Latest news with #AdityaKalra
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
India's Mumbai airport spars with IndiGo, Air India over payment terms
By Aditya Kalra NEW DELHI (Reuters) -The airport in India's financial capital of Mumbai, run by the Adani Group, has triggered a lobbying effort by top carriers IndiGo and Air India after it changed payment rules, citing financial needs and a risk of airline defaults, documents show. The airport is one of India's busiest at a time when dozens are being added in one of the world's fastest-growing aviation markets. It is the biggest of seven managed by a group led by billionaire Gautam Adani. Confidential letters seen by Reuters show the intense pushback to the change, which seeks a compulsory cash deposit in a bank as security against charges such as landing and parking fees, instead of a long-standing practice of bank guarantees. "None of these airlines normally pay on time ... we want to align our cash flow with the airlines' cash flow," said Arun Bansal, the chief executive of Adani Airport Holdings, which has a stake of 74% in the airport. "They have taken advantage of our niceness," he added, referring to resistance to the new payment system from IndiGo and Air India since the change eight months ago in October. Airlines often delay payments beyond a due date at month-end but the airport has to pay authorities earlier, creating working capital challenges that can be resolved by using the security deposit when needed, Bansal said. IndiGo and Air India, which together have a share of 91% of the market in India, did not respond to queries from Reuters. A source with direct knowledge of the matter said the new policy would require the two airlines to make deposits of about 2 billion rupees ($23 million), taken together. For Air India, owned by the Tata Group conglomerate, such payments could strain its finances after racking up losses of $521 million last year, in addition to monthly costs of $50 million after Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian airlines. The Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), which serviced 53 million passengers last year, also faces financial challenges, after posting losses of $71.11 million on revenues of $461 million last year, disclosures show. In a December 31 letter to an airlines body, the airport justified the change by pointing out its "deteriorating financial position" and "significant debt obligations". "The deposits will help MIAL's financial stability and credit rating," it added. DEFAULT RISK, AIR INDIA PUSH The change also aimed to protect the airport from risks such as an airline going bankrupt, as carriers Jet Airways, Go First and Kingfisher Airlines have done in the last few years, Bansal said. The Mumbai airport has the right to cancel the slots of airlines that do not follow the new policy, but does not intend to do so in the interest of passengers, he added. The International Air Transport Association, representing both Air India and IndiGo, wrote to India's civil aviation ministry in December, calling the change a bid to use airline deposits to fund the airport's need for working capital. India's civil aviation ministry did not respond to Reuters' queries. The government has a stake of 26% in the Mumbai airport. In a letter on April 2, the Federation of Indian Airlines told the airport it disagreed with the contention that airline payments were not timely. Air India has lobbied the Indian government, saying the industry was already facing "immense financial pressure" in an April 15 letter. "It is highly likely that other airports across the country could adopt similar measures, leading to widespread financial strain," Air India said in the letter, seen by Reuters. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
India's alarm over Chinese spying rocks the surveillance industry
By Aditya Kalra NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Global makers of surveillance gear have clashed with Indian regulators in recent weeks over contentious new security rules that require manufacturers of CCTV cameras to submit hardware, software and source code for assessment in government labs, official documents and company emails show. The security-testing policy has sparked industry warnings of supply disruptions and added to a string of disputes between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration and foreign companies over regulatory issues and what some perceive as protectionism. New Delhi's approach is driven in part by its alarm about China's sophisticated surveillance capabilities, according to a top Indian official involved in the policymaking. In 2021, Modi's then-junior IT minister told parliament that 1 million cameras in government institutions were from Chinese companies and there were vulnerabilities with video data transferred to servers abroad. Under the new requirements applicable from April, manufacturers such as China's Hikvision, Xiaomi and Dahua, South Korea's Hanwha, and Motorola Solutions of the U.S. must submit cameras for testing by Indian government labs before they can sell them in the world's most populous nation. The policy applies to all internet-connected CCTV models made or imported since April 9. "There's always an espionage risk," Gulshan Rai, India's cybersecurity chief from 2015 to 2019, told Reuters. "Anyone can operate and control internet-connected CCTV cameras sitting in an adverse location. They need to be robust and secure." Indian officials met on April 3 with executives of 17 foreign and domestic makers of surveillance gear, including Hanwha, Motorola, Bosch, Honeywell and Xiaomi, where many of the manufacturers said they weren't ready to meet the certification rules and lobbied unsuccessfully for a delay, according to the official minutes. In rejecting the request, the government said India's policy "addresses a genuine security issue" and must be enforced, the minutes show. India said in December the CCTV rules, which do not single out any country by name, aimed to "enhance the quality and cybersecurity of surveillance systems in the country." This report is based on a Reuters review of dozens of documents, including records of meetings and emails between manufacturers and Indian IT ministry officials, and interviews with six people familiar with India's drive to scrutinize the technology. The interactions haven't been previously reported. Insufficient