logo
Govt eyes ₹2.5 trillion proposed investment in North eastern region ahead of summit: Scindia

Govt eyes ₹2.5 trillion proposed investment in North eastern region ahead of summit: Scindia

Mint14-05-2025

New Delhi: The ministry responsible for the development of the North-east is expecting a promised investment of at least ₹ 2.5 trillion ahead of an important regional summit, Union minister of communications and development of North-eastern region Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday.
The 'Rising Northeast Summit' is set to be held on on 23-24 May, with the aim to develop various industries in the eight North-eastern states.
The ministry had received ₹ 1.12 trillion as proposed investment as of Wednesday, said Scindia. It plans to secure the remainder from major state-run firms as well as leading private sector companies including Reliance, Tata Sons, Birla, Ambuja Neotia, ITC and the Adani Group.
The focus sectors for investment include energy, agriculture and allied industries, tourism and hospitality, infrastructure and logistics, textiles, handloom and handicrafts, IT and ITeS, education and skill, healthcare, and entertainment and sports.
"We'll be hand-holding the investors and the state government to convert these commitments into reality," said Scindia during the curtain raiser for Rising Northeast 2025 on Wednesday. 'Post 24 May, our job will be to make sure that we start seeing conversions happen.'
Scindia said the eight states in the North-east—Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura—were showing growth rates which have been double that of India for the last decade, making them a high-return opportunity for investment.
The government has received a total of 732 investment proposals worth ₹ 1.12 trillion, including 77 in Arunachal Pradesh worth ₹ 24,338 crore, 106 in Assam ( ₹ 38,685 crore), 39 in Manipur ( ₹ 2,919 crore), 110 in Meghalaya ( ₹ 14,753 crore), 75 in Mizoram ( ₹ 5,111 crore), 82 in Nagaland ( ₹ 8,671 crore), 110 in Sikkim ( ₹ 6,747 crore), and 132 in Tripura (worth ₹ 11,755 crore), the minister told reporters.
Interactions were held with major industrialists and corporate groups including Reliance, Tata Sons, Birla, Ambuja Neotia, ITC and Adani Group, secretary of the ministry of development of North-eastern states Chanchal Kumar said. It is expected that in the run-up to the summit, additional investment commitments of nearly of ₹ 80,000 crore can be proposed by the top 10 corporate groups, he added.
The summit is the culmination of the investment promotion activities undertaken by ministry of development of North- eastern region (MDoNER) in association with all the eight states for over a year. The two-day summit will be held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi during which 11 ministerial sessions will be held.
Scindia himself has conducted nine roadshows across the country to attract investment for the North-east. In April this year, Scindia also met with French industrialists to secure investments, he said. The meeting was led by the French ambassador and Scindia.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Private refiners tap domestic fuel market as export margins tighten
Private refiners tap domestic fuel market as export margins tighten

