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Aviation's New Expensive Era?
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Good Morning. Airports were privatised to improve facilities and travel experience, not sneakily more expensive. India’s two busiest airports insist they’re owed a staggering sum from a decade-old tariff dispute, and they want passengers to pick up the tab. If the Supreme Court agrees, it could inflate air ticket prices significantly. What could this mean for passengers?
India’s equity indices ended flat on Monday after reaching record highs. The BSE Sensex closed at 85,641.9, down 64.77 points or 0.08% lower. The NSE Nifty50 closed at 26,175.75, 27.2 points or 0.1% lower
In other news, India’s auto OEMs clock growth. Meanwhile, Japanese property giants are expanding in India.
DECODE THE NEWS
Flying Could Get Much Costlier: Inside the Rs 50,000-Crore Airport Tariff Dispute
What?
For Indian travellers, airport fees may have been visible on the ticket but not big enough for them to take notice. Now these charges could make air travel more expensive.
A ruling by the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) recalculated tariffs for airport charges at Delhi and Mumbai airports between 2009 and 2014, and concluded that the operators significantly under-recovered their allowed revenue during that period.
Now, the two private airport operators, Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) and Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), are seeking permission to recover that shortfall: a whopping Rs 50,000 crore.
If approved, the extra burden won’t fall on airlines or the government but on passengers, through steep increases in the User Development Fee (UDF). Early estimates by media reports suggest domestic and international UDF could rise 10x to as high as 22x at India’s busiest airports, potentially pushing ticket prices up overnight.
The matter, where the government is backing air passengers, is now headed to the Supreme Court, making this far more than a technical tariff revision as it could reshape how flying is priced in India, and signal whether private operators or the public ultimately bear the cost of infrastructure financing.
Why?
Industry voices are divided—but many argue the operators haven’t justified the claim.
“I am very happy the government is backing passengers. We must support travellers because this money ultimately comes from our pockets. The question is: what additional services are airport operators providing to justify charging us more?” Singh said.
For others, the issue is less about the number and more about transparency.
“What is included in UDF? Why are there separate terminal usage charges if passengers already pay UDF? If operators are claiming Rs 50,000 crore, they must explain what exactly passengers are paying for,” Govil said.
Govil questions whether the revenue projections submitted by private operators are fully disclosed.
“If everything was above board, would they be aggressively bidding for multiple airports across India?”
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CORE NUMBER
170,971 units
That’s the number of passenger vehicles that country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki dispatched to its dealers during November 2025, registering double digit growth of 21% over 141,312 units a year earlier, the company said. Domestic dispatches rose across segments, including mini and compact cars.
The Lead: All top five OEMs — Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hyundai, and Toyota Kirloskar — clocked year-on-year growth. Hyundai COO Tarun Garg said the company is sustaining its sales momentum, aided by recent GST reforms. Toyota VP (Sales, Service & Used Cars) Varinder Wadhwa also noted continued “strong momentum.”
Overview: Among two-wheeler makers, HMSI’s domestic wholesales stood at 5,33,645 units. Bajaj Auto’s motorcycle dispatches dipped slightly to 202,510 units, while three-wheeler volumes rose 21% to 45,006 units. TVS Motor reported a 20% increase in two-wheeler sales, from 305,323 units in November 2024 to 365,608 units in November this year.
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FUTURE PROOF
India’s Audit Panels Face New Mandate as Cyber, AI Risks Surge
India’s corporate audit committees are undergoing a fundamental shift in their mandate, moving beyond traditional compliance to become the primary defence against cybersecurity threats, artificial intelligence risks, and geopolitical instability.
That was the consensus among a gathering of the country’s top regulators, bankers, and governance experts at the inaugural Free Press Journal (FPJ) Round Table on the Effectiveness of Audit Committees, hosted in collaboration with corporate governance advisory firm Excellence Enablers.
The Context: As regulatory scrutiny tightens and business operations become increasingly digitised, speakers at the event warned that boards must recognise that the audit committee has become central to the overall viability of the modern corporation. It was highlighted that audit committees must transcend routine checklists and foster high-quality financial reporting.
M Damodaran, the former Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Chairperson of Excellence Enablers, called for "informed conversations" within these committees, noting that members must stay abreast of how rapidly governance expectations are evolving.
Sudhir Soni, a senior partner at audit firm BSR & Co. LLP, cited specific corporate episodes, such as those involving industrial gas giant Linde India and the crisis at Café Coffee Day, to illustrate the importance of rigorous financial reporting and internal approvals. He stressed that transparency and open lines of communication between committees and regulators are now essential.
What Next? The session concluded with a call for an integrated governance framework, stressing that committee effectiveness hinges on the quality and commitment of its members, solidifying their role as the corporation’s first line of defence in maintaining stakeholder trust.
FROM THE PERIPHERY
GST Collections Tad Up.
Gross GST collections in November rose 0.7% to Rs 1.70 lakh crore, up from Rs 1.69 lakh crore a year earlier. The modest increase came despite a 2.3% decline in domestic GST revenues to Rs 1.24 lakh crore, reflecting softer consumption after GST rates were cut on 375 items from September 22. Experts noted that the revised rate structure makes month-on-month comparisons less straightforward.
Flashpoint: A sharp 10.2% rise in GST collected on imported goods to Rs 45,976 crore helped offset the domestic weakness.
Catch Up Quick: State-wise trends were mixed. Maharashtra (3%), Karnataka (5%) and Kerala (7%) posted moderate growth, while several large states — including Gujarat (-7%), Uttar Pradesh (-7%), Madhya Pradesh (-8%), Tamil Nadu (-4%) and West Bengal (-3%) — recorded declines. Among Union Territories, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands saw a 9% rise in collections, whereas Lakshadweep reported an 85% slump.
US Tariffs Bite.
India’s manufacturing sector lost momentum in November, with growth sliding to a nine-month low, as heavy US tariffs dented demand, according to the HSBC India Manufacturing PMI, compiled by S&P Global.
Backdrop: Specifically, the index fell to 56.6 from October’s 59.2. It’s the lowest since February, though it’s still above the 50 mark that separates expansion from contraction. New export orders recorded the slowest expansion in over a year, signalling fading international demand.
Future: Economists linked the cool-down in demand to punitive tariffs imposed by Donald Trump’s administration, which have raised export costs for Indian goods shipped to the US. At the same time, input-cost inflation eased, and output price pressures softened, a minor bright spot that may give policymakers room to manoeuvre if the slowdown persists.
Tokyo Meets Mumbai Realty!
Japanese property giants like Mitsui Fudosan and Sumitomo Realty are accelerating their expansion in India as demand for high grade office space continues to rise, according to a Reuters report.
Fast Facts: Mitsui Fudosan first entered India in 2020 through a partnership with RMZ real estate in Bengaluru and is now exploring fresh investments of 30 billion to 35 billion yen, equivalent to Rs 1,600 crore to Rs 1,900 crore. Sumitomo Realty has committed about 6.5 billion USD across five projects in Mumbai and is evaluating land parcels near the upcoming airport in Navi Mumbai.
The Lead: India is attractive to foreign real estate players because of cheap construction costs and rising rental rates. Industry executives quoted by Reuters say the shift signals long term confidence in India’s commercial real estate market and its growth potential.
PODCASTS
On Episode 739 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ajay Kedia, Director at Kedia Advisory, Akhilesh Tuteja, Global Head, Cyber security at KPMG International and Venkat Mangudi, Founder and CEO at Elytra Security
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