49% in revenue, and EBITDA increased
42% from ₹ 104 Cr in FY21 to ₹ 147 Cr in FY22.
The company manages over 5 million sq.
warehousing area under its opera ons. The
equipment business of the company has been
ra onalized reducing capital employed and
u liza on is currently at a record 90% level.
Commen ng on the business performance,
WB announces
exemption of
registration fees,
motor vehicle and
additional taxes
The West Bengal Friday announced exemp on of
registra on fees, motor vehicle and addi onal
taxes for two and four wheeled electric vehicles
and all categories of CNG-operated vehicles from
April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2024, a government
official said here.. This will decrease on the road
prices of several categories of green energy
operated vehicles, he said.
For those vehicles which were registered
between April 1, 2022 and the date of issuance of
the no fica on on May 25, the financial incen ve
Shashi Kiran She y, Chairman, Allcargo Logis cs,
ECU Worldwide and Ga Ltd. said, “The
Company's record performance is an outcome of
sustained strategic ini a ves over last few years.
Our sharp focus on technology has benefi ed us
in many ways, be it using data science and
automa on to drive op miza on, or digital
pla orms to serve customers be er. Alongside,
our market leading opera onal capabili es have
allowed us to generate strong cash flows and
profits also, besides excep onal growth in
revenue. This approach has a racted business
leaders across the world to join our management
team, posi oning us well to drive next phase of
asset light growth. Further, the recently
announced demerger will provide strategic
independence and financial flexibility to
businesses boos ng growth in the long term”
“We are proud of our proac ve strategic
acquisi on capabili es. This was a year where we
transformed Ga , acquired Speedy Mul modes
and accelerated our business in Scandinavia
growing manifold post acquisi on.” He further
added.
will be in the form of extension of tax validity for
the exact number of days for which tax has been
paid between April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2024,
the order signed by transport department
secretary Rajesh Sinha said.
The order exemp ng motor vehicle and addi onal
taxes along with registra on fees for two and
four-wheeled ba ery-operated electric vehicles
and all categories of CNG-operated vehicles from
April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2024 is as per the state
finance minister's budget announcement for
2022-23.
"It is felt necessary to give some kind of financial
relief/exemp on to incen vise investment in
ba ery-operated electric vehicles and also to
incen vise reduc on in carbon footprint and to
reduce dependence on petrol/diesel," the order
said.
Industry watchers said that the exemp on of
registra on fees and motor vehicle tax will act as
a boost for increased demand for clean energy-
run vehicles.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 22
 Ashok Leyland, the flagship Company of the
Hinduja Group and India's leading commercial

Ashok vehicle manufacturer, today announced their new

distribu on partnership with ETG group's
logis cs, warehousing and distribu on ver cal,

Leyland ETG Logis cs (ETGL). ETG is a global

conglomerate opera ng across various segments,
with a deep focus on upli ing Sub-Saharan Africa.

expands and An agreement was signed between the two

companies for coopera on of Distribu on of
products in the Southern African region. ETGL will

strengthens operate dealerships for Ashok Leyland in 6 key

Southern African countries as part of this strategic
coopera on.

its presence Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Amandeep Singh,

Head Interna onal Opera ons, Ashok Leyland
said, “We have ambi ous growth plans for the
in Southern African Market. Our me tested products are well

Africa Appoints ETG Logistics

as new distributor
suited for the African terrain
and offers superior value
proposi on to customers. ETG
group's extensive connect in
these markets will complement
our growth plans. We are
already present in most of the
East and West African
countries. We now have the
right product por olio with
Best in Class TCO to cater to
requirements of this market
and provide excellent value
proposi on for customers.”

Mr. Rajeev Saxena, CEO of

ETGL, said, “We are excited to
announce our partnership with
Ashok Leyland Ltd. This
partnership will be
instrumental in bringing a
range of Commercial Vehicles
solu ons to address specific
requirements of different
customer groups in the
Mr. Amandeep Singh, Head – Interna onal Opera ons, Ashok Leyland Limited,
territory.”
Mr. Rajeev Saxena, CEO, ETG Logis cs, & Mr. Pavankumar Nair, Business Head, ETG Logis cs

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 24

 with new benchmarks in engineering, technology,
safety and comfort in BharatBenz trucks and
Daimler Truck buses. In its first decade in the Indian market,
DICV achieved domes c sales of more than

Completes a 125,000 vehicles, exported over 50,000 vehicles

and more than 200 million parts to over 60
countries around the world.
Successful Mr. Satyakam Arya – Managing Director & CEO,

Decade in Daimler India Commercial Vehicles said, “In the

past decade, we have set new benchmarks in the
Indian CV industry by introducing fully-built,
India; aims at factory-fi ed truck cabins, we were the first CV
manufacturer to launch trucks and buses with

100% carbon- BSVI engines and have set high standards of

quality, safety and comfort in the market. We
have achieved sustainable growth in our domes c
free Operations as well as exports businesses and have a plan to
accelerate our foray in these two areas, in the
in Oragadam, coming years. A few key objec ves for the next
decade are to achieve 100% carbon neutrality in
our opera ons by 2025, become a 100% paper-
India by 2025 free organiza on by the end of 2023, increase
energy self-reliance and have a sharper focus on
workplace diversity and culture.”