Business Standard

timean hour ago

  • Business Standard

Private refiners tap domestic fuel market as export margins tighten

India's two major private-sector refiners, which have long prioritised exports, are turning to local sales, grabbing share in the country's fast-growing $150 billion fuel retail market as weaker global demand squeezes profit margins offshore. Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy are stepping up sales at home as fuel demand growth slows in developed markets and China, the world's second biggest oil consumer, with the transition to electric vehicles. The lower demand offshore combined with supply competition from new refiners, such as Dangote in Nigeria, and rising exports from China's underutilised processors have compressed global refining margins and have made the Indian market, where suppliers save on freight and taxes, more attractive. As a result, "private refiners are increasingly looking to supply to the domestic market, which is still growing at a healthy pace," said Prashant Vasisht, senior vice president at credit rating firm ICRA. The International Energy Agency expects India will become the largest source of global oil demand growth out to 2030, in contrast with China, where fuel demand may have already peaked. FGE analyst Dylan Sim said Indian gasoline consumption and diesel demand are on track to grow around 4 per cent and 2 per cent per year, respectively, over the next decade or so. "Couple that with the market volatility and uncertainties seen in recent years, it makes sense for these private companies to try and diversify their businesses," Sim said. PRIVATE PLANTS HOLD CRUDE ADVANTAGE Offering discounts and growing their networks of big, modern stations featuring expansive retail offerings, private sector operators expanded their share of diesel sales to 11.5 per cent and gasoline sales to 9.2 per cent in the fiscal year that ended in March 2025, up from 5.2 per cent and 6.7 per cent respectively two years earlier, government data showed. Reliance, controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, and Nayara have a key advantage that allows them to undercut the dominant state-owned refiners at the pump. They can run cheaper crudes through their plants than their bigger rivals, which have simpler, aging refineries. The two are the country's biggest buyers of discounted Russian crude, available since 2022. While the private refiners do not publish their refining margins, analysts at Jefferies expect Reliance's margin to hold around $2 a barrel stronger than the benchmark Singapore refining margin due to its blending of cheaper Russian and Canadian crudes. Its domestic sales volumes of diesel rose by 35 per cent and gasoline by 24 per cent in the quarter ended in March from a year ago, Reliance told analysts in May, without specifying volumes. Jio-BP plans to invest about Rs 10 billion ($117 million) annually to expand its local footprint in coming years as it sees a "long pathway" and growth in diesel demand in India through at least 2040, Vinod Tahiliani, chief financial officer at Reliance BP Mobility, told Reuters. Jio-BP offers discounts of 1 rupee ($0.01) per litre of diesel and petrol off the price charged by state-owned retailers at its service stations. Nayara, whose biggest shareholder is Russia's Rosneft, in April reintroduced discounts of 2-3 rupees per litre on gasoline and 1 rupee per litre on diesel. Selling through more than 6,500 fuel stations, it aims to add 400 this year, according to its website. Nayara did not reply to a request for comment. State players Indian Oil Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp, which operate more than 90 per cent of India's roughly 97,000 filling stations, have not cut pump prices as they seek to recoup losses on sales of cooking gas at government-fixed below-market rates, company sources say. The three did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment. SERVICE STATIONS GET CREATIVE India, meanwhile, is expanding its highway network and auctioning large roadside plots for building fuel stations featuring a host of amenities for motorists. Sukhmal Jain, who recently retired as head of marketing at BPCL, said state refiners are rapidly building their networks, including bidding for highway-side plots, and looking to offer services such as eateries, recreational areas and gym facilities in order to compete and boost sales. The state retailers are also opening stores under a common brand name Apna Ghar, which means "Own House", with amenities such as dormitories, barbers, self-cooking facilities, laundry, and doctors on call for truckers who are on the road for more than 20-25 days a month, Jain said. India's oil ministry said recently that Apna Ghar operates at 350 locations with 4,431 beds. S.P. Singh, who manages a fleet of about 800 trucks and 150 trailers for New Delhi-based Chaudhary Transport, said his drivers are drawn to the amenities and cheaper fuel at private operators. "They have convenience stores and cafes. Their staff is more responsive to customers and their toilets are clean," he said. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Refiners Reliance and Nayara tap India's drivers as export markets tighten
Refiners Reliance and Nayara tap India's drivers as export markets tighten

