We intend to grow at double the industry average, at least

28 Sep 2023 CW Team

The change happened about five years ago when stakeholders decided to revive the company's position. The organisation banks on research at the Nashik unit to push it into consistent growth in performance. MD Ashok Kumar Gupta, who took over in 2020, has not only pushed the company into consistent growth, approximately twice the industry average over the past few years, but also steered the company through a successful rights issue worth Rs.2 billion. This gave the company enough capital to scale up and seek to achieve leadership position in the Indian paints segment. He spoke to Construction World about strategies to restore the brand to its earlier glory.

What is the strategy to regain lost ground?
We have a huge legacy dating back to 1902. A couple of decades ago, we were a leading company in the sector. In between, we did not focus on research and new products and dropped behind others.

A few years ago we took a calculated decision for a makeover. Since then, we have been regaining ground. Any journey that is halted in between takes a while to restart. We held first or second position in the industry and over half a dozen players have overtaken us.

In our makeover journey, the first starting point has been research and development (R&D). We had a small set-up which is being completely revamped at our Nashik plant and will be comparable to our competitors. It will have a full team of scientists.

To read the full story, CLICK HERE.

In the March quarter, when leading paints majors posted declines of 11-22 per cent, Shalimar Paints, a one-time market leader, posted a modest four per cent growth. Established in 1902, Shalimar dropped from leadership position to several notches below the present market leaders. As the company sailed through a successful rights issue of Rs.2 billion and focussed on scaling up R&D and production facilities, MD Ashok Kumar Gupta spoke to Senior Editor E Jayashree Kurup on how the organisation plans to re-establish leadership position in a couple of years.The change happened about five years ago when stakeholders decided to revive the company's position. The organisation banks on research at the Nashik unit to push it into consistent growth in performance. MD Ashok Kumar Gupta, who took over in 2020, has not only pushed the company into consistent growth, approximately twice the industry average over the past few years, but also steered the company through a successful rights issue worth Rs.2 billion. This gave the company enough capital to scale up and seek to achieve leadership position in the Indian paints segment. He spoke to Construction World about strategies to restore the brand to its earlier glory.What is the strategy to regain lost ground?We have a huge legacy dating back to 1902. A couple of decades ago, we were a leading company in the sector. In between, we did not focus on research and new products and dropped behind others.A few years ago we took a calculated decision for a makeover. Since then, we have been regaining ground. Any journey that is halted in between takes a while to restart. We held first or second position in the industry and over half a dozen players have overtaken us.In our makeover journey, the first starting point has been research and development (R&D). We had a small set-up which is being completely revamped at our Nashik plant and will be comparable to our competitors. It will have a full team of scientists.To read the full story, CLICK HERE.

Infrastructure Transport

01 Jun 2026

MMRDA advances 250 m on Orange Gate–Marine Drive tunnel

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has completed 250 m of underground tunnelling for the Orange Gate–Marine Drive Urban Road Tunnel using India’s largest slurry shield tunnel boring machine (TBM) deployed for an urban road project.The project involves twin tunnels extending over 7 km beneath critical transport corridors, including Central Railway, Western Railway and Metro Line 3. The work requires high-precision engineering to navigate densely developed urban infrastructure.Once completed, the tunnel is expected to reduce travel time between Orange Gate and Marin..

Infrastructure Urban

01 Jun 2026

Hindustan Zinc Pays Rs 188.46 Billion in FY26

Hindustan Zinc contributed Rs 188.46 billion to the public exchequer in FY 2025-26, according to its 9th Tax Transparency Report. The contribution, equivalent to 46 per cent of the company’s revenue, included direct and indirect taxes, government royalties, dividends to the Government of India, withholding taxes and other statutory levies.The company’s five-year cumulative contribution to the exchequer stood at Rs 915.72 billion. In FY26, Hindustan Zinc reported revenue of Rs 408.44 billion, EBITDA of Rs 221.62 billion and profit after tax of Rs 138.32 billion. It also achieved its highest..

Infrastructure Urban

01 Jun 2026

World of Concrete India 2026 Opens in Mumbai

Informa Markets in India will host the 12th edition of World of Concrete India 2026 from 3–5 June 2026 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai. The specialised B2B exhibition will bring together manufacturers, suppliers, contractors, developers, architects, consultants, infrastructure companies, project leaders and government stakeholders.The event is expected to feature over 350 brands and more than 18,000 trade professionals. It will cover concrete and cement, dry mortar, precast technologies, formwork, construction chemicals, industrial and commercial flooring, scaffolding, safety solutio..