DICV has launched the 'Dashak Edi on' of

Daimler India Commercial Vehicles Pvt. Ltd.
BharatBenz 1617 MDT and 5528 HDT trucks in
(DICV), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Daimler
Fiery Red colour and a 36-seater bus in Pearl
Truck AG, celebrated the comple on of 10
White. In addi on to special features, the 'Dashak
successful years of opera ons in India. DICV
Edi on' trucks and bus will sport a 'Dashak' decal
started its opera ons in 2012 with an aim to
to commemorate its 10th year Anniversary.
transform the Indian commercial vehicle industry

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 25

The1617 Medium-duty truck (MDT), fully loaded
with air-condi oning, music system and cameras,
is introduced for e-commerce and express
delivery fleet operators for a safe and
comfortable experience for shorter distances. The
BharatBenz 5528 prime mover heavy duty truck
(HDT) for long haul, specifically tailored for steel,
cement and construc on aggregates movement.
DICV is commi ed to sustainability in a big way.
The OEM currently uses 85% of its energy from
renewable sources. The company has already
harnessed solar energy for its manufacturing
facility in Oragadam and has laid the founda on
for an addi onal capacity of 1.3MW solar
photovoltaic plant along its world class test track
in its sprawling 430-acre facility. DICV's exis ng
solar energy plant already has a capacity of
3.3MW. The OEM has already achieved 100%
recycling of water and does not depend on
external sources of water for manufacturing. DICV
is working towards becoming 100% carbon-free
by 2025.
Ÿ BharatBenz 'Dashak Edition'
truck and bus launched in India
Ÿ DICV sold more than125,000
trucks and buses in the past 10
years
Ÿ First Commercial Vehicle OEM
to launch BS-VI trucks and
buses in India
Ÿ First CV manufacturer in India
to offer only fully-built,
factory-fitted truck cabins
Ÿ Created over 60,000 jobs in its
ecosystem in the past decade
Ÿ Has added additional solar
capacity of 1.3MW to increase
energy self-reliance

DICV has a 4000+ diverse, direct and indirect

workforce across its plant opera ons in
Oragadam, Global Capability Centre in Chennai
and regional offices across India. The company
has created over 60,000 jobs in its ecosystem
covering dealers, suppliers and other
stakeholders and has plans to enhance its
diversity through a number of ini a ves that will
have a posi ve effect on the business and culture
of the organiza on.

In 2012, DICV launched BharatBenz trucks in

India. Within a decade, brand BharatBenz has
established itself as a formidable contender in a
highly compe ve market in the HDT and MDT
segments of the Indian commercial vehicles
industry. BharatBenz trucks and buses are retailed
and serviced out of 275+ sales and service touch
points across the country.

DICV has invested over INR 9,500 crores in its

state-of-the-art green field manufacturing plant in
Oragadam near Chennai. The facility is also home
to an indigenous R&D centre that caters to its
Indian as well as Daimler Truck Global
requirements.

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 26

 chain & economics of fuel trade, structural

Mahindra constraints of the exis ng distribu on model,

changing buying behavior of consumers and
technological disrup on. To ease the lives of the
partners with end-consumers across Nagpur, Navankur
Infranergy launched its Mobile Fuel Pump -
Booster Diesel. The mobile Fuel Pump was
Repos Energy inaugurated by the Hon'ble Minister of Road
Transport and Highways of India, Shri. Ni n
and Navankur Gadkari along with Shri. P. M. Parlewar, Director
MSME, DI, Maharashtra.

Infranergy to Speaking on the occasion Nachiketa Pande,

Director, Navankur Infranergy said, “Booster

make mobile Diesel – Fuel Bowser will serve across Nagpur to

meet the demand for diesel by various end-users
and industries at their doorstep. It is a double
diesel delivery dispensing Alpha Mobile Fuel Pump built on
Mahindra FURIO 11 truck. This Fully built Mobile
Fuel Bowser has been supplied by Pune-based
available Repos Energy. Door-step diesel delivery will lead
to an efficient energy distribu on infrastructure
in Nagpur and will provide diesel to bulk consumers in the
most legal and facet manner.”