testing capacity, drawn-out factory inspections and government scrutiny of sensitive source code were among key issues camera makers said had delayed approvals and risked disrupting unspecified infrastructure and commercial projects. "Millions of dollars will be lost from the industry, sending tremors through the market," Ajay Dubey, Hanwha's director for South Asia, told India's IT ministry in an email on April 9. The IT ministry and most of the companies identified by Reuters didn't respond to requests for comment about the discussions and the impact of the testing policy. The ministry told the executives on April 3 that it may consider accrediting more testing labs. Millions of CCTV cameras have been installed across Indian cities, offices and residential complexes in recent years to enhance security monitoring. New Delhi has more than 250,000 cameras, according to official data, mostly mounted on poles in key locations. The rapid take-up is set to bolster India's surveillance camera market to $7 billion by 2030, from $3.5 billion last year, Counterpoint Research analyst Varun Gupta told Reuters. China's Hikvision and Dahua account for 30% of the market, while India's CP Plus has a 48% share, Gupta said, adding that some 80% of all CCTV components are from China. Hanwha, Motorola Solutions and Britain's Norden Communication told officials by email in April that just a fraction of the industry's 6,000 camera models had approvals under the new rules. CHINA CONCERN The U.S. in 2022 banned sales of Hikvision and Dahua equipment, citing national security risks. Britain and Australia have also restricted China-made devices. Likewise, with CCTV cameras, India "has to ensure there are checks on what is used in these devices, what chips are going in," the senior Indian official told Reuters. "China is part of the concern." China's state security laws require organizations to cooperate with intelligence work. Reuters reported this month that unexplained communications equipment had been found in some Chinese solar power inverters by U.S. experts who examined the products. Since 2020, when Indian and Chinese forces clashed at their border, India has banned dozens of Chinese-owned apps, including TikTok, on national security grounds. India also tightened foreign investment rules for countries with which it shares a land border. The remote detonation of pagers in Lebanon last year, which Reuters reported was executed by Israeli operatives targeting Hezbollah, further galvanized Indian concerns about the potential abuse of tech devices and the need to quickly enforce testing of CCTV equipment, the senior Indian official said. The camera-testing rules don't contain a clause about land borders. But last month, China's Xiaomi said that when it applied for testing of CCTV devices, Indian officials told the company the assessment couldn't proceed because "internal guidelines" required Xiaomi to supply more registration details of two of its China-based contract manufacturers. "The testing lab indicated that this requirement applies to applications originating from countries that share a land border with India," the company wrote in an April 24 email to the Indian agency that oversees lab testing. Xiaomi didn't respond to Reuters queries, and the IT ministry didn't address questions about the company's account. China's foreign ministry told Reuters it opposes the "generalization of the concept of national security to smear and suppress Chinese companies," and hoped India would provide a non-discriminatory environment for Chinese firms. LAB TESTING, FACTORY VISITS While CCTV equipment supplied to India's government has had to undergo testing since June 2024, the widening of the rules to all devices has raised the stakes. The public sector accounts for 27% of CCTV demand in India, and enterprise clients, industry, hospitality firms and homes the remaining 73%, according to Counterpoint. The rules require CCTV cameras to have tamper-proof enclosures, strong malware detection and encryption. Companies need to run software tools to test source code and provide reports to government labs, two camera industry executives said. The rules allow labs to ask for source code if companies are using proprietary communication protocols in devices, rather than standard ones like Wi-Fi. They also enable Indian officials to visit device makers abroad and inspect facilities for cyber vulnerabilities. The Indian unit of China's Infinova told IT ministry officials last month the requirements were creating challenges. "Expectations such as source code sharing, retesting post firmware upgrades, and multiple factory audits significantly impact internal timelines," Infinova sales executive Sumeet Chanana said in an email on April 10. Infinova didn't respond to Reuters questions. The same day, Sanjeev Gulati, India director for Taiwan-based Vivotek, warned Indian officials that "All ongoing projects will go on halt." He told Reuters this month that Vivotek had submitted product applications and hoped "to get clearance soon." The body that examines surveillance gear is India's Standardization Testing and Quality Certification Directorate, which comes under the IT ministry. The agency has 15 labs that can review 28 applications concurrently, according to data on its website that was removed after Reuters sent questions. Each application can include up to 10 models. As of May 28, 342 applications for hundreds of models from various manufacturers were pending, official data showed. Of those, 237 were classified as new, with 142 lodged since the April 9 deadline. Testing had been completed on 35 of those applications, including just one from a foreign company. India's CP Plus told Reuters it had received clearance for its flagship cameras but several more models were awaiting certification. Bosch said it too had submitted devices for testing, but asked that Indian authorities "allow business continuity" for those products until the process is completed. When Reuters visited New Delhi's bustling Nehru Place electronics market last week, shelves were stacked with popular CCTV cameras from Hikvision, Dahua and CP Plus. But Sagar Sharma said revenue at his CCTV retail shop had plunged about 50% this month from April because of the slow pace of government approvals for security cameras. "It is not possible right now to cater to big orders," he said. "We have to survive with the stock we have."
