Forwarder charter operations are expected to continue to the main airport hubs as part of efforts to provide service stability. Speaking at the Takeoff Cargo event, which is taking place this week, industry leaders discussed the changing air cargo market. In one discussion moderated by Steven Polmans, chairman of TIACA, Joachim von Winning, executive director of the Air Cargo Community Frankfurt at Frankfurt Airport, said that forwarders had launched freighter charter services to the main hubs in response to the loss of passenger operations. While he expects longhaul bellyhold services to return and therefore volumes to increase at all airports, rather than just at big cargo hubs, he said that forwarders may well wish to continue to operate charter operations to the main hubs.

CBRE South Asia Pvt. Ltd., India’s leading real estate consulting firm, announced the findings of its ‘INDIA’S INDUSTRIAL & WAREHOUSING SECTOR: TENACIOUS AMIDST THE TURNING TIDE’ report. Against the backdrop of robust growth of manufacturing, e-commerce and third-party logistics (3PL) sectors, the report highlights how Industrial and Warehousing (I&W) activity has gained momentum over the past few years in India. The report delves into the dynamics of the current manufacturing ecosystem in India and its improving prospects as an alternative supply chain destination on account of elements such as favorable demographics, relatively low labor costs, and continued thrust on infrastructure improvement and policy reforms. Anshuman Magazine, Chairman, India & South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa, CBRE, said, “Over the past decade, India has consistently aimed at diversifying from a services-based economy to becoming an alternate manufacturing destination in APAC. As a result, the demand in the Indian I&W sector has surged, making it one of the key growth drivers of the real estate industry. With strong government support to ease investment norms through attractive tax sops and policy initiatives, we can expect increased interest from domestic and global manufacturers.”

ESR India, the largest APAC focused industrial and logistics real estate platform, has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Tamil Nadu for a potential investment of INR 550 crores. The MOU is signed for the launch of two industrial parks in Kancheepuram and Krishnagiri districts of the state over the next five years. Once fully operational, the two projects have the potential to create over 4,400 jobs in the facility, that shall boost the overall socio-economic growth in the region. The MoU was signed at the Investment Conclave 2021 conference held today. It will facilitate ESR India’s proposed investment at Kancheepuram and Krishnagiri industrial parks by helping in streamlining land acquisition, approvals, clearances, and administrative processes as per existing policies, rules, and regulations of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Air cargo has been a “diamond in the rough” for AirAsia during the Covid-19 pandemic and is likely to retain a high importance to the business in the longer term, according to group chief executive Tony Fernandes. “What was a ‘nice to have’ has become something that could be as powerful as our passenger services,” Fernandes said during a CAPA Live event on 14 July. “Covid has driven e-commerce to another level, and hence air cargo has become much more valuable.” Amid that change, AirAsia is expecting to receive its first dedicated freighter in the third quarter of this year and is currently removing the seats from two of its Airbus A320s before deploying them as temporary freight-only aircraft. Air cargo is “no more a step child” in AirAsia’s business, Fernandes said. “I never thought we’d have freighters, I never thought we’d be taking seats off the planes to do cargo.”

Business-class airline La Compagnie has appointed Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) as its cargo handler as it enters the air cargo market. The airline has awarded WFS a three-year contract to handle cargo onboard its Airbus A321LR services from Paris Orly to New York’s Newark International Airport, which will increase from the current four flights a week to seven in September. WFS already provides ground handling services to La Compagnie in Newark for its passenger and ramp services to Paris Orly and Nice. Depending on the number of passengers, each flight is expected to carry up to 3.5 tonnes. Damien Paries, vice president ground operations, La Compagnie-Dreamjet, said: “WFS is the perfect partner to support the launch of our first-ever freight service. We are confident they will provide the same high-quality experience for our cargo customers as our passengers enjoy when they choose La Compagnie.”

In the recently concluded 18th meeting of the Maritime States Development Council (MSDC), which was organized by the Ministry of Ports Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) the central government has proposed and asked ministers from the state governments for the discussion on the new ‘Draft Indian Ports Bill 2021’. Moreover, the state governments oppose it because many powers currently implemented by state governments would be transferred to the Union Government. While the central government says that the proposed bill would enable the best management and utilization of the coastline by way of participation by both the central government and maritime states/union territories (UTs).

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) had launched the UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik) scheme in 2016 as a Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) to enhance regional connectivity through fiscal support and infrastructure development. However, as on May 31, 2021, only 47% of total routes and 39% of airports (unserved and underserved) have been operationalised[1] under UDAN. The number of new RCS routes which started operations increased at a healthy pace and stood at 102 and 120 routes in FY2019 and FY2020 respectively, but have declined to 77 new routes in FY2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. During FY2018 – FY2021, a total of Rs. 3,350 crores have been incurred by the Central Government towards the UDAN scheme and the budgeted outlay for FY2022 is Rs. 1,130 crores. Giving more insights, Shubham Jain, SVP & Group Head, Corporate Ratings, ICRA, says, “The slow progress of UDAN implementation is attributable to delayed upgradation of infrastructure and readiness of airports, due to lack of adequate right of way (including insufficient runway lengths) at some of the RCS airports and delays in securing necessary regulatory approvals. Low demand on few routes awarded, adverse and unpredictable weather conditions leads to inconsistent operations and have also resulted in closure of operations by some airlines in a few cases. The second wave of the pandemic, which started from mid of March 2021 would further impact the UDAN scheme going forward with aviation being one of the worst-hit infrastructure sectors.”

The railways have decided to run MEMU express special trains between Kakinada Port and Visakhapatnam. Train no. 07265 Kakinada Port-Visakhapatnam MEMU special train will leave Kakinada Port at 4.25 a.m. with effect from July 19 and arrive in Visakhapatnam at 9.40 a.m. In the return direction, 07266 Visakhapatnam-Kakinada Port MEMU special will leave Visakhapatnam at 5.05 p.m. with effect from July 19 to reach Kakinada Port at 10.10hrs. These trains will have stoppages at Kakinada Town, Samalkot, Pithapuram, Gollaprolu, Annavaram, Tuni, Gullipadu, Narsipatnam Road, Regupalem, Elamanchili, Narasingapalli, Anakapalle and Marripalem. These trains will have 16 coaches of MEMU rake.

Stating that India is one of the fastest-growing economies, leading through sustainable and climate-neutral development, Gadkari said, Society should be livable, workable, and sustainable for all with an important focus on ethics, ecology, and the environment.The minister said his ministry is working to create opportunities for alternative clean and green transport fuels like electricity, bio-CNG, LNG, biodiesel, ethanol, methanol, and hydrogen fuel cell.The government is promoting the use of renewable energy to charge electric vehicles, he said, adding, we have abundant solar energy. The government has planned to shift public transport and logistics to 100 per cent clean energy sources, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said, asserting that India has made significant progress towards improving green energy access over the last decade.

Nebiar Technologies and Solutions Pvt Ltd.,launches a digital platform made specifically for Customs Brokers and Forwarders. The platform is called Transpost, which is designed to function as an operating system for its customers. It will act as a bridge between a fragmented segment of the market and shipping Lines. This makes its value proposition very strong and innovative. The platform will host several products and features which enable customers to ship cargo by sea with minimum effort and cost. The platform simplifies complexities of the shipping process and promotes efficiency for accelerating growth and revenue for the shipping lines and its customers. Promoted by Industry specialists and funded by Seven Island Logistics Pvt Ltd with majority stake in the company, brings the best of experience and innovation to the market.