“In partnership with Mahindra and Repos, we

The Doorstep Fuel delivery model has grown
rapidly across the country and scaled up even
faster in the post-Covid era. This is due to a
mul tude of factors including, the global supply
would further expand our presence in mobile fuel
distribu on in the region”, added Mahendra
Nilawar, Director, Navankur Infranergy.
Repos Energy has ed up with Mahindra to cater

NAVANKUR Infranrgy - FURIO7 FUEL Bowser Unveling - Nagpur

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 27
 Ÿ Booster Diesel will serve across Nagpur to meet the demand for diesel by
various end-users at their doorstep.

Ÿ Repos Mobile Bowser solution makes the fuel delivery process seamless and
safe to both the sellers and consumers. The robust IoT technology makes
this Bowser solution an innovation par excellence

Ÿ Repos is present in over 220 cities across India through its 1,500+ partners
and 2,500+ Repos Mobile Petrol Pumps

Ÿ Fully Built Fuel Bowser developed by Repos Energy is available on Mahindra

FURIO range of Light and Intermediate commercial vehicles

Ÿ The Mahindra FURIO range of Light and Intermediate truck range is

designed by Pininfarina for Indian road conditions, FURIO sets new
benchmarks with its world-class design and engineering excellence, with one
of the safest, most ergonomic and comfortable cabins. The range comes with
the assurance of higher mileage and other product superiorities leading to a
complete Business Solution offering

to Doorstep Fuel delivery demand through their
FURIO trucks - range of Light and Intermediate
commercial vehicles.
Speaking on the occasion, Chetan Walunj, Co-
Founder, Repos Energy said, “While the en re
world is moving towards making things easily
accessible by going mobile, doorstep diesel
delivery in India has eased the way fuel is being
delivered in the country. Bringing diesel on
wheels through mobile petrol pumps has been
one of our major accomplishments, and with the
product superiori es and suitability that
Mahindra FURIO offers for Fuel Bowser
applica on, we want to reach each and every
corner of India and revolu onize the distribu on
of all kinds of energy in future.”
Speaking on the occasion, Jalaj Gupta, Business
Head – Commercial Vehicles, Mahindra &
Mahindra Limited, said, “A major propor on of
the diesel goes into fueling industries, where it is
o en required in bulk. These industries resort to
procuring diesel from fuel pumps using improper
receptacles like barrels and bowsers which causes
great losses in the form of spillage, pilferage, dead
mileage, and manpower costs. Combining with
the exper se of Repos Energy in Fuel Bowser
business solu on, we are introducing a
compelling product offering to cater to the
emerging need of industries and do our bit
towards na on-building. Mahindra's range of
Light and the intermediate commercial vehicle
come with their inherent advantages to make it a
perfect fit for Fuel Bowser opera on and ensure
profitability. We congratulate Navankur
Infranergy, for being fuel entrepreneurs and doing
their bit in bringing efficiency in India's energy
distribu on sector”.

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 28

 The results were announced earlier this week by
the NLDS (NICDC Logis cs Data Services) in the
presence of Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO Ni Aayog,
FreightFox Shri Amrit Lal Meena, Special Secretary Logis cs,
Ministry of Commerce, and other esteemed
dignitaries and jury members.
wins National The hackathon was a flagship event hosted by the
Ni Aayog as part of the Govt. plan to launch the
ULIP LogiXtics ULIP pla orm. This event gave a pla orm for
teams to demonstrate their strategy, coding, data,
and domain exper se at the na onal level and to
Hackathon deliver a credible solu on to help achieve a
reduc on of na onal logis cs costs. The goal was

hosted by Niti to solve current logis cs business issues by

conceiving new ideas, developing
solu ons/products using logis cs-related data

Aayog, NICDC available through various government methods,

and NLDS
FreightFox, a Pune-based B2B manufacturing
logis cs focused technology pla orm emerged as
the winner of the first edi on of the ULIP (Unified
Logis cs Interface Pla orm) LogiX cs Hackathon.
and contribu ng to India's Ease of Doing Business
and Logis cs Performance Index (LPI).
Last December, the NITI Aayog, the Atal
Innova on Mission (AIM), the Na onal Industrial
Corridor Development Corpora on Limited
(NICDC), and Na onal Logis cs Data Services
(NLDS), which is the NICDC Logis cs Informa on
and data arm, were among the stakeholders who
jointly launched this event. The Logix cs
hackathon received a staggering 543 entries, out
of which the top 3 were selected from a series of

