‘Levy of GST will swell cash flow, impact EoDB’

Ramesh Mamidala, CEO, Adani Airports in an exclusive conversation said, “Air cargo industry globally has suffered a lot especially during the pandemic. The crisis had a huge impact on the cargo volumes. But now the industry is moving towards growth. We should focus on the MoCA’s vision to achieve 10 million tons of cargo by 2030. Also, some policy changes are required and there are various air cargo associations that have been lobbying for these policy changes. Indian carriers have been witnessing recovery now in the post pandemic times and working on bringing back capacity. Freight rates are adjusting now. Airport infrastructure also needs to be developed, especially in the remote areas. Tech integration is happening with ULIP and Kale’s Air Cargo Community System (ACCS) at a fast pace so that’s a good sign. The two biggest risks for the growth of the air cargo in India at present will be, — constraints related to the open skies policy and levy of GST on export freight. GST will unnecessarily put pressure on the exporters, impact EODB and will increase cash flows.”