<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif">NEW DELHI

— India's logistics backbone is bracing for a significant financial strain as a

recent 3% to 3.5% spike in diesel prices across several regions triggers

widespread concern throughout the transport sector. The All India Transporters

Welfare Association (AITWA), the apex body representing commercial fleet owners

and logistics operators nationwide, has warned that this latest fuel hike will

inevitably distort domestic supply chains. With operational margins squeezed to

a breaking point, the association announced that a 2.5% to 3% hike in freight

rates across all major commercial sectors is likely to take effect immediately,

threatening to pass the inflationary burden down to industries and end

consumers alike.<o:p></o:p></span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif">The

impending rate revision is not merely a reaction to costlier fuel, but rather

the tipping point of a broader, compounding cost crisis within the road

transport industry. Fleet operators are currently battling a staggering 50%

price surge in Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) and urea—a mandatory input for all

modern BS-VI compliant commercial vehicles to meet emissions standards. When

combined with steady price hikes for heavy-duty tyres, essential lubricants,

and frequently escalating toll charges across national highways, the cumulative

overheads have made absorbing the latest diesel price revision economically

unviable for the highly fragmented trucking sector.<o:p></o:p></span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif">While

acknowledging that the federal government's brief postponement of fuel price

adjustments provided a temporary cushion for businesses, industry leaders

emphasize that the underlying macroeconomic pressures remain severe. Beyond the

immediate pricing volatility, logistics operators are deeply concerned about

the stability of the fuel supply chain itself. AITWA is actively lobbying

government authorities to guarantee uninterrupted fuel availability, cautioning

that any artificial market shortages or distribution bottlenecks would severely

exacerbate structural inefficiencies, further inflating the final cost of

moving goods across the country.<o:p></o:p></span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif">Amid these

pressing operational headwinds, the transport sector is simultaneously

attempting to navigate a structural pivot toward long-term environmental

sustainability. Through forward-looking programs like the "AITWA Green

Grid" initiative, the association is quietly laying the groundwork for a

transition to electric and alternative-fuel commercial fleets. Even as they

manage immediate fiscal shocks from fossil fuels, industry stakeholders are

running active pilot projects and infrastructure readiness studies to determine

the economic viability of green mobility, ensuring the sector can support

national economic stability without compromising its long-term decarbonization

goals.<o:p></o:p></span></p>

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