Team FreightFox Wins Logix cs Hackathon

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 30
rounds comprising of screening with the idea on
phase followed by prototype development during
which 22 of the top 543 entries competed for the
top slot. Freigh ox was declared the winner of
the Hackathon a er rounds of idea on and
prototyping during the event organized at NITI
Aayog, New Delhi on 17th May 2022.
This ini a ve of NITI Aayog and NICDC with the
startup ecosystem is set to open doors for
broader strategic collabora on to deliver data-
driven logis cs visibility, planning, pricing, etc.
products and applica ons to be leveraged by
MSMEs, manufacturing enterprises and other
businesses to scale with the global
compe veness.
A er the huge win for FreightFox, CEO Ni sh Rai
said, “We are honored and delighted to be at the
forefront of such an esteemed event. For the
compe on, we iden fied three key issues that
we wanted to demonstrate the solu on for: As a
manufacturer or MSME do I have the visibility of
predic ve freight rate trends, Do I get to see the
visibility of supply-demand gaps, truck u lisa on
factors and corridor mobility constraints in
advance to plan be er and above all as a na on
can we do something about ac ve abatement of
Scope3 CO2e emissions from transporta on and
contribute towards our COP27 commitments to
the world. FreightFox leveraged the data from
NICDC to deliver a credible prototype
demonstra ng how a predic ve and responsive
logis cs planning can be done to make India
globally compe ve in the manufacturing
industry.
Team FreightFox created a strong Minimum
Viable Product (MVP) with their advance
geospa al analy cs capabili es using machine
learning (ML) to derive meaningful and ac onable
insights. With this informa on, they were able to
showcase their solu ons to NITI Aayog and the
esteemed jury panel. Their model was able to
provide a credible roadmap to es mate a
na onal-level freight index and showcase the
freight rate vola li es expected in a specific
market, geography and/or industry condi ons.
FreightFox with its prototype also demonstrated
the impact of freight corridor conges on on
overall truck u lisa ons and hence the na onal
logis cs costs.
Keeping in view the third impact, the prototype
also demonstrated a clear ac onable insight into
possible interven ons by observing the ac ve
usage of BS II, III / IV type of trucks to have a
focused policy thrust to achieve quick wins.
FreightFox is an enterprise freight procurement,
management, and intelligence pla orm providing
trustworthy solu ons to manufacturing industries
to plan, operate and orchestrate their logis cs
with control, responsiveness and resilience.
FreightFox is also part of the global 100+
Accelerator powered by AB InBev, Coca-Cola,
Unilever and Colgate Palmolive innova ng for
logis cs at global scale. With its partnership with
Yale University, Economic Growth Center (EGC),
FreightFox is set to introduce India's first
responsive freight contracts for the industry.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 31
 segment leading payload capacity and cargo
width, and best-in-class engine torque.
Mahindra Addi onally, the model scores high on easy
manoeuvrability on narrow and crowded city
roads, owing to the shorter bonnet resul ng in
introduces compara vely lower turn radius. All these factors
combined render the New Bolero City Pik-Up best
suited for intra-city applica ons. The New Bolero
the New City Pik-Up is available at an a rac ve price of Rs.
7.97 Lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai).

Bolero City Speaking on this occasion, Harish Lalchandani,

Pik-Up in
Maharashtra
Best suited for
Intra-city applications
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), makers of the
Bolero Pik-Up – the no:1 Pickup brand in India,
announced the launch of the 'New Bolero City
Pik-Up', an addi on to its exis ng 'Pik-Up' range.
The new model boasts of best-in-class mileage,
VP-Marke ng, Mahindra Automo ve said, “Our
deep focus on customer centricity and market
insights has enabled us to develop products that
are relevant and most suited for the versa le
needs of our discerning customers. We are
pleased to offer another addi on to our hugely
successful Bolero Pik-up range – the New Bolero
City Pik-Up highly suited for intracity
transporta on. Our constant endeavour to
engineer and deliver best-in-class products on
performance, reliability, and profitability has
resulted in con nued market leadership for
Mahindra in the Pick-Up segment for the last 22
years.”
The New Bolero City Pik-Up is powered by 2523
cm3 m2Di four-cylinder diesel engine offering
48.5 kW of power and best-in-class torque of 195

3-4th Bolero City Pikup

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 32

 Ÿ Best-in-class mileage of
17.2 km/l, leading to
minimum operating cost and
in turn higher savings

