India undoubtedly is a bright spot in all of them: Arvind Tiku

While businesses today are facing constant uncertainty, India continues to remain a bright spot, said Arvind Tiku, founder and group chairman of AT Capital. Addressing the India Today Conclave 2026, Tiku said that the country’s huge population and demand, need for infrastructure and growth potential make it a bright spot in the global economy.   “If you divide the world in three or four large blocks, you have European Union, China and South Asia and Southeast Asian economies, which are becoming significant economic power centres. And India undoubtedly is a bright spot in all of them,” he said.   “Because the domestic demand of 1.4 billion people a young population, the need for infrastructure, the need for growth. We have a long way to go. We might be a $4.5 trillion economy but we are still are below $3,000 per capita GDP,” he further said, adding that even if the per capita GDP is doubled to $6,000, the Indian economy would become $9 trillion in size.   He however, underlined the need for government support to help businesses navigate uncertainties and be able to come up with solutions. “For businesses going forward, the ability to manoeuvre and take on risks which can happen somewhere else,” he said, noting that the recent war in West Asia has created problems for India’s basmati exports and import of gas, that in turn will affect local investments. “Government support to business is going to be more important in these uncertainties than would have been otherwise,” he underlined.   He also noted that while renewable energy will play a significant role in India, there continue to be challenges around it in terms of investments and supply chains. “Renewable energy for India is even more significant, because it is the cheapest form of energy that we today have in terms of electricity,” he said, while pointing out that it has challenges such as substantial investments for grid stability and modernisation, which is being done by the government.   Tiku further pointed out that at present supply chains for renewable are largely controlled by China and the government is now pushing for local manufacturing of solar panels and batteries.   “About 90% of the photovoltaic (PV) and battery industry is controlled by China,” he said, adding that in transportation the lithium-ion industry is completely controlled by China, which is the largest producer of it. “When we talk about renewable being a replacement for oil, the only place, probably where you can use it most is transportation,” he said.   Tiku also underlined that in terms of energy and crude oil, India needs to “maintain diversified supply chains and engage with every possible exporter of energy and then keep on working with them”.