Ashok Leyland - CSR Award

Ashok Leyland, one of the country’s leading commercial vehicle manufacturers, has been conferred with the Mother Teresa Award for Corporate Citizen of the Year 2024 by the Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA).

The recognition was on the back of the OEMs Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Dr. Palanivel Thiagarajan, Minister for Information Technology & Digital Services, Government of Tamil Nadu, presented the award to the Ashok Leyland CSR team.

The Mother Teresa Award for Corporate Citizen was established in 1998 that recognises organisations for their contribution towards societal welfare and contribution towards environmental sustainability.

Shenu Agarwal, MD & CEO, Ashok Leyland, said, “At Ashok Leyland, we see corporate social responsibility as an integral part of our business philosophy. Our commitment to nation-building goes beyond manufacturing world-class vehicles, as we strive to uplift communities, protect the environment, and drive meaningful change. Receiving the Mother Teresa Award is a great honour and a reaffirmation of our efforts to create a sustainable and inclusive future. Our Road to School and Road to Livelihood programs continue to make a meaningful impact, now reaching over five lakh students. This year, we proudly welcomed 92,000 new students, and we are set to expand further by adding another 1,00,000 students in FY26, reinforcing our commitment to education and empowerment.”

Balachandar NV, CSR and Corporate Affairs, Ashok Leyland, said, “Our CSR initiatives focus on holistic and long-term impact, aligning with our vision of creating a better society. This award is an encouragement for us to continue driving positive change through education, healthcare, environment sustainability, and skill development. We remain very proud of our ‘Road to School’ project, an initiative that takes education to the last mile, focuses on holistic child development enabling them to realize their full potential. For us, 'Road to School' is far more than just a CSR program; it represents a company-wide commitment to driving real, meaningful change in the lives of students.”

Ashok Leyland initiated the Road to School (RTS) program in collaboration with Learning Links Foundation, which tries to bridge educational disparities among students in rural and underserved areas attending government schools across India. It provides both academic and co-curricular growth, encompassing health, hygiene, physical and emotional well-being and sports. Aligned with the United Nations Global Sustainable Development Goals the program works on improving the quality of education, scholastic and co-scholastic development including sports and art education and promoting good health and wellbeing amongst underserved children from government schools.

Initiated in 2015 with 36 schools in Tamil Nadu, has now expanded across 7 states encompassing 2505 schools and has impacted 418,121 students across Government Primary, Upper Primary and High Schools in the country. Ashok Leyland shared its mission is to impact a million students by ensuring every child in India has access to quality education.

Large Portfolio of Next-Gen Electric Tippers and Mobility Solutions at Excon 2025 From Propel Industries

Large Portfolio of Next-Gen Electric Tippers and Mobility Solutions at Excon 2025 From Propel Industries

Propel Industries Private Limited showcased a large portfolio of construction equipment at Excon 2025 that included four new electric tipper models. The company aso unveiled an all-new connectivity platform and a comprehensive after-sales uptime solution. 
The four new electric tippers include the 90CED (claimed to be India's first ultra-fast charging 90 tonne electric dumper with ADAS Level 1 safety), 70CED (claimed to be India's first 8x4 mining e-tipper with 25 cu m rock body), 560HEV-X (claimed to be Indias first 8x4 construction tipper with 25 cu m box body), 470MEV Gen-2 (caimed to be India's first 6x4 tipper with 20 cu m rock body) in particular. 
The Pulse.ev connectivity platform as a new digital ecosystem built in-house specifically for electric mining and hauling operations includes features such as real-time vehicle health and diagnostics; energy consumption insights; predictive maintenance analytics and fleet optimization suite for multi-shift operations.
"The announcements reinforce Propels commitment to innovation, high-productivity for customers, zero-emission, and future-ready heavy-duty mobility. Since start of EV truck sale in 2023, the brand has expanded its presence across coal, overburden, limestone, iron-ore, stone quarry, marble & granites, and solid waste management segments. Propel trucks have cumulatively covered over 5 lakh operating hours and the first set of 8 trucks have clocked 12,500 hours in 2 years, which is equivalent to 20 hrs per day. This proves the reliability and uptime of the propel electric trucks," said Siddarth Kirtane, President – EV Sales, Marketing and Service, Propel Industries. 

JCB India launches its largest ever 52 Tonne Excavator At Excon 2025

JCB India launches its largest ever 52 Tonne Excavator At Excon 2025

JCB India launched its largest ever excavator at 52 tonness in India. It did so at the Excon 2025 exhibition in Bengaluru. The excavator, showcased along with over 10 new products, will cater to domestic as well as export markets.  Of the over 10 machines the company showed at the show, there included backhoe loaders with enhanced features in line with the customer-first strategy. JCB India is giving much attention to lower cost of ownership, higher fuel efficiency, improved machine uptime, enhanced safety and ergonomics while designing its new equipment.    With sustainability the factor, the company showcased the hydrogen engine powered backhoe loader that it unveiled in 2023. It announced the expansion of its hydrogen powered construction equipment portfolio at Excon 2025 with a hydrogen-powered genset.  "Excon is a forum that brings together