Ÿ Segment leading payload

capacity of 1500 kg, large
2640 mm cargo box,
Interiors BoleroCityPikup supported with a strong
suspension, 48.5 kW high-
Nm for be er performance, with a best-in-class
mileage of 17.2 km/l. The latest model boasts of a power engine and best-in-
strong suspension, with the rear suspension class torque of 195 Nm
strengthened to take any type of load in city
driving condi ons. The New City Pik-Up also Ÿ Excellent manoeuvrability on
boasts of segment leading payload capacity of narrow and crowded city
1500 kg and a large 2640 mm cargo box. Large
215/75 R15 (38.1 cm) tyres provide be er road roads owing to a shorter
grip. The cabin ergonomics have been further bonnet design
enhanced with a wider co-driver seat, giving the
best driving experience. All these make the New Ÿ Attractively priced at
Bolero City Pik-Up an ideal pick up for urban Rs.7.97 Lakh (ex-
goods transporta on.
showroom, Mumbai)
With a warranty of 3 years/ 1 Lakh km, and
minimal maintenance costs, customers are Ÿ Aimed at transportation
guaranteed to earn more profit as the vehicle can needs of stand operators,
traverse across different terrains with ease
small & medium scale
offering more business opportuni es.
businessmen and traders
Mahindra has the widest por olio of small
across India to ensure
commercial vehicles to cater to the various needs
of cargo transporta on and the flagship range of last-mile connectivity
Bolero Pik-Ups have more than 18 Lakh happy
customers due to their dependability and ease of
maintenance. To add to this, the widespread
Mahindra dealer network facilitates easy repairs
and servicing for Bolero Pik-Up customers.

The New Bolero City Pik-Up's durability and

mul ple customiza on op ons make it best
suited for business owners, vegetable vendors,
goods transporters. Interested customers seeking
to purchase the New Bolero City Pik-Up can visit
the authorised M&M dealers. Customer can
locate their nearest M&M Authorised dealers by
visi ng h ps://auto.mahindra.com/dealer-
locator.
3-4th Le Bolero City Pikup With load
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 33

Petrol under-
recovery at
Rs 13, diesel
Rs 24;
Reliance-BP
says
operations
unsustainable
RBML - the joint venture of Reliance Industries
Ltd and supermajor BP - has told the government
that fuel retailing for the private sector in India
has become unsustainable a er market-
controlling public sector firms frequently froze
petrol and diesel prices at rates way below the
cost, sources said.
Despite a surge in oil prices, state-owned Indian
Oil Corpora on (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum
Corpora on Ltd (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum
Corpora on Ltd (BPCL) first froze petrol and diesel
rates for a record 137 days beginning early
November 2021 when five states including U ar
Pradesh went to the polls, and last month again
went into a hiatus that is now 47 days old."They
(Reliance BP Mobility Ltd) has wri en to the
petroleum ministry over the fuel pricing issue," a
highly placed source in the government, who
didn't want to be quoted, told reporters.
While RBML is scaling down its retail opera ons
to cut some of the Rs 700 crore loss it is incurring
every month, Russia's Rosne -backed Nayara
Energy has raised prices of petrol and diesel by up
to Rs 3 a litre over and above the PSU rates, to
cover for some losses.
The government over the weekend cut excise
duty on petrol by Rs 8 per litre and by Rs 6 a litre
on diesel. This reduc on was passed on to the
consumers and not adjusted against the under-
recovery or losses oil firms make on selling petrol
and diesel.
“They (Reliance BP Mobility Ltd)
has written to the petroleum
ministry over the fuel pricing
issue," a highly placed source in
the government, who didn't want
to be quoted, told reporters.
Two sources aware of the ma er said RBML
contends that PSU oil marke ng companies
control over 90 per cent of the market and are
the price-se ers, leaving no room for private fuel
retailers in fixa on of the retail selling price of
petrol and diesel.
PSUs have not increased fuel prices in line with
escala ng interna onal crude prices eventually
leading to huge under-recoveries (losses) for all
fuel retailers since February 2022.As of May 16,
2022, net under-recoveries in the industry were
Rs 13.08 per litre for petrol and Rs 24.09 per litre
for diesel.
The top source, quoted in the first instance, said
the ministry is going to reply to RBML, but
refused to say what it is going to say.
A top ministry official said petrol and diesel prices
are decided by the PSU oil companies a er
considering not just the interna onal oil prices
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 35
but also gains from other businesses such as
petrochemicals and oil refining."Reliance is
expor ng diesel to Europe and other countries at
highly lucra ve prices but ra oning supplies for
its petrol pumps," the official said.
An industry official however said the inference
ministry is drawing is incorrect.
Reliance owns and operates two refineries,
including one only meant for exports, at
Jamnagar in Gujarat. BP has no equity
shareholding in them.
RBML is an equal joint venture of Reliance and BP
with separate legal iden ty and separate financial
books. RBML buys fuel at market price from
Reliance as well as other oil companies to supply
to its 1,459 petrol pumps."It is like saying that
windfall profits that oil producer ONGC is making
on spurt in oil and gas prices should be used to
help its subsidiary HPCL sell petrol and diesel at
highly subsidised rates," he said.
The petroleum ministry spokesperson did not
reply to an e-mail sent for comments even a er
three days.
An e-mail sent to RBML too remained
unanswered.
A spokesperson of Nayara Energy, which has
6,568 petrol pumps in the country, acknowledged
having raised fuel prices."In recent mes, several
factors beyond our control have led to an
unprecedented increase in crude oil and product
prices. The domes c price situa on caused an
addi onal shi of volume from ins tu onal
business to retail, aggrava ng the impact of the
currently unfavourable retail business
environment."Nayara Energy, since the beginning
of the year has been absorbing a significant part
of the substan al drop in margins," the
spokesperson said.
To reduce the impact in the long run and provide
a sustainable solu on, "there is a nominal price
increase across our retail fuel sta ons," the
spokesperson added.
IOC, BPCL and HPCL own 74,647 out of 83,027
petrol pumps in the country.
Industry sources said the market prac ces of PSU
OMCs are contrary to the objec ve of promo ng
healthy compe on and crea ng the right climate
for investments in the fuel retailing sector when
petrol pricing was deregulated in 2010 and diesel
in 2014.Private fuel retailers including Jio-bp --
the brand under which RBML retails fuel -- that
are making investments in the fuel retailing sector
are staring at a difficult investment environment.
Under-recoveries will not only limit their ability to
make further investments but also con nue to
cause severe hardship and financial duress, they
said.
Seven new private retailers have taken marke ng
authoriza on for fuel retailing a er a relaxed fuel
retailing policy was announced in 2019.They are
facing severe hardship and financial duress due to
the impact of unprecedented under-recoveries on
sales of petrol and diesel, they said.
Private retailers want PSU oil marke ng
companies to adopt the free market-determined
pricing principles, facilita ng daily revision un l
under-recoveries are nullified.
Alongside the reduc on in
central excise, the state
government should also cut VAT
and shi from ad valorem
taxa on to specific taxa on, they
said adding without these steps
the private sector will be driven
out of the fuel retailing business
just like in 2008 when they shut
shop a er being unable to match
highly subsidised petrol and
diesel of PSU oil firms.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 36
 The past two years have rendered a new path for
growth for an ever-changing economy. The need
Supply Chain for a resilient and agile supply chain within all
industries has become an instrumental part of the
future of commerce.
Management Brought on by the pandemic restric on, concepts
such as remote-working and hybrid work systems

