Brands
Airtel lists 32.7 mn paperless Aadhar-based acquisitions in ‘Sustainability Report’
MUMBAI: Bharti Airtel (Airtel), India’s largest telecommunications company, has released its 2017 India Sustainability Report that outlines its approach towards responsible, sustainable business practices and making a positive impact on all stakeholders including customers, suppliers, local communities, investors, employees and government bodies.
Bharti Airtel MD & CEO (India & south Asia) Gopal Vittal said, “As part of our governance DNA, we attach a deep sense of purpose to the way we conduct our business and ensure it has a positive impact on all stakeholders. Being a responsible corporate citizen, we have implemented a host of sustainability initiatives across the organization and remain fully committed to building on this strong foundation.”
Green Initiatives
81% reduction in CO2 emissions across network infrastructure in the last five years and 27% reduction in the last financial year.
23% reduction in CO2 emissions per square feet in our facility and 9% reduction in CO2 emissions per rack in data centre operations against 2015-16
Airtel saved over 1280 million sheets of paper since FY 2011-12 on paperless billing initiatives.
Adopted Aadhar based instant verification process which is secure and eliminates paperwork
Managed to recycle 2400 tonnes of e-waste and refurbished over 500,000 direct-to-home set top boxes
Over 1200 tonnes of paper have been saved since FY 2011-12 with the paperless billing initiative, over 170 millions have opted for e-bills. 191 tonnes of paper was saved across facilities
Adopted Aadhar based instant verification process which is secure and eliminates paperwork. 32.7 million such paperless Aadhar based acquisitions were completed last year.
Customer Initiatives
Unveiled India’s first Open Network, setting a new benchmark for transparency in the industry, by making the entire network information including coverage, site details and signal strength available to customers.
Doubled mobiles sites in just two years by deploying 180,000 sites. This is the same number deployed over the past 20 years.
Self-regulation: Airtel will contribute INR 100,000 for every 0.01% increase in call drop rate beyond 1.5% / month against the TRAI prescribed limit of 2%. The amount will be contributed towards education of the under privileged.
Listening to customers through various touch points – stores, customer care, website and social media. There is 74% increase in online interactions and 10 million social media queries were answered last year.
Community Initiatives
The company supports over 254 Satya Bharti School Program, Learning Centers and Quality Support Program through its educational initiatives and benefitted over 43,500 underprivileged children in rural India, impacting over 198,000 underprivileged children cumulatively.
Benefitted over 3.8 million farmers through the IFFCO-Kisan Sanchar Ltd by undertaking mobile based agriculture awareness Implemented a host of initiatives in the field of disaster relief management, environment protection and other social causes
Other key interventions
Deployed a ‘Win with people’ strategy. To help talent grow through strong learning, mentoring and succession planning, started conducting Career Fairs. Over 370 hours of training interventions with over 935,000 man hours of training delivered in FY 2016-17
Launched Airtel Payments Bank, the first payments bank in India, further consolidating the government’s agenda of digital payments and financial inclusion.
Enabled over 1000 villages to go cashless across India, through enabling Airtel Payments Bank accounts with over 250000 banking points and onboarding merchants who accept digital payments
Brands
Kwality Wall’s reports standalone losses following strategic HUL demerger
Ice cream major faces Rs 64 crore Ebitda loss amid commodity inflation and muted Q3 sales
MUMBAI: Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited (KWIL) has released its first set of financial results as a standalone entity, revealing a challenging start to its independent journey. Following its successful demerger from Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) on 1st December 2025 and its subsequent listing on 16th February 2026, the company is navigating a transition period marked by structural changes and high input costs.
For the quarter ended 31st December 2025, the company reported revenue of Rs 222 crores. Despite the revenue base, the bottom line was impacted by several factors, resulting in an Ebitda loss of Rs 64.2 crores. When calculated on a Pre-IND AS 116 basis, the Ebitda loss stood at Rs 83.8 crores.
Organic Sales Growth (OSG) declined by 6.5 per cent year-on-year during the quarter. Volume growth, however, saw a marginal increase of 1.2 per cent. The company reported a gross margin of 41.5 per cent. Additionally, exceptional expenses amounting to Rs 94 crores were recorded, primarily linked to non-recurring costs during the transition phase.
Performance across portfolios and channels was mixed. Within the impulse portfolio, brands such as Magnum and Cornetto recorded mid-single digit volume growth, indicating steady demand in on-the-go consumption. However, the in-home portfolio, which includes take-home packs, experienced muted consumption. The company is planning a relaunch of this category with improved offerings ahead of the 2026 season.
Quick commerce (Q-Com) continued to emerge as a strong growth driver, delivering robust double-digit growth during the quarter. Meanwhile, the company also expanded its physical distribution network by increasing the number of company-owned cabinets across markets.
Margin pressure during the quarter was driven by a combination of one-off factors and broader cost inflation. Gross margins were impacted by around 600 basis points due to trade investments made for stock liquidation. Additionally, cocoa price inflation contributed to another 400 basis points of pressure on margins.
Deputy managing director Chitrank Goel attributed the muted performance partly to prolonged monsoons and transitional challenges linked to the GST framework. Operating expenses also increased as the company invested in establishing its standalone supply chain, operational systems and corporate infrastructure following the demerger.
Looking ahead, the management remains focused on a volume-driven growth strategy. To restore profitability, the company has initiated a cost productivity programme aimed at reducing non-consumer-facing costs. It is also working on building regional manufacturing networks to optimise logistics expenses and improve operational efficiency.
The commodity outlook for the near term remains mixed. Dairy prices are expected to remain firm due to tight supply conditions and rising fodder costs. Sugar prices may also move higher following increases in the Minimum Selling Price (MSP). While cocoa prices have moderated recently, currency depreciation has offset some of the potential cost relief for the company.