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
India's alarm over Chinese spying rocks the surveillance industry
By Aditya Kalra NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Global makers of surveillance gear have clashed with Indian regulators in recent weeks over contentious new security rules that require manufacturers of CCTV cameras to submit hardware, software and source code for assessment in government labs, official documents and company emails show. The security-testing policy has sparked industry warnings of supply disruptions and added to a string of disputes between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration and foreign companies over regulatory issues and what some perceive as protectionism. New Delhi's approach is driven in part by its alarm about China's sophisticated surveillance capabilities, according to a top Indian official involved in the policymaking. In 2021, Modi's then-junior IT minister told parliament that 1 million cameras in government institutions were from Chinese companies and there were vulnerabilities with video data transferred to servers abroad. Under the new requirements applicable from April, manufacturers such as China's Hikvision, Xiaomi and Dahua, South Korea's Hanwha, and Motorola Solutions of the U.S. must submit cameras for testing by Indian government labs before they can sell them in the world's most populous nation. The policy applies to all internet-connected CCTV models made or imported since April 9. "There's always an espionage risk," Gulshan Rai, India's cybersecurity chief from 2015 to 2019, told Reuters. "Anyone can operate and control internet-connected CCTV cameras sitting in an adverse location. They need to be robust and secure." Indian officials met on April 3 with executives of 17 foreign and domestic makers of surveillance gear, including Hanwha, Motorola, Bosch, Honeywell and Xiaomi, where many of the manufacturers said they weren't ready to meet the certification rules and lobbied unsuccessfully for a delay, according to the official minutes. In rejecting the request, the government said India's policy "addresses a genuine security issue" and must be enforced, the minutes show. India said in December the CCTV rules, which do not single out any country by name, aimed to "enhance the quality and cybersecurity of surveillance systems in the country." This report is based on a Reuters review of dozens of documents, including records of meetings and emails between manufacturers and Indian IT ministry officials, and interviews with six people familiar with India's drive to scrutinize the technology. The interactions haven't been previously reported. Insufficient testing capacity, drawn-out factory inspections and government scrutiny of sensitive source code were among key issues camera makers said had delayed approvals and risked disrupting unspecified infrastructure and commercial projects. "Millions of dollars will be lost from the industry, sending tremors through the market," Ajay Dubey, Hanwha's director for South Asia, told India's IT ministry in an email on April 9. The IT ministry and most of the companies identified by Reuters didn't respond to requests for comment about the discussions and the impact of the testing policy. The ministry told the executives on April 3 that it may consider accrediting more testing labs. Millions of CCTV cameras have been installed across Indian cities, offices and residential complexes in recent years to enhance security monitoring. New Delhi has more than 250,000 cameras, according to official data, mostly mounted on poles in key locations. The rapid take-up is set to bolster India's surveillance camera market to $7 billion by 2030, from $3.5 billion last year, Counterpoint Research analyst Varun Gupta told Reuters. China's Hikvision and Dahua account for 30% of the market, while India's CP Plus has a 48% share, Gupta said, adding that some 80% of all CCTV components are from China. Hanwha, Motorola Solutions and Britain's Norden Communication told officials by email in April that just a fraction of the industry's 6,000 camera models had approvals under the new rules. CHINA CONCERN The U.S. in 2022 banned sales of Hikvision and Dahua equipment, citing national security risks. Britain and Australia have also restricted China-made devices. Likewise, with CCTV cameras, India "has to ensure there are checks on what is used in these devices, what chips are going in," the senior Indian official told Reuters. "China is part of the concern." China's state security laws require