Winning Bizness Economic Desk
India’s solar module manufacturing sector has registered a big expansion with the addition of 81 GW of capacity in just one single year.
This was stated by the Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy, Mr Prahlad Joshi.
The Minister stated that this expansion underscored the country’s strengthening Atmanirbhar (self-reliance) status and its long-term commitment to a robust, future-ready clean energy eco-system.
The manufacturing capacity has zoomed from 2.3 GW in 2014 to a projected 144 GW by 2025, representing a whopping 6,161 per cent climb.
Between 2024 to 2025 alone, India added 81 GW of capacity, growing from 63 GW to 144 GW—a big 128.57 per cent annual increase.
“From 2014 to 2025, India’s solar module manufacturing has witnessed exceptionally high growth, making a decisive transformation in the Renewable Energy Sector. This journey of sustained progress saw a sharp acceleration during 2024-25, reflecting rapid expansion and rising momentum,” Mr Joshi said.
It must be pointed out here that solar modules are vital components for generating power from sunlight.
While production has been historically concentrated in China, India has now speedily upped its domestic capabilities.
Mr Joshi also observed that the capacity for producing solar cells moved northward from 1.2 GW in 2014 to around 25 GW by March 2025. Solar cells are high-tech components inside modules that transform light into electricity.
It is crucial for the country to manufacture these cells locally (within the country) to reduce a heavy reliance on imports. Historically, in excess of 80 per cent of the components were sourced from neighbouring China.
The sharp climb in capacity is a clear reflection of the strong impact of India’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, which has successfully propelled large-scale investments and accelerated domestic manufacturing.
Here, it must be highlighted that India has introduced many initiatives including the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) and a proposed 30 per cent anti-dumping duty on Chinese cells and modules.
Fisheries Sector Needs to Look at Alternative Global Markets
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce has held a meeting with key stakeholders to review India-US trade relations, with a focus on the impact of retaliatory tariffs imposed by the United States (US) on the country’s fisheries and marine products segment.
The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Dola Sen, Chairperson of the Committee. Visakhapatnam Member of Parliament (MP) Mr Mathukumilli Sribharat, former Union Minister Ms Renuka Chowdhury and a delegation of 15- Members of Parliament participated in the deliberations.
Mr Sribharat called upon government institutions and regulatory bodies to extend co-ordinated backing to help the fisheries industry overcome the challenges arising from a heavy dependence on the US market.
The Visakhapatnam Member of Parliament highlighted the need to protect the livelihoods of lakhs of fishermen, farmers and workers associated with the marine exports sector.
He highlighted the necessity of diversifying export markets in the backdrop of high tariffs imposed by the United States. He asked the industry to explore alternative markets globally and additionally, to modernise its operations to align with international standards in order to be competitive.
Another senior official, Mr D V Swamy, Chairman of the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) said that with a reciprocal tariff base rate of 50 per cent combined with anti-dumping duty of 2.49 per cent and countervailing duty of 5.77 per cent, the total duty burden has risen to 58.26 per cent, posing a serious threat to the global competitiveness of Indian shrimp exports.
The meeting was attended by officials from the Fishing Boat Owners Association, Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT), MPEDA, National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), the Visakhapatnam Chamber of Commerce, Seafood Exporters Association of India, Union Bank of India (UBI) and officials from the Exim Bank.
There was an exchange of views and also suggestions on possible remedial measures. The Committee has assured the stakeholders that their concerns and suggestions would be considered and incorporated in its recommendations to the central government.
India’s IIP Registers a Robust 6.7 per cent Expansion in November
The country’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP) registered a healthy 6.7 per cent Year-on-Year (YoY) growth in November 2025, according to government data.
The growth was led by manufacturing of basic metals and fabricated metal products, pharma and motor vehicles.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) stated that the IIP growth rate has recovered when compared to the 0.4 per cent growth in October 2025.
The growth rates of three sectors—mining, manufacturing and electricity—for the month are 5.4 per cent, 8 per cent and -1.5 per cent, respectively.
Within manufacturing, 20 out of 23 industry groups at NIC 2 digit-level have recorded a positive growth in November 2025 over November 2024.
The top three positive contributors for the month are manufacturing of basic metals (10.2 per cent), manufacture of pharma, medicinal, chemical and botanical products (10.5 per cent) and manufacture of motor-vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers (11.9 per cent).
“Healthy gains in manufacturing and mining suggest that underlying industrial momentum is strengthening, potentially supporting broader economic performance in the near-to-medium-term,” Mr Ranjeet Mehta, Secretary-General and CEO, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI), said.
As per use-base classification, the indices stand at 150.7 for primary goods, 117.8 for capital goods, 170.1 for intermediate goods and 198.7 for infrastructure/construction goods for the month.
The indices for consumer durables and consumer non-durables stand at 134.0 and 169.7, respectively.
Based on use-based classification, the top three contributors to the growth of IIP for the month are infrastructure/construction goods, intermediate goods and consumer non-durables.
Robust Global Demand Propels Coffee Exports Over USD 2-bn in 2025
The country’s coffee export segment has achieved a very creditable milestone in 2025 with export earnings breaching the USD 2-billion mark. This is the first time that this has happened.
The USD 2-billion mark was crossed primarily because of a robust domestic demand coupled with increased purchases by Russia and supported by firm global prices.
The provisional data from the Coffee Board of India and shipment permits indicate that export earnings reached around USD 2.06-billion, up more than 20 per cent as compared to the previous year, even as overall export volumes moderated.
The steep northward climb in value comes despite a slight slide in physical shipments, reflecting broader global supply constraints and rising international coffee prices.
The higher average realisations for both Robusta and Arabica beans have helped offset the slide in tonnage, providing a big boost to both—farmers and exporters.
Traditional markets such as Italy, Germany, Belgium and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) continued to absorb large quantities of Indian coffee.
An important point to highlight here is that in 2025, Russia emerged as a notable growth destination, increasing its purchases significantly and reflecting shifting trade patterns in global coffee demand.
According to industry observers, improvements in supply-chain efficiency, targeted export incentives and an increasing global preference for specialty and traceable coffees have strengthened Indian coffee’s competitiveness in foreign markets.
Government initiatives and the Coffee Board’s promotional efforts in critical markets are also seen as contributing factors to the strong performance.
This year (2026), the country’s coffee exports are expected to remain resilient. The coffee exports are expected to be supported by sustained demand in both traditional and emerging markets and continuing price strength.