- The came into being on a larger scale across sectors.

Disrup ons sprou ng from the complete
lockdown of ci es, logis cs issues, border
backbone of closures and a dearth of available hands-on-deck
emanated a slowing down of industries ini ally
un l the sectors that had the right insight pivoted
a successful to digi za on for be er supply management.

A crucial segment of any business supply chain

business management did depend heavily on skilled

personnel but the increased pressure of mee ng
unprecedented demands, lowers costs and a
speedier turnaround me has urged companies to
By Vishal Jain, Co Founder automate and invest in supply chain management
Roadcast talks about the to improve the speed, accuracy, and efficiency of
their business. Owing to AI and real- me data
crucial role of supply compu ng, supply chain management has single-
chain management in handedly metamorphosed the way businesses
operate.
commerce growth
Extending and opera ng across different silos
here is how a seamless supply chain management
can make or break a business-

1. Coherent collabora on - With millions of

vehicles and deliveries plying the globe, DATA is
currency. Ensuring an effec ve and automated
flow of informa on across the various cogs in a
company augments sales. With improved access
to real- me data, AI-based agile solu ons and IoT,
supply chain management help in making
informed decisions in vola le market condi ons.

2. Shipping op miza on - Accelerated by the

rising costs in a post-crisis world, the need to
op mize shipping is paramount to the success of
a business. Juggling mul ple suppliers, mul pick
up points and varied delivery streams especially
in E-commerce and Q-commerce can lead to
inefficiencies. Supply chain management
iden fies and computes these variables zeroing in
on the most efficient shipping methods while
minimizing costs.

