Latest news with #SEEPZ
Time of India
3 days ago
- General
- Time of India
TOI spot check reveals frequency of bus service can routinely drop to 45 minutes
Mumbai: Chandrakant Yadav, 28, a resident of Thakur Village in Kandivali and a workman in the electrical industry, faces a daily challenge in commuting, waiting at least 30 minutes for a bus on Route 434 (from Andheri to Sainath Nagar-Bamandaya pada). Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "Some days, the wait extends to 45 minutes. The bus app is of little help as it shows times that are never maintained." Yadav has no choice but to wait. An auto ride would cost him up to Rs 70. But the frustration of spending a prolonged time at bus stops while watching other routes being serviced every 10-15 minutes is something that he shares with many others in the city. Hundreds of daily bus commuters are of the firm opinion that the transport utility is definitely not as 'BEST' as it used to be even 10 years ago, with the waiting time stretching from 30-45 minutes and sometimes over an hour. To assess the exact frequency of the service, TOI recently undertook a real-time spot check by waiting for buses on several routes across Mumbai. The findings throw light on the nature of the problems that have beset the fleet. At nearly every bus stop, short distance and feeder service routes demonstrated a strong frequency with buses arriving at intervals of 5-15 minutes. However, for the majority of longer routes, especially on north-south or east-west corridors, waiting time stretched beyond belief. At least 40% of routes in the city cover long distances, 5-10 km and above. On route 469 Limited (Maharana Pratap Chowk Mulund West to Goregaon West), a TOI correspondent noted a bus arriving around 8 am, with the next one not scheduled before 11 am—a striking three-hour gap on what was once a route with 15-20 minute frequency. "It is a sorry state of affairs. We just don't have the buses to deploy on this route, and are using a couple of old buses just to keep it running," said a bus station staff member managing the schedule. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now On another route, 302 (Mulund to Dharavi) from the same station, service was completely suspended recently due to a lack of buses. In contrast, in the same suburb, AC bus A-401 is attracting sizeable crowds. Commuters from Mulund station to Vaishali Nagar (2.5 km) form queues of 15-20 people at any given time, with observed frequencies of 3-5 minutes during peak hours and 7 minutes during off-peak times. However, take a longer route, where a bus has to negotiate its way across the length or breadth of the city, and the experience is likely to be a frustrating one. On route 434 - Agarkar Chowk Andheri station to Bamandaya pada bus stop, Andheri East, this correspondent endured a 40-minute wait. Adjacent stops for route 333 (Mahakali Caves via Chakala) and 415 (for SEEPZ) saw passengers briskly boarding buses at frequencies of 10-15 minutes. An elderly woman, Shanta Magar, waiting on route 434, said, "I come here daily and despite being old, have to wait without any proper shelter or seat (just a pole with bus number) for 40-50 minutes to catch a bus home." Similarly, on the busy Sion-Panvel Road at Punjabwadi bus stop near TISS, TOI observed notable waiting times: route A-502 (Deonar to Nerul) 45 minutes; A-21 (Colaba to Trombay) 35 minutes; A-60 (Deonar to Borivali) 39 minutes; and A-92 (Anushakti Ngr to Tardeo) 45 minutes. At Bandra West, a spot check at the Hill Road bus stop from 4 pm onwards showed a route 215 (Bandra reclamation to Tata colony) service arriving at 4.30 pm, with locals saying the wait can sometimes go up to 40 minutes. For route A-3, Jijamata Udyan to Navy Nagar, Colaba on May 27, a check revealed waits as long as 30 minutes. This route serves Mazgaon and connects to Crawford Market, CSMT and Colaba. A commuter recalled a senior citizen who took her difficulties to the BEST management at Electric House in Colaba, but matters had hardly improved. BEST general manager SVR Srinivas admitted that waiting times are often