Time of India

timean hour ago

  • Time of India

Refiners Reliance and Nayara tap India's drivers as export markets tighten

India's two major private-sector refiners, which have long prioritised exports, are turning to local sales, grabbing share in the country's fast-growing $150 billion fuel retail market as weaker global demand squeezes profit margins offshore. Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy are stepping up sales at home as fuel demand growth slows in developed markets and China, the world's second biggest oil consumer, with the transition to electric vehicles. The lower demand offshore combined with supply competition from new refiners, such as Dangote in Nigeria, and rising exports from China's underutilised processors have compressed global refining margins and have made the Indian market, where suppliers save on freight and taxes, more attractive. As a result, "private refiners are increasingly looking to supply to the domestic market, which is still growing at a healthy pace," said Prashant Vasisht, senior vice president at credit rating firm ICRA. The International Energy Agency expects India will become the largest source of global oil demand growth out to 2030, in contrast with China, where fuel demand may have already peaked. Live Events You Might Also Like: Opec+ giants pump out additional oil to India FGE analyst Dylan Sim said Indian gasoline consumption and diesel demand are on track to grow around 4% and 2% per year, respectively, over the next decade or so. "Couple that with the market volatility and uncertainties seen in recent years, it makes sense for these private companies to try and diversify their businesses," Sim said. PRIVATE PLANTS HOLD CRUDE ADVANTAGE Offering discounts and growing their networks of big, modern stations featuring expansive retail offerings, private sector operators expanded their share of diesel sales to 11.5% and gasoline sales to 9.2% in the fiscal year that ended in March 2025, up from 5.2% and 6.7% respectively two years earlier, government data showed. Reliance, controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, and Nayara have a key advantage that allows them to undercut the dominant state-owned refiners at the pump. They can run cheaper crudes through their plants than their bigger rivals, which have simpler, aging refineries. The two are the country's biggest buyers of discounted Russian crude , available since 2022. While the private refiners do not publish their refining margins, analysts at Jefferies expect Reliance's margin to hold around $2 a barrel stronger than the benchmark Singapore refining margin due to its blending of cheaper Russian and Canadian crudes. Reliance sells fuels through Jio-BP , its retailing tie-up with UK major BP which has 1,916 outlets in India. Its domestic sales volumes of diesel rose by 35% and gasoline by 24% in the quarter ended in March from a year ago, Reliance told analysts in May, without specifying volumes. Jio-BP plans to invest about 10 billion rupees ($117 million) annually to expand its local footprint in coming years as it sees a "long pathway" and growth in diesel demand in India through at least 2040, Vinod Tahiliani, chief financial officer at Reliance BP Mobility, told Reuters. Jio-BP offers discounts of 1 rupee ($0.01) per litre of diesel and petrol off the price charged by state-owned retailers at its service stations. Nayara, whose biggest shareholder is Russia's Rosneft, in April reintroduced discounts of 2-3 rupees per litre on gasoline and 1 rupee per litre on diesel. Selling through more than 6,500 fuel stations, it aims to add 400 this year, according to its website. Nayara did not reply to a request for comment. State players Indian Oil Corp , Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp, which operate more than 90% of India's roughly 97,000 filling stations, have not cut pump prices as they seek to recoup losses on sales of cooking gas at government-fixed below-market rates, company sources say. The three did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment. SERVICE STATIONS GET CREATIVE India, meanwhile, is expanding its highway network and auctioning large roadside plots for building fuel stations featuring a host of amenities for motorists. Sukhmal Jain, who recently retired as head of marketing at BPCL , said state refiners are rapidly building their networks, including bidding for highway-side plots, and looking to offer services such as eateries, recreational areas and gym facilities in order to compete and boost sales. The state retailers are also opening stores under a common brand name Apna Ghar, which means "Own House", with amenities such as dormitories, barbers, self-cooking facilities, laundry, and doctors on call for truckers who are on the road for more than 20-25 days a month, Jain said. India's oil ministry said recently that Apna Ghar operates at 350 locations with 4,431 beds. S.P. Singh, who manages a fleet of about 800 trucks and 150 trailers for New Delhi-based Chaudhary Transport, said his drivers are drawn to the amenities and cheaper fuel at private operators. "They have convenience stores and cafes. Their staff is more responsive to customers and their toilets are clean," he said.

G7 is no more than a relic of the past. India should focus more on G20, BRICS
G7 is no more than a relic of the past. India should focus more on G20, BRICS

