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ET Now concludes the 9th season of Leaders of Tomorrow Awards and Conclave
Mumbai: ET Now has recently concluded the ninth season of ‘Leaders of Tomorrow Awards and Conclave’ which celebrates the success stories of India’s most innovative and resilient MSMEs and start-ups. This year’s event was driven by the theme ’Survive. Revive. Thrive’.
The event witnessed a distinguished line-up of speakers including principal economic advisor to GoI, Sanjeev Sanyal; IDFC First Bank MD and CEO V Vaidyanathan; BSE MD and CEO Ashish Chauhan, and HSBC India former country head Naina Lal Kidwai amongst others, who discussed the challenges faced by the small businesses and the way forward for India’s small enterprises and start-ups.
The distinguished jury of industry luminaries included Naina Lal Kidwai; Mahindra & Mahindra former MD Pawan Goenka; BSE head of SME Ajay Thakur; True Beacon & Zerodha co-founder and CIO Nikhil Kamath; Vinati Organics MD Vinati Saraf Mutreja; Growthstory investor partner and serial entrepreneur K Ganesh; Persistent Systems chairman Anand Deshpande; ASSOCHAM president and TCI MD Vineet Agarwal, and JBM Group vice-chairman Nishant Arya.
The event culminated in an exciting finale wherein the best MSMEs and startups were awarded. EF Polymer was named ‘Start-Up Entrepreneur of the Year’ and Keetronics India clinched ‘MSME Entrepreneur of the Year’.
“ET Now has been championing India’s growth story with a focused purpose of helping Indians rise with India. This mission reflects in our flagship property, Leaders of Tomorrow that empowers, enables and celebrates the spirit of small businesses and start-ups that are together powering the rise of a strong new India,” said Times Network MD and CEO MK Anand. “It is heartening to witness stories of several enterprising small businesses who not only showed resilience but rose through the adversities to innovate, reimagine and reinvent during the turbulent past two years. I firmly believe that Leaders of Tomorrow will continue to inspire more and more Indians to take the plunge and create new stories of entrepreneurial success.”
“The Indian economy has bounced back after the first and second wave because the underlying human consumption is very strong in India,” said IDFC First Bank’s V Vaidyanathan. “All the major indicators of the economy – GDP, house sales, car and two-wheeler sales, and FMCG products’ consumption have been marking an upward trend. The power of an economy lies in its credit. The Indian banking industry’s current outstanding total credit is over 120 lakh crores, out of which about 50 lakh crore is for entrepreneurs. After 75 years, small entrepreneur credit is growing by 25-30 per cent per year. SMEs are being benefited tremendously by the power of leverage, which was earlier reserved for large corporations.”
Highlighting the need for entrepreneurs to shift to an organised environment from an unorganised one, he said, “Migration from unorganised to organised is the need of the hour. The Indian retail industry or kirana market is a trillion-dollar market, out of which 80-84 per cent is unorganised and only four per cent is online. Every industry is now becoming organised, offline to online. For entrepreneurs, this is an opportunity to ride the new bandwagon and not just be spectators. The leaders of tomorrow need to have a digital play.”
Sanjeev Sanyal stated, “As the Indian economy revives post-pandemic, we observed that the impact in the second wave was much lesser as compared to the first wave. Things are stabilising and industries are opening up now and we realise that demand is not a constraint in India. Globally, this is a serious issue, but India has been able to overcome this as our fiscal resources are strong. Our supply sector reforms are unparalleled. During the first wave, we focused on framework reforms like GST, Aadhar, labour reforms, and farm laws, however, the second wave reforms are more sectoral in nature like deregulation, monetisation, and privatisation of industries.”
Talking about the third wave reforms which are currently in the pipeline, Sanyal further said, “Our thrust during the third wave reforms would be to get the Indian state to do what it should be doing which includes, delivery of justice, enforcement of contract, and upgradation of municipal services. We plan to give access to world-class infrastructure to poorer sections of the society to foster innovations. I do not believe in rigid planning, rather focus on growth strategy that is based on flexibility and resilience. One big example of this is ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ which focuses on leveraging our inner strengths. We as a nation need to give ourselves enough credit. Today, we delivered over 20 million Covid-19 jabs and I feel this is incredible, we have the capacity to deliver at this high level.”
News Broadcasting
Induction cooktop demand spikes 30× amid LPG supply concerns
Supply worries linked to West Asia tensions push households and restaurants to turn to electric cooking alternatives
MUMBAI: As geopolitical tensions in West Asia ripple through global energy supply chains, the familiar blue flame in Indian kitchens is facing an unexpected challenger: electricity.
What began as concerns over the availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has quickly evolved into a technology-driven shift in cooking habits. Households across India are increasingly turning to induction cooktops and other electric appliances, initially as a backup but now, for many, a necessity.
A sudden surge in demand
Recent data from quick-commerce and grocery platform BigBasket highlights the scale of the shift. According to Seshu Kumar Tirumala, the company’s chief buying and merchandising officer, demand for induction cooktops has risen dramatically.
“Induction cooktops have seen a significant surge in demand, recording a fivefold jump on 10 March and a thirtyfold spike on 11 March,” Tirumala said.
The increase stands out sharply when compared with broader kitchen appliance trends. Most appliance categories are growing within 10 per cent of their typical demand levels, while induction cooktops have witnessed explosive growth as households rush to secure an alternative cooking option.
Major e-commerce platforms including Amazon and Flipkart have reported rising searches and orders for induction stoves. Quick-commerce apps such as Blinkit and Zepto have also witnessed stock shortages in major metropolitan areas including Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
What was once considered a convenient appliance for hostels, small kitchens or occasional use has suddenly become an essential addition in many homes.
A crisis thousands of miles away
The trigger for this shift lies far beyond India’s kitchens.
Escalating conflict in the Middle East has disrupted shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy corridors. Nearly 85 to 90 per cent of India’s LPG imports pass through this narrow waterway, making the country particularly vulnerable to supply disruptions.
The ripple effects have been swift.
India currently meets roughly 60 per cent of its LPG demand through imports, and tightening global supply has already begun to affect domestic availability and prices.
Earlier this month, the price of domestic LPG cylinders increased by Rs 60, while commercial cylinders rose by more than Rs 114.
To discourage panic buying and hoarding, the government has also extended the mandatory waiting period between domestic refill bookings from 21 days to 25 days.
Restaurants feel the pressure
The strain is not limited to households. Restaurants, hotels and roadside eateries are also grappling with supply constraints as commercial LPG availability tightens under restrictions imposed through the Essential Commodities Act.
In cities such as Bengaluru and Chennai, restaurant associations report that commercial LPG availability has dropped by as much as 75 per cent, forcing many establishments to rethink their kitchen operations.
Some restaurants have reduced menu offerings, while others are rapidly installing high-efficiency induction systems, creating hybrid kitchens where electricity now shares the workload with gas.
For smaller eateries and roadside dhabas, the shift is less about sustainability and more about survival.
A potential structural shift
The government has maintained that there is no nationwide LPG crisis and has directed refineries to increase production to stabilise supply.
Nevertheless, the developments of March 2026 may already be triggering a longer-term behavioural shift.
For decades, LPG has been the backbone of cooking in Indian households. However, recent disruptions have highlighted the risks of relying on a single fuel source.
Increasingly, households appear to be hedging against uncertainty by adopting electric cooking options to guard against price volatility and delivery delays.
If the current trend continues, the induction cooktop, once viewed as a niche appliance, could emerge as a quiet symbol of India’s evolving kitchen economy.
