Signals mixed on Recovery Road

Photo: For representational purpose

The COVID-19 pandemic-induced lockdowns had virtually halted movement of people and goods in April and May, but curbs are being lifted slowly and the economy is beginning to hum.

Consider the latest three indicators – on toll collection, road construction, and capital outlay:

Electronic toll collection in June has rebounded to March levels and touched 75 per cent of February levels. For an idea of how hard the pandemic had slammed the brakes, toll collection had dropped off the cliff from 11 crore vehicles paying in February 2020 to just 1 crore in April.

Construction across national highways is picking up, too. It rebounded to 637 km in May from just 210 km in April. But key construction months were lost in the lockdown and labour migration continues to pinch. Normalcy might return only after the monsoon. Overall, we are bracing for a 10-13 per cent decline in highway construction on-year this fiscal, according to CRISIL Research.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) spent Rs 18,700 crore in April-May, a 46x jump from Rs 400 crore in the same period last fiscal. While this was mainly because milestone payments were made and to ease the cash flows of developers, it will have a trade-off – constrained future spending by MoRTH.

Project awarding, too, spurted 3x in April-May on-year. But that was because of a backlog of already bid-out projects that were awaiting award following the lockdown. 

Net-net, while toll collection signal looks good, spending on roads may take a backseat given that priority in the rest of this fiscal will be on healthcare and social welfare spending. That would keep project awarding and recovery on a moderate path.

Blue Dart posts revenue growth in FY26 on e-commerce and B2B demand

Blue Dart Express Limited, South Asia’s express air and integrated transportation and distribution company, has reported year-on-year growth in revenue for the financial year ended March 31, 2026, driven by strong momentum in e-commerce shipments and B2B surface express solutions.Announcing its financial results after the Board Meeting held in Mumbai, the company said revenue from operations rose to Rs 6,141 crore in FY2025–26, compared to Rs 5,720 crore in FY2024–25. Profit after tax for the year stood at Rs 240 crore.For the quarter ended March 31, 2026, Blue Dart reported revenue from..

Terex launches TRAC vibration analysis system

Terex®, a global provider of specialised equipment solutions, has launched TRAC, a new vibration analysis system designed to deliver deeper insight into the performance, condition and long-term structural integrity of screening equipment.Announced in Hosur on May 11, 2026, the TRAC system is now available across screening equipment offered under Terex Materials Processing (MP) brands, including Powerscreen®, Finlay®, EvoQuip®, MDS®, Terex® Washing Systems, Terex® MPS (Cedarapids®, Simplicity®), MAGNA™ and Terex® Ecotec.Developed specifically for vibratory screening equipment by Ter..

ADIO partners Motherson to set up large automotive components hub in KEZAD

The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) has announced its support for Samvardhana Motherson International Limited’s (Motherson) new manufacturing hub in Abu Dhabi, marking a major step in strengthening the emirate’s position as a global centre for advanced manufacturing and automotive supply chains.ADIO said the partnership aligns with its strategy to accelerate high-value industrial investments and build resilient supply chains across priority sectors, further reinforcing Abu Dhabi’s competitiveness as a regional and global manufacturing and export hub.Under the partnership, a large-scal..