3. Quality control - Bringing together the many

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 37

processes involved in a business from
manufacturing to retail and everything in
between, supply chain management, allows for a
be er handle on quality control. By analyzing
performance data, companies can partner with
the highest-performing vendors to maintain
quality control. This is aided by supply chain
management as it provides end-to-end visibility
for the processes from procurement to
manufacturing and delivery to the end consumer.
4. Risk mi ga on and increased efficiency -
Supply chain management analyses data to the T
and renders an accurate picture of the health of
the supply chain. This helps companies in
Work on
installing 100
public charging
stations for EVs
in Delhi nearing
completion:
officials
The work on installing 100 public charging
sta ons for electric vehicles in Delhi is nearing
comple on and all of them are likely to become
opera onal by July, officials said on Monday. The
civil infrastructure has been completed for more
than 95 of the 100 charging sta ons. The se ng
up of charges and other electrical work like power
connec on has started now, they said.
"The public charging sta ons, having a total of
500 charging points for the electric vehicles, will
start func oning from July and all of them will
become opera onal by the end of the month,"
said a senior Delhi government official.
Land was handed over a er agreement to four
mi ga ng supply chain disrup ons if any, quality
control issues, availability of delivery personnel,
warehousing, permits etc to put the required
processes in place and avoid delays and storm
challenges like the bullwhip effect. With real- me
data at its core, SCM can be er predict demand
and readily respond to turbulent market
condi ons.
Synchronizing supply chain management across
financials, planning, opera ons, and execu on
reduces costs and improves efficiency and
profitability making it the need of the hour for all
industries.
concessionaires selected through open bidding
for se ng up the charging sta ons.
The vehicle owners using the public charging
points will have to pay at the rate of Rs 2 per unit.
It will be the lowest EV charging fee in the
country, officials claimed.
Most of the public charging sta ons are being set
up at metro sta ons to facilitate people who use
both private vehicles and metro trains for daily
commute, they said.
The Delhi Electric Vehicle policy envisages se ng
up a charging sta on per three Km for easily
accessible charging facility for electric vehicles.
According to real me data of the Delhi
government, currently there are 597 charging
sta ons, 825 charging points and 165 ba ery
swapping facili es.
Under the public-private partnership model, the
Delhi government has provided land, cabling and
transmission infrastructure while the equipment
and manpower have been provided by the
concessionaires, officials said.
The Delhi government is pushing adop on of
electric vehicle in the na onal capital in a big way
to reduce pollu on levels in the city. Under its EV
policy, the government has targeted 25 percent
electric vehicles in total vehicle registra ons in
Delhi by 2024.
Since the launch of the EV policy in August 2020,
the electric vehicles comprise more than 12
percent of total vehicle sales in Delhi, officials
added.
Transtopics, June 02, 2022 38
 experience in a diverse range of industries. As
Chief Opera ng Officer, which is a new role at
Ecom Ecom Express, he will lead cross-func onal
opera ons, including network, process
excellence, customer experience, growth
Express opera ons and also oversee the overall business
opera ons.

appoints Commen ng on the appointment, T. A. Krishnan,

CEO & Co-founder Ecom Express, said,
‘’Vishwachetan is a transforma onal leader with
Vishwachetan deep experience and exper se that will go a long
way in maintaining a stronghold for us in the new-
age logis cs domain. I am confident that he will
Nadamani as be a tremendous asset as we con nue to manage
our growth, scale our opera ons, execute our

Chief strategic plan, and pursue our path to

profitability. I am delighted to welcome him to the
Ecom Express team.”

Operating Vishwachetan Nadamani, COO, Ecom Express,

said, “I am pleased to join Ecom Express and look

Officer forward to building on the business's great

Ecom Express Limited, one of India’s leading
technology driven e-commerce logis cs solu ons
providers, today announced the appointment of
Vishwachetan Nadamani as Chief Opera ng
Officer. He will be based out of the company’s
headquarters in Gurugram.
Vishwachetan comes with extensive opera ons
founda on and growth poten al while
streamlining the company’s priori es,
accelera ng growth and enhancing value for all
stakeholders. I believe the company is well-
posi oned to have a significant impact in the
logis cs industry”.
Prior to Ecom Express, Vishwachetan was
associated with Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail as
Chief Opera ng Officer for Tasva. He has
previously worked with Pantaloons, More Retail
and Cisco Systems.

He has completed his B.Tech in Computer Science

from RV College of Engineering and has a
postgraduate degree in General Management
from the Indian Ins tute of Management,
Ahmedabad.

Vishwachetan Nadamani, COO, Ecom Express

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 40
 Aiming to
achieve
Rs. 1500 crore
revenue,
Global logis cs service provider cargo-partner has
cargo-partner announced its plan to expand to 10 more Indian
ci es in the next two-three years. A er this
expansion cargo-partner will be present in over
is expanding to 24 ci es and all major states of India.

The company aims to have a pan-India presence

10 Indian cities by the end of FY 25 and to lead the Na onal
logis cs market in India and their steady

by FY 2025 expansion is fuelled by the same.

Mr. Rajiv Singh, Managing Director (India), cargo-

Austria-based logistics
company managed to grow
by over 16% going past the
Rs. 530 crores revenue
partner said, "cargo-partner will be crea ng over
numerous job opportuni es and onboard 500
employees in these ci es, during FY2022-25. They
will be serving B2B enterprises opera ng in the
Automo ve & Spare Parts, Fashion & Lifestyle,
Foodstuffs & Perishables, and Pharmaceu cals &
Healthcare. The increase in demand from er 2&3
ci es has also led to this expansion in services by
cargo-partner.”

With the e-commerce market growing at a very

fast pace, the company is planning to expand in
the area of warehousing to meet the demand of
domes c consumers. The company is also eyeing
growth in the pharmaceu cal space and believes
that India is one the largest manufacturers of
medicines and there are ample opportuni es for
big firms to come up with more innova ons in
this area.