organizations to cooperate with intelligence work. Reuters reported this month that unexplained communications equipment had been found in some Chinese solar power inverters by U.S. experts who examined the products. Since 2020, when Indian and Chinese forces clashed at their border, India has banned dozens of Chinese-owned apps, including TikTok, on national security grounds. India also tightened foreign investment rules for countries with which it shares a land border. The remote detonation of pagers in Lebanon last year, which Reuters reported was executed by Israeli operatives targeting Hezbollah, further galvanized Indian concerns about the potential abuse of tech devices and the need to quickly enforce testing of CCTV equipment, the senior Indian official said. The camera-testing rules don't contain a clause about land borders. But last month, China's Xiaomi said that when it applied for testing of CCTV devices, Indian officials told the company the assessment couldn't proceed because "internal guidelines" required Xiaomi to supply more registration details of two of its China-based contract manufacturers. "The testing lab indicated that this requirement applies to applications originating from countries that share a land border with India," the company wrote in an April 24 email to the Indian agency that oversees lab testing. Xiaomi didn't respond to Reuters queries, and the IT ministry didn't address questions about the company's account. China's foreign ministry told Reuters it opposes the "generalization of the concept of national security to smear and suppress Chinese companies," and hoped India would provide a non-discriminatory environment for Chinese firms. LAB TESTING, FACTORY VISITS While CCTV equipment supplied to India's government has had to undergo testing since June 2024, the widening of the rules to all devices has raised the stakes. The public sector accounts for 27% of CCTV demand in India, and enterprise clients, industry, hospitality firms and homes the remaining 73%, according to Counterpoint. The rules require CCTV cameras to have tamper-proof enclosures, strong malware detection and encryption. Companies need to run software tools to test source code and provide reports to government labs, two camera industry executives said. The rules allow labs to ask for source code if companies are using proprietary communication protocols in devices, rather than standard ones like Wi-Fi. They also enable Indian officials to visit device makers abroad and inspect facilities for cyber vulnerabilities. The Indian unit of China's Infinova told IT ministry officials last month the requirements were creating challenges. "Expectations such as source code sharing, retesting post firmware upgrades, and multiple factory audits significantly impact internal timelines," Infinova sales executive Sumeet Chanana said in an email on April 10. Infinova didn't respond to Reuters questions. The same day, Sanjeev Gulati, India director for Taiwan-based Vivotek, warned Indian officials that "All ongoing projects will go on halt." He told Reuters this month that Vivotek had submitted product applications and hoped "to get clearance soon." The body that examines surveillance gear is India's Standardization Testing and Quality Certification Directorate, which comes under the IT ministry. The agency has 15 labs that can review 28 applications concurrently, according to data on its website that was removed after Reuters sent questions. Each application can include up to 10 models. As of May 28, 342 applications for hundreds of models from various manufacturers were pending, official data showed. Of those, 237 were classified as new, with 142 lodged since the April 9 deadline. Testing had been completed on 35 of those applications, including just one from a foreign company. India's CP Plus told Reuters it had received clearance for its flagship cameras but several more models were awaiting certification. Bosch said it too had submitted devices for testing, but asked that Indian authorities "allow business continuity" for those products until the process is completed. When Reuters visited New Delhi's bustling Nehru Place electronics market last week, shelves were stacked with popular CCTV cameras from Hikvision, Dahua and CP Plus. But Sagar Sharma said revenue at his CCTV retail shop had plunged about 50% this month from April because of the slow pace of government approvals for security cameras. "It is not possible right now to cater to big orders," he said. "We have to survive with the stock we have."
