IT-driven Telangana focusing on green energy: Sridhar
He pointed out that the growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies was increasing the energy demand, particularly in data centres that require high power for faster processing. This, he said, called for the production of green and carbon-free energy.
Sridhar Babu was speaking at the inauguration of GreenCo Summit 2025, organised by the CII GreenCo Council, at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC). The two-day summit, held on the theme 'Beyond Commitments: Scaling Net Zero Action for 2030 and Beyond,' brought together over 1,000 delegates from India and abroad to discuss industrial sustainability and green innovation.
The summit provided a platform for industry leaders, policymakers, technology providers and environmental professionals to exchange ideas and discuss key themes such as net-zero strategies, decarbonisation pathways, ESG integration and circular economy practices. More than 100 speakers who spoke on these topics underscored the role of Indian industry in achieving climate goals.
Sridhar Babu said the state government was framing policies with future generations in mind, but stressed that collective effort from industries and startups is essential for driving environmental change.
Commenting on the country's changing weather patterns, he said the climate crisis was no longer a distant threat but a present challenge. 'We are experiencing extreme weather, such as unseasonal rains in summer and unusual heat in December. These are clear warnings of the challenges ahead,' he pointed out.
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Indian Express
29 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Corporate loan growth slows in April-June quarter as firms delay investments, shift to cheaper debt market
Corporate loan growth by domestic banks slowed down in the first quarter of FY26, as companies put off investment decisions. This was largely due to uncertainty around tariffs, weak demand that held back private capital spending, and a shift towards cheaper funding options in the corporate bond market. Additionally, many companies continued to reduce their debt levels, which further dampened loan demand. Between April and June 2025, bank lending to industries grew at the slowest pace in over three years, signalling muted credit demand from the corporate sector. According to RBI data, loans to industries — including micro, small, medium, and large enterprises — rose by 5.49 per cent year-on-year to Rs 39.32 lakh crore, marking the weakest growth since March 2022. In Q1 FY26, the country's largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), reported a 5.7 per cent Y-o-Y growth in its corporate loan book, but saw a fall of 3 per cent on a Q-o-Q basis. Private sector lenders ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank posted Y-o-Y growth of 7.5 per cent and 1.7 per cent, respectively, in their corporate loan portfolios, but witnessed sequential declines of 1.4 per cent and 1.3 per cent, respectively. A banking analyst noted that this reflects a phase of growth without fresh investment in the economy. The industrial growth as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) slowed to 2 per cent in April-June 2025, compared to 4 per cent in the previous quarter. According to SBI chairman C S Setty, the tepid growth in the corporate loan book was mainly on account of delay in investment decisions by corporates due to uncertainties caused by the higher tariff announcement by US President Donald Trump in April this year, shift in borrowing from banks to other alternate sources and higher prepayments of loans by corporates. While state-run Bank of Baroda's corporate loan book expanded by 4.2 per cent Y-o-Y , it registered a sharp dip of 10.2 per cent Q-o-Q. Corporate advances of Union Bank of India and Bank of India rose 2.68 per cent and 4.49 per cent y-o-y, respectively, though their books declined 4.83 per cent and 1.5 per cent sequentially in April-June 2025 quarter. Canara Bank and Punjab National Bank's corporate book grew flat at 0.48 per cent and 1.1 per cent, respectively, on a Q-o-Q basis in June 2025 quarter. Bank of Baroda's chief economist Madan Sabnavis attributes weak credit demand from corporates to the slowdown in investments as companies await a revival in demand. The US President had initially announced to impose a 26 per cent tariff on imports of Indian goods, but later declared a 90-day pause, which resulted in corporates holding back on expansions and new investments. He subsequently doubled the tariff on India to 50 per cent. 'An important factor to consider is the uncertainty in terms of how these tariffs are going to play out and how quickly this is going to be addressed. Due to this uncertainty, a lot of investment decisions could be delayed and people will postpone their spending. This is the second order impact of tariffs,' Setty said during a press conference post the declaration of the Q1 FY26 results. Easing rates in the debt market following the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) 100 basis points (bps) reduction in the repo rate since February has prompted corporates to shift from banks to debt market instruments. 'Some large corporates are accessing the commercial paper (CP) market to replace working capital limits. This is expected because there is a good amount of liquidity (in the CP market). The rates are much more affordable (in the CP market) compared to borrowing from banks,' Setty said. The lender has seen working capital limit utilisation by corporates in his bank falling to 58 per cent from 62 per cent in Q1 FY25. Total funds raised through CP increased to Rs 4.51 lakh crore in April-June 2025 quarter, compared Rs 3.8 lakh crore in same period of FY25, and Rs 4.38 lakh crore in January-March 2025 quarter, according to Besides CPs, companies are also tapping the corporate debt market for cheaper funds compared to bank loans, which has impacted corporate loan growth of banks. In the first quarter of the current fiscal, corporates mobilised Rs 3.42 lakh crore through private placement of bonds, data from showed. 'We believe that funds raised through the bond market are being largely used by corporates to support ongoing business needs rather than for long-term capital investment,' said Saswata Guha, senior director, Financial Institutions (Banks), Fitch Ratings. 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Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
At a Punjab varsity, ‘sign lingua franca' for the hearing impaired
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Time of India
40 minutes ago
- Time of India
Fresh heritage precinct proposal for KMC
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