"At present, we are aiming to grow from Rs 530

crore to Rs 1500 crore in the next three years and
we are ready to invest as much capital as will be
required to bring these people with us," Singh
said.

Headquartered in Austria, cargo-partner has a

global network with more than 140 offices in over
Rajiv Singh, MD (India), cargo-partner

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 41

40 countries. cargo-partner has its network in
Western, Eastern, and Central Europe, North East
Asia, South East Asia, Oceania, Indian
Subcon nent, and North America.
Currently, they are opera onal in 14 Indian offices
with a presence in all major ci es such as Delhi,
Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and
Ahmedabad. Adop ng an integrated and holis c
approach to its expansion goals, cargo-partner is
also op mis c about crea ng a true impact
across the en re supply chain.

Centre proposes mandating

use of cost saving techniques
to build highways
The Road transport ministry has proposed manda ng highway builders to opt for cost saving value
engineering techniques. "It has been established that the savings realized by undertaking value engineering
exercises can be in the order of 10-15 per cent of the cost of the originally designed project," a no ce from
the transport ministry said while ci ng a World Bank report on the Indian Road Construc on Industry.

It is being proposed that value engineering shall be assigned as one of the task in the Terms of Reference
(ToR) for Feasibility Study and Detailed Engineering Projects. In Incep on Report itself there shall be a
Chapter regarding Value Engineering, in which Consultant shall include the poten al and project specific
value engineering aspects iden fied by the respec ve domain experts based on site reconnaissance
surveys. The transport ministry noted that a need is increasingly being felt to adopt value engineering
prac ces in design, construc on and maintenance with regards to use of materials and technology. This is
being considered as a vital step to meet the sustainable development of the Na onal Highway (NH)
network in a cost effec ve manner. It will also lead to improved durability and safety, higher quality and a
reduc on in maintenance.

According to the no ce, the exis ng models under which highway development projects are bid out have
the poten al that the Contractor or the Concessionaire to adopt designs and construc on methodologies
to suit the requirements of the project and also bring down the cost. But despite the facilita ve provision
for value engineering, contractors or concessionaires, out of an apprehension that the authori es would
take adverse views about any alterna ve technologies, avoid any devia ons from the
specifica ons/technologies sought for in the bid documents.

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 42

 alloca on for India. BMW is eyeing double-digit
growth and JLR, owned by the Tata Group, has

Record reported record bookings for the year globally. To

be sure, local bookings are already worth about
half-a-billion dollars, totalling up to 10,000 units.
And what's more surprising is that the booking

bookings momentum remains strong despite the long

wai ng period - and mul ple rounds of price
increases. Vehicle prices have risen by at least ₹1

pour in lakh to as high as ₹20 lakh.

“The pricing adjustments have been very well

received and not dented demand," said Mar n

for luxury Schwenk, MD, Mercedes Benz India. "We sold

over 4,000 cars in the first quarter of 2022; we are
confident of sustaining the momentum for the
rest of the year and ending with our highest ever

cars in annual sales this calendar year."

The picture isn't very different overseas even as

prices of food, petrol, airfares, and hotel rooms

India are soaring at the fastest pace in decades.

US infla on has reached its highest in 40 years

and infla on in Germany climbed to its highest
since the forma on of the EU. Vikram Pawah,
president, BMW Group India, said in the Q1 of
Infla on seems to have a dispropor onate impact
2022, BMW Group India registered growth of 25%
on mere mortals - not the swish set from SoBo,
and the order pipeline for the next three months
for instance. A cursory glance at the sales charts
is heavy. It is si ng on an order book of 2,000
of luxury carmakers amply demonstrates that
units for BMW cars, 200 units for MINI brand and
prices are rarely a deterrent for those loaded with
there are 1,500 wai ng customers for BMW
cash. The Indian market is firing on all cylinders
Motorrad bikes.
for the likes of Mercedes to Lamborghini.
"One thing is clear. Since the pandemic, there is
Mercedes expects record sales this year, while
also a greater realiza on among people to live life
Volkswagen-owned Italian super-luxury car brand
to the fullest and enjoy the best things. Personal
Lamborghini has almost sold out its en re 2022
mobility is on the rise," said Pawah.

The head of BMW Group India believes that the

luxury segment to a certain extent is not severely
impacted by mild infla on changes.

However, the unpredictable socio-economic

environment, the pandemic and high taxa on
may have an impact on consumer sen ment.
More than demand, supply-side constraints stand
in the way of even faster growth. "Things like
lockdowns, logis cal hurdles or semiconductor
shortages present opera onal hurdles that have
an impact on sales despite the high market
demand," added Pawah.

Transtopics, June 02, 2022 43