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Air India lobbies government to axe IndiGo lease with Turkish carrier, source says
By Aditya Kalra and Abhijith Ganapavaram NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Air India has lobbied Indian officials to halt rival IndiGo's leasing tie-up with Turkish Airlines, citing business impact as well as security concerns sparked by Istanbul's support for Pakistan, according to a source and a document seen by Reuters. Amid growing public anger in India against Turkey's stance on Pakistan in the India-Pakistan conflict, Indians have been cancelling holidays. The Indian government on Thursday revoked security clearance of Turkish ground handling service firm, Celebi, citing national security. Since 2023, IndiGo has had a leasing arrangement with state-backed Turkish Airlines, which has provided two planes with pilots and some crew to IndiGo to operate on New Delhi- and Mumbai-to-Istanbul routes. Air India has asked India's Civil Aviation ministry to disallow repeated extensions of the leasing deal, which must be renewed every six months, arguing it is benefiting Turkey and hurting India's aviation sector, according to the source and a document Air India submitted to some Indian government departments, seen by Reuters. The aircraft leasing arrangement had led to "a substantial increase in seat capacity" to Turkey, boosting that country's tourism as well, the document said. Air India and Turkish Airlines, as well as India's aviation ministry, did not respond to Reuters queries. In a statement, IndiGo said its partnership with Turkish Airlines, which also include a codeshare deal, "provides multiple benefits to Indian travellers", boosts aviation growth and jobs, and also "enabled IndiGo to build its presence in the long-haul markets in Europe and the USA." Indian aviation policies say the government can approve such leasing deals for six months in cases of "emergent" or "unforeseen" circumstances, but they can be extended. The last extension for IndiGo for such leases is valid until May 31, and the carrier has already applied for an extension, said another source with direct knowledge. IndiGo, like Air India and other global airlines, has faced delivery delays due to supply chain disruptions affecting planemakers Boeing and Airbus. INDIA-PAKISTAN TENSIONS Air India has in recent weeks also invoked national security concerns in its discussions with Indian officials, after India's strikes in Pakistan following a militant attack in Indian Kashmir saw Turkey publicly supporting Islamabad's "calm and restrained policies" in the crisis, the source added. Pakistan has denied any involvement in the attacks. In revoking Celebi's clearance on Thursday, India's junior aviation minister Murlidhar Mohol said on X: "We have received requests from across India to ban Celebi ... Recognising the seriousness of the issue and the call to protect national interests, we have taken cognizance of these requests." Separately, IndiGo's codeshare partnership with Turkish Airlines, in place since 2018, allows it to offer many international destinations to its customers. Tata Group-owned Air India has told government officials that the carrier, as well as India's aviation sector, loses business due to IndiGo's longer-haul flights to the United States and Europe, as Turkey stands to gain more, the source added. "The codeshare partnership between IndiGo and Turkish Airlines provides an extra revenue stream for Turkish Airlines, further enhancing their financial gains," the document stated.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Air India lobbies government to axe IndiGo lease with Turkish carrier, source says
By Aditya Kalra and Abhijith Ganapavaram NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Air India has lobbied Indian officials to halt rival IndiGo's leasing tie-up with Turkish Airlines, citing business impact as well as security concerns sparked by Istanbul's support for Pakistan, according to a source and a document seen by Reuters. Amid growing public anger in India against Turkey's stance on Pakistan in the India-Pakistan conflict, Indians have been cancelling holidays. The Indian government on Thursday revoked security clearance of Turkish ground handling service firm, Celebi, citing national security. Since 2023, IndiGo has had a leasing arrangement with state-backed Turkish Airlines, which has provided two planes with pilots and some crew to IndiGo to operate on New Delhi- and Mumbai-to-Istanbul routes. Air India has asked India's Civil Aviation ministry to disallow repeated extensions of the leasing deal, which must be renewed every six months, arguing it is benefiting Turkey and hurting India's aviation sector, according to the source and a document Air India submitted to some Indian government departments, seen by Reuters. The aircraft leasing arrangement had led to "a substantial increase in seat capacity" to Turkey, boosting that country's tourism as well, the document said. Air India and Turkish Airlines, as well as India's aviation ministry, did not respond to Reuters queries. In a statement, IndiGo said its partnership with Turkish Airlines, which also include a codeshare deal, "provides multiple benefits to Indian travellers", boosts aviation growth and jobs, and also "enabled IndiGo to build its presence in the long-haul markets in Europe and the USA." Indian aviation policies say the government can approve such leasing deals for six months in cases of "emergent" or "unforeseen" circumstances, but they can be extended. The last extension for IndiGo for such leases is valid until May 31, and the carrier has already applied for an extension, said another source with direct knowledge. IndiGo, like Air India and other global airlines, has faced delivery delays due to supply chain disruptions affecting planemakers Boeing and Airbus. INDIA-PAKISTAN TENSIONS Air India has in recent weeks also invoked national security concerns in its discussions with Indian officials, after India's strikes in Pakistan following a militant attack in Indian Kashmir saw Turkey publicly supporting Islamabad's "calm and restrained policies" in the crisis, the source added. Pakistan has denied any involvement in the attacks. In revoking Celebi's clearance on Thursday, India's junior aviation minister Murlidhar Mohol said on X: "We have received requests from across India to ban Celebi ... Recognising the seriousness of the issue and the call to protect national interests, we have taken cognizance of these requests." Separately, IndiGo's codeshare partnership with Turkish Airlines, in place since 2018, allows it to offer many international destinations to its customers. Tata Group-owned Air India has told government officials that the carrier, as well as India's aviation sector, loses business due to IndiGo's longer-haul flights to the United States and Europe, as Turkey stands to gain more, the source added. "The codeshare partnership between IndiGo and Turkish Airlines provides an extra revenue stream for Turkish Airlines, further enhancing their financial gains," the document stated. Sign in to access your portfolio
