The Ghost Airports

Good Morning. India’s airports are growing in number to connect the underserved areas. Behind the lofty plans are low footfalls, disinterested airlines and technical troubles.

Meanwhile, India and Australia are hastening their trade deal. In other news, fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi’s unsecured properties including flats, commercial units and silver bricks are to go under the hammer.

DECODE THE NEWS

Built but Barely Used: The Reality of India’s Regional Airports

By Zinal Dedhia

The Indian government’s ambitious plan to develop regional airports, and connect Bharat by air, seems to have a hit a snag. As many as 93 aerodromes have been operationalised under UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme, and 649 routes have been inaugurated.

The scheme held a lot of promise; with subsidised ticketing, incentives for airlines as well as infrastructure upgrade support. Beyond the fanfare however, many airports remain unutilised, while a few have been discontinued. A little over half of the airports never began operations. And, only 7% of the routes remained operational beyond three years.

Take for example, the airport in Uttar Pradesh’s Azamgarh, which was inaugurated in 2023 to connect the city to Lucknow and Delhi. Now its runway remains empty, it’s check-in counters have never punched in a boarding pass, and its only footfalls are by the security officials who keep busy scrolling through their phones.

Experts point out that studies of the catchment area were not done while planning these airports. The ticket prices, even with subsidies, might not be affordable to the people in the area.

A few other say that even if an airline wanted to start operations, these airports lack facilities be it night navigation systems or adequate terminals. There are other obstacles too like the lack of smaller aircraft or jets that seat 40-60 people. Airlines themselves are going through pilot shortages, and there is the issue of poor on-ground connectivity as well.

But not all UDAN airports are nonstarters. There have been successful examples like Jharsuguda airport in Odisha, Shirdi in Maharashtra or Hubbali in Karnataka. After infrastructure upgrades, they took off thanks to industrial bases nearby, pilgrimage footfalls and corporate traffic. Ayodhya airport too has taken off, thanks to the new temple as well as the marketing around the airport.  

Yet, many more languish Kailashahar airport in Tripura, Muzaffarpur airport in Bihar and Deesa airport in Gujrat – with little airline interest, short runways and suspended operations due to lack of passengers.

The airlines and airports have another competition — from the land. On the other side of India’s infrastructure story is heavy investment in highways and their rapid pace of development. It’s much cheaper to zip through the roads, rather than pay through the nose for an airline ticket — and that could be another reason why India’s interiors are much more grounded.

WHAT CAN A BLOCKCHAIN DO?

CORE NUMBER

Rs 12,569 crore

That’s how much foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) pulled out of Indian equities in November 2025. In October, Indian equities saw a net inflow of Rs 14,610 crore, after several months of outflows in July, August and September. 

Value of FPI investment: 

October: Net inflow of Rs 14,610 crore

September: Net outflow of Rs 23,885 crore

August: Net outflow of Rs 34,990 crore

July: Net outflow of  Rs 17,700 crore

2025 total: Net outflow of Rs 1.5 trillion 

The primary reason for outflows is India’s perception as an AI underperformer, said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services to PTI. But, he added that India Inc’s position could shift if investors start seeing AI as a bubble. Other experts said that global risk-off sentiment, concerns about valuations, higher US yields and shifting flows towards other Asian markets are compounding the outflow.

FROM THE PERIPHERY

VinFast Zips Ahead

Elon Musk-owned Tesla entered India amidst a lot of fanfare, but budget-friendly Indians seem to prefer VinFast, the Vietnamese EV (electric vehicle) maker instead. As per data on Vahan portal, VinFast sold 131 vehicles in the festival month of October, and registered 204 vehicles this year. On the other hand, Tesla sold 40 in October and registered 118 in 2025.

By The Numbers: Tesla’s Model Y is a premium vehicle, priced anywhere between Rs 59.89 – Rs 67.89 lakh (ex-showroom). VinFast captured the mid-range segment with VF6 and VF7 SUVs priced Rs 16.49 lakh and Rs 25.49 lakh.

Origin: VinFast also entered India in January 2025, giving it an early start into the rapidly growing EV market of India. Tesla, on the other hand, entered the market in mid-2025, after multiple rounds of talks with the government over import duties and local manufacturing.

Indo-Aus Trade Push

India and Australia are accelerating negotiations on the second phase of their Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), building on the first-phase Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) that entered into force in December 2022. 

Fast Facts: The two sides are discussing tariff reductions on industrial goods, enhanced services and investment access, digital trade provisions and mobility of skilled professionals.

Context: India recently finalised a major free-trade deal with the UK and is advancing a pact with the EU, reflecting its broader push to expand trade ties globally.

Gitanjali Gems Properties Under Hammer

As many as 13 unsecured properties linked to fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi have been permitted by a Mumbai court to be valued and auctioned. These include four flats, a commercial unit, six industrial galas as well as silver bricks, semi-precious stones, machinery from Gitanjali Gems’ Jaipur facility.

Setup: A liquidator appointed by National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) moved the court last month over the same. The court directed that the proceeds from the sale must be parked in fixed deposits under the court’s name. The ownership and confiscation of proceeds will be determined after trial.

The Backstory: Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are linked to the Rs 23,000 crore Punjab National Bank fraud case, which involves the issue of fraudulent letters of undertaking. A Belgian court has approved Choksi’s extradition, while Modi remains imprisoned in UK pending extradition.

Panasonic Sees Services Growth

Osaka-based electronics major Panasonic India is transforming towards becoming a solutions-oriented company, its outgoing chairman Manish Sharma said. The company known for its consumer business has been in India for over two decades; is now more of an Indian company with Japanese roots, he added.

The Lead: The company now has twin ‘well-oiled’ engines of growth. The first being the consumer business consisting of ACs, TVs and appliances. The second is B2B industrial solutions portfolio covering automation, energy and digital integration. While both are critical, the B2B business is driving faster growth.

Future: Sharma expects the smart factory solutions business to reach Rs 1,000-2,000 crore in the next few years. Surface mount technology (SMT) machines, which are critical for electronics manufacturing, are expanding very quickly.

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