exceeding one hour and explained that this was why routes were being restructured and reviewed for occupancy. "If it is 10-20% occupancy, we cannot deploy more buses. Proper fleet utilisation is important. We are also focusing more on shorter routes that provide last mile connectivity," he said, adding that a commuter feedback-based study was planned. He further stated that BEST aimed to increase the load factor to 75%. "Waiting time should not exceed 10 to 15 minutes. In a city like Mumbai, or even tier 2 cities, people do not or should not wait 45 minutes to an hour. To achieve this, we have undertaken route rationalisation," Srinivas said, adding that more buses arriving in fleet -- around 1,500 by September -- could improve frequency on the longer routes very soon. Analysts attributed long waits to a shortage of road-ready buses, and traffic congestion on arterial routes. Former BEST committee member Sunil Ganacharya said, "There was a time when trains would be delayed, but BEST buses would be on time, and stick to the timetable for over 500 routes. But now, you don't know when or whether the next bus will arrive, leaving you frustrated." (With inputs from Sunil Nair & Joeanna Rebello Fernandes)
Time of India
26-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India's jewellery, textile exporters see contrasting impact from US tariffs
Two of India's top foreign exchange earners, the gems & jewellery and textiles sectors, have seen contrasting impact from the Trump administration's tariff decision. In gems & jewellery, orders from the US have declined by 70 per cent since April 5 when the 10 per cent baseline tariff came into effect, forcing the units in Mumbai's Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) to send about 50,000 contract workers on leave, said industry executives. But in Tamil Nadu's Tirupur, the knitwear capital of India, textile and apparel units are flooded with enquiries and orders as US buyers seek to lift stocks before Trump takes his next call on reciprocal tariffs. While he has suspended the additional reciprocal tariff of 26 per cent imposed on India for 90 days, the tariff on China, the largest supplier of garments, was increased to 145%. Exporters in the two sectors elsewhere in the country too have seen similar trends. US importers bought jewellery, mostly studded, to create inventory as everyone was anticipating the reciprocal tariff to become effective from April 9, said Adil Kotwal, president of the SEEPZ Gems & Jewellery Manufacturers' Association. The US had previously levied a 5.5 per cent on jewellery imports. 'Now the US buyers have gone on a wait-and-watch mode until the final tariff is announced after the 90 days,' he said. 'The exporting units in SEEPZ are now trying to step up deals with Saudi Arabia, Europe and Australia. But the volume of shipments to these three countries cannot be compared with the US, which is a huge market for us.' Nearly USD 2 billion worth of jewellery is exported from SEEPZ, Mumbai, annually. 'In the current fiscal year, exports will be halved,' said Kotwal. India's gems and jewellery exports totalled USD 28.5 billion in fiscal 2025, down 11.72 per cent from FY24. The US accounted for USD 10 billion of India's FY25 exports. The situation is different in the textile and apparel industry. Because of the high US tariffs on China, many US buyers are looking at India as an alternative sourcing nation and Tirupur units are getting a lot more enquiries than previously from global brands, said KM Subramanian, president of the Tirupur Exporters Association. 'The US buyers are keen to lift the garments at the earliest.' The US imports about USD 120 billion of textile and apparel annually with China accounting for a quarter of this at USD 30 billion, said Sanjay Jain, managing director of TT Ltd that exports textile and knitted garments. 'This USD 30 billion worth of textiles and garments will have to be mostly sourced from other countries, which gives India a great opportunity. Apart from garments, home textiles is a sector in the US, where India can make its presence felt,' he said.
