News18 Network partners with TATA Motors

 In the face of global concerns, India's economy has proved robust, and with inflation degenerating to pre-crisis levels, it is primed to maintain its position as the world's fastest-growing economy. The frequency of infrastructure development has increased in recent years, particularly in the last three years, as the government regards it as a means of maintaining the economy in shape.

Considering the circumstances, News18 Network in collaboration with TATA Motors hosted ‘Trucking Into The Future.’ This event aimed to look at solutions for developing the nation’s transportation and logistics industry while being fast, cost-efficient, and sustainable. It took place on 27th September at Taj Palace, New Delhi. 

Trucking Into The Future was graced by the honorable Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Govt of India, who had a one-on-one chat with Parikshit Luthra, Deputy Editor & Bureau Chief, CNBC-TV18 on the topic The Future Pathways for Road & Highway Sector. The event was kickstarted with an introductory note by Girish Wagh, Executive Director, Tata Motors on India’s Highway To a $5 Trillion Economy. Following this, there was a CEO’s panel with prominent personalities like Mr. Girish Wagh, Executive Director, Tata Motors Ltd; Peeyush Gupta, Vice President, Supply Chain, Tata Steel; Saurabh Palsania, Executive Director, Group Commercial Head, Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Ltd; V G Sakthikumar, Managing Director, Schwing Stetter (India) Pvt. Ltd; Dipti Vaishnav, Managing Director, Lead - Industrial and Mobility, Accenture India as the panelists who shared their thoughts on Making India’s Logistics Cheaper, Faster & Cleaner.

Sharing his thoughts on the festive season sales and the talks of the upcoming global recession and its impact on TATA Motors, Girish Wagh, Executive Director, Tata Motors, said, “Volumes in the commercial vehicle industry are always determined by how headwinds and tailwinds interact. We certainly have headwinds in terms of rising interest rates and rising fuel prices, but the good news is that fuel prices appear to be stabilising. We are watching the impact of interest rates, but if you look at the tailwinds, such as rising consumption, the government's focus on infrastructure, and so on, that leads to a tailwind being more than a headwind, so sentiments are better, and we see growth occurring even this year. Of course, FY 2019 was our peak, and we plunged by about 50% in FY 2021. Over that low base, we grew by 26% last year, and in my opinion, we should be rising in the double digits even this year.”

Furthermore, the event had two more panel discussions, the first panel discussion on Road Construction Sector: Making India Move had eminent panelists like Rajesh Kaul, Vice President and Head, Sales & Marketing, Domestic Commercial Vehicles Business, Tata Motors Ltd; DK Sen, Whole-time Director & Sr. Executive Vice President (Development Projects), L&T; Vineet Vijayavargia, Managing Director & Partner, BCG; Dr Sanjay Gupta, Senior VP & Head of Techno-commercial APSEZ and Logistics Adani Ports and SEZ; Nirmal Jit Singh, ED, CEG (Consulting Engineers Group).

While the second panel consisted of Sandeep Kulkarni, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Tata CLiQ; Chander Agarwal, Managing Director, TCI Express; Parag Aggarwal, Co-founder & CEO, GoBOLT; Rajesh Kaul, Vice President and Head, Sales & Marketing, Domestic Commercial Vehicles Business, Tata Motors Ltd; Som Kapoor, Partner Automotive, Future of Mobility Leader, EY India, who shared their valuable opinions on the topic e-comm: The Digital Driver on Indian Roads.