The Print

time2 hours ago

  • The Print

G7 is no more than a relic of the past. India should focus more on G20, BRICS

It's worth remembering how the G7 began. A 'fireside chat'-turned-'Library Group' started by US treasury secretary George Shultz in 1970 to address currency turbulence bloomed into G6 five years later. On 15 November 1975, about five months after Indira Gandhi had imposed Emergency in India, leaders of six democracies — the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan — met at the Castle of Rambouillet near Paris. By keeping India out, Canada has missed a golden opportunity to reset bilateral ties and make a new beginning for peace and development. The exclusion is not only unfortunate but might prove to be a great setback for the G7's own ambitions, whether it is addressing climate change and global inequality or building cooperation with emerging economies, agendas it has taken up in the last three decades or so. Canada, which took over the G7 presidency from Japan in December 2024, has made a surprising and controversial decision: to exclude India from the upcoming G7 summit. At a time when the world's economic centre of gravity is shifting towards Asia, and when India has proven its leadership on multiple global platforms — including its recent G20 presidency — this move is not just irrational, it may be self-defeating. Today, none of the leaders from the 'Summit of the Six' — James Callaghan (UK foreign secretary), Henry Kissinger (US secretary of state), Gerald Ford (US president), Takeo Miki (Japan prime minister), Helmut Schmidt (German chancellor), Jean Sauvagnargues (French foreign minister), Valery Giscard d'Estaing (French president), and Mariano Rumor (Italian foreign minister) — are alive, and most of the countries no longer dominate the global economy. The G6 became the G7 in 1976 with Canada's inclusion, and the G8 between 1997 and 2013 with Russia onboard— until Russia's suspension after the Crimea annexation in 2014. Collectively, the group expressed concern about their respective economies, donned the mantle of the 'white man's burden' to discharge their responsibilities toward the 'Third World', and decided to meet again. Fifty years later, none of the world's problems have been solved by these countries, and except for the US, the rest are no better off than the countries of the 'poor South.' Also read: India is walking a geopolitical tightrope. It can shape New Delhi's diplomatic power G7's expanding mandate, shrinking impact Over the years, G7 summits have taken on a broad agenda: gender equality, global health, climate change, and sustainable development. In 2021, the UK-led summit committed itself to a 'green revolution' and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Germany's 2022 presidency established a 'Climate Club' to implement the Paris Agreement, and the 2023 Hiroshima summit reaffirmed commitment to phasing out fossil fuels. India participated in all these meetings, contributing immensely to the resolution and their implementation. Ironically, it was Donald Trump-led 'G1 within G7' that derailed consensus, dismissing global warming as a 'hoax.' Now, with Trump 2.0 back in the mix and India 3.0 out, can the G7's green agenda survive? Patronising rhetoric, no real support The G7's agenda of connecting with emerging economies and adopting an inclusive approach has often rung hollow. Italy included an 'African Segment' in the 2001 summit, but without serious financial commitments and steps to resolve issues of poverty and migration. African leaders left disappointed, questioning the G7's sincerity. In contrast, India, during its G20 presidency, successfully pushed for the African Union—representing 55 African countries—to become a permanent G20 member. Who, then, is more relevant and committed to inclusive global development: the G7 or the G20? The 2021 G7 summit in London also introduced the Global Minimum Tax (15 per cent), aiming to rewrite international tax rules and discourage multinational corporations from taking undue advantage of lower taxes in smaller or developing economies. This again faced serious objections, with critics arguing that the G7 had no democratic legitimacy to act as the captain of the global economy. India: From Bandung to BRICS India's global economic role didn't begin yesterday. New Delhi has emerged as the fulcrum of Asian economic development since hosting the 1947 Asian Relations Conference and leading the Bandung Conference in 1955, where the foundation of the Non-Aligned Movement was laid. Now, it has positioned itself at the centre of South-South Cooperation. The successful Indian presidency of the G20 followed by its developmental agenda with IBSA (India-Brazil-South Africa) are proof of India's unique leadership position in the geo-economic dynamics of Asia and South Asia. It has also championed inclusive global governance in a way that the G7 often only gestures toward. Time to re-evaluate the relevance of G7 The economic, political, and cultural divides of the 1950s and 1960s are out of syllabus, phased out of academic discourse due to globalisation and rapid rise of 'Southern' economies. Between the 19th and the 21st century, there was a total metamorphosis that has left several centuries-old theories, perceptions and ideas redundant. The old binaries of the Cold War — East vs West, North vs South — have blurred into insignificance in the face of a new and emerging global economic order, necessitating a new approach to the contemporary history of global economic development. The G7, once seen as the anchor of global economic stability, is no more than a relic of the past today. India would do well to invest its diplomatic energy elsewhere: G20, BRICS, IBSA, and regional platforms that better reflect the world as it is, not as it was. Let the G7 gently go into oblivion — and take the outdated and irrelevant worldview it represents with it. Seshadri Chari is the former editor of 'Organiser'. He tweets @seshadrichari. Views are personal. (Edited by Prashant)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store