Business Mayor
26-04-2025
- Business
- Business Mayor
India's jewellery, textile exporters see contrasting impact from US tariffs
Two of India's top foreign exchange earners, the gems & jewellery and textiles sectors, have seen contrasting impact from the Trump administration's tariff decision. In gems & jewellery, orders from the US have declined by 70 per cent since April 5 when the 10 per cent baseline tariff came into effect, forcing the units in Mumbai's Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) to send about 50,000 contract workers on leave, said industry executives. But in Tamil Nadu's Tirupur, the knitwear capital of India, textile and apparel units are flooded with enquiries and orders as US buyers seek to lift stocks before Trump takes his next call on reciprocal tariffs. While he has suspended the additional reciprocal tariff of 26 per cent imposed on India for 90 days, the tariff on China, the largest supplier of garments, was increased to 145%. Exporters in the two sectors elsewhere in the country too have seen similar trends. US importers bought jewellery, mostly studded, to create inventory as everyone was anticipating the reciprocal tariff to become effective from April 9, said Adil Kotwal, president of the SEEPZ Gems & Jewellery Manufacturers' Association. The US had previously levied a 5.5 per cent on jewellery imports. 'Now the US buyers have gone on a wait-and-watch mode until the final tariff is announced after the 90 days,' he said. 'The exporting units in SEEPZ are now trying to step up deals with Saudi Arabia, Europe and Australia. But the volume of shipments to these three countries cannot be compared with the US, which is a huge market for us.' Read More The Best French Car Brands: From Alpine Trails To Goddesses Nearly USD 2 billion worth of jewellery is exported from SEEPZ, Mumbai, annually. 'In the current fiscal year, exports will be halved,' said Kotwal. India's gems and jewellery exports totalled USD 28.5 billion in fiscal 2025, down 11.72 per cent from FY24. The US accounted for USD 10 billion of India's FY25 exports. The situation is different in the textile and apparel industry. Because of the high US tariffs on China, many US buyers are looking at India as an alternative sourcing nation and Tirupur units are getting a lot more enquiries than previously from global brands, said KM Subramanian, president of the Tirupur Exporters Association. 'The US buyers are keen to lift the garments at the earliest.' The US imports about USD 120 billion of textile and apparel annually with China accounting for a quarter of this at USD 30 billion, said Sanjay Jain, managing director of TT Ltd that exports textile and knitted garments. 'This USD 30 billion worth of textiles and garments will have to be mostly sourced from other countries, which gives India a great opportunity. Apart from garments, home textiles is a sector in the US, where India can make its presence felt,' he said.
Time of India
26-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India's jewellery, textile exporters see contrasting impact from US tariffs
Kolkata: Two of India's top foreign exchange earners, the gems & jewellery and textiles sectors, have seen contrasting impact from the Trump administration's tariff decision. #Pahalgam Terrorist Attack India pulled the plug on IWT when Pakistanis are fighting over water What makes this India-Pakistan standoff more dangerous than past ones The problem of Pakistan couldn't have come at a worse time for D-St In gems & jewellery, orders from the US have declined by 70% since April 5 when the 10% baseline tariff came into effect, forcing the units in Mumbai's Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) to send about 50,000 contract workers on leave, said industry executives. But in Tamil Nadu's Tirupur, the knitwear capital of India, textile and apparel units are flooded with enquiries and orders as US buyers seek to lift stocks before Trump takes his next call on reciprocal tariffs. While he has suspended the additional reciprocal tariff of 26% imposed on India for 90 days, the tariff on China, the largest supplier of garments, was increased to 145%. Exporters in the two sectors elsewhere in the country too have seen similar trends. US importers bought jewellery, mostly studded, to create inventory as everyone was anticipating the reciprocal tariff to become effective from April 9, said Adil Kotwal, president of the SEEPZ Gems & Jewellery Manufacturers' Association. The US had previously levied a 5.5% on jewellery imports. 'Now the US buyers have gone on a wait-and-watch mode until the final tariff is announced after the 90 days,' he said. 'The exporting units in SEEPZ are now trying to step up deals with Saudi Arabia, Europe and Australia. But the volume of shipments to these three countries cannot be compared with the US, which is a huge market for us.' Nearly $2 billion worth of jewellery is exported from SEEPZ, Mumbai, annually. 'In the current fiscal year, exports will be halved,' said Kotwal. India's gems and jewellery exports totalled $28.5 billion in fiscal 2025, down 11.72% from FY24. The US accounted for $10 billion of India's FY25 exports. The situation is different in the textile and apparel industry. Because of the high US tariffs on China, many US buyers are looking at India as an alternative sourcing nation and Tirupur units are getting a lot more enquiries than previously from global brands, said KM Subramanian, president of the Tirupur Exporters Association. 'The US buyers are keen to lift the garments at the earliest.' The US imports about $120 billion of textile and apparel annually with China accounting for a quarter of this at $30 billion, said Sanjay Jain, managing director of TT Ltd that exports textile and knitted garments. 'This $30 billion worth of textiles and garments will have to be mostly sourced from other countries, which gives India a great opportunity. Apart from garments, home textiles is a sector in the US, where India can make its presence felt,' he said.
