Cargo Corridors Hyderabad Convenes Policy, Ports, Banks & Industry to Strengthen India’s SME Export Architecture
Hyderabad, February 24, 2026 | Hotel Taj Deccan
Hyderabad witnessed one of the most consequential trade and logistics gatherings of the year as Cargo Corridors: Moving SMEs Forward convened senior government officials, customs leadership, banking strategists, logistics operators, trade technology specialists and SME exporters under one roof.
Organised by SME Communities in association with Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), the Hyderabad edition was positioned as a high-level industry intervention aimed at reducing friction across ports, credit, customs and compliance to strengthen India’s export competitiveness.
The evening began with a focused Business Health Clinic for SMEs, evaluating financial health, digital readiness and supply chain resilience, reinforcing the event’s core premise: logistics competitiveness begins with enterprise preparedness.
In his opening remarks, Mr. Prashant Laxmeshwar, Founding Partner, Amanha Idealabs, underscored that India’s export ambition cannot be realised without seamless integration between finance, freight and policy architecture.
Policy & Regulatory Leadership at the Forefront
Delivering the Welcome Address, Mr. Unnikrishnan K, Joint Director General, FIEO, set the tone by highlighting the need to build globally competitive logistics capabilities for Indian exporters.
The Chief Guest, Mr. J. Nikhil Chakravarthy, IAAS, Director, Industries, Commerce & Export Promotion, Government of Telangana, addressed the theme ‘Hyderabad – Enabling the Cargo Corridors of Indian Trade’, emphasising Telangana’s infrastructure push and export facilitation initiatives.
Further strengthening the policy narrative, Mr. D. Phani Kumar, IRS, Additional Commissioner of Customs, Hyderabad Customs Commissionerate, spoke on ‘Customs as a Catalyst for SME Competitiveness in Logistics’, reiterating the importance of regulatory efficiency in reducing transaction costs.
Ms. Anita Barik, IRTS, Cluster Head – Hyderabad, Container Corporation of India Ltd., outlined how rail and multimodal networks are central to building resilient cargo corridors in the next phase of India’s export expansion.
Banking & Balance Sheet Resilience
From a financial architecture perspective, Mr. Manish Upadhyay, Head – Products, Business Banking, IDFC FIRST Bank, addressed “Resilient Balance Sheet in a VUCA Trade World”, outlining lending, FX discipline and trade finance imperatives for SME exporters navigating global volatility.
His address reinforced the message that export growth without structured risk management is unsustainable.
Digital Trade & Insurance Imperatives
A high-impact fireside conversation on ‘Digital Trade, Document Intelligence & Insurance: Building Resilient Export Corridors for SMEs’ brought together Ms. Srividya Subramanian, Global Co-Head – APAC & MENA, Traydstream, and Dr. Ravi Seshadri, Board Advisor and insurance industry veteran.
The discussion examined how document intelligence, compliance discipline and structured risk transfer mechanisms are redefining exporter credibility in 2026 and beyond.
Connecting Finance, Freight & Policy
The concluding panel discussion titled ‘Seamless Corridors, Stronger Trade: Connecting Finance, Freight & Policy’ brought together senior representatives from the Telangana Government logistics department, customs ecosystem, air cargo associations, freight forwarders, exporters and trade finance specialists.
Moderated by SME Communities, the panel moved beyond commentary to actionable dialogue on reducing bottlenecks across multimodal infrastructure, documentation cycles, credit flow and regulatory processes.
Mr. Auszad Shaikh, Vice President – Logistics, Government of Telangana shared the state’s logistics policy perspective, outlining how integrated warehousing, multimodal parks and regulatory alignment can accelerate Hyderabad’s position as a strategic export hub.
Mr. Laurence Jacobi, Air Cargo Agents Association of India (ACAAI) offered the air cargo ecosystem’s operational lens, highlighting last-mile bottlenecks, capacity optimisation and the role of cargo agents in time-sensitive global trade.
Mr. R. K. Agrawal, Managing Director, Nakoda Chemicals & Past National President, Bulk Drugs Manufacturers Association of India, shared an exporter’s ground reality, detailing how working capital cycles, documentation discipline and logistics reliability directly impact global order competitiveness.
Mr. Dushyant Mulani, Past Chairman, Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Associations in India (FFFAI), brought decades of freight forwarding leadership, emphasizing compliance architecture, multimodal coordination and the evolving role of forwarders as trade facilitators.
Mr. Sudarshan Chary, Director, Sattva CFS & Logistics Pvt Ltd, provided the container freight station perspective, discussing cargo handling efficiency, port-side infrastructure and decongestion strategies critical for SME exporters.
Mr. J. Venkateswara Rao, Vice President – EXIM, GTN Industries Ltd., contributed a corporate exporter’s strategic viewpoint on supply chain resilience, forex exposure management and integrated export planning.
Mr. Gaurav Shah, Head – Products, Trade Funded Assets, IDFC FIRST Bank articulated the trade finance dimension, explaining how structured credit, risk-based pricing and digital trade documentation can strengthen corridor liquidity.
A Strategic Industry Intervention
Unlike traditional networking forums, Cargo Corridors Hyderabad was designed as a strategic convergence platform. By aligning policymakers, regulators, infrastructure leaders, bankers and exporters in one integrated dialogue, the initiative sought to create a blueprint for friction-free export growth.
With India’s export ambitions accelerating and global supply chains undergoing structural realignment, the Hyderabad edition reaffirmed one central insight: efficient corridors are not built by infrastructure alone — they are built by coordination.
Cargo Corridors will continue its multi-city engagement model, positioning itself as a national platform to advance SME-led trade competitiveness.
About SME Communities
SME Communities is a national knowledge and industry engagement platform focused on strengthening India’s SME ecosystem through dialogue, policy connect and sector-specific forums.
About FIEO
The Federation of Indian Export Organisations is India’s apex trade promotion body, working closely with government and industry to enhance the country’s export competitiveness.
