‘Belly capacity can’t meet India’s rising cargo demand’

Amit Maheshwari, Founder and CEO, Softlink Global, said, “We moved about 3.7 million tonnes in FY25, and the trends point to 5 to 6 million tonnes within a few years. Belly space cannot keep pace because it swings with passenger traffic and doesn’t heavy, odd-size, or time-critical freight. India has barely 18 to 20 freighters today across Blue Dart, Quikjet, IndiGo CarGo, SpiceXpress, Pradhaan Air, and Afcom. That’s a thin fleet for a country pushing exports, pharma, and fast e-commerce flows. Without more freighters, the supply chain will stay tight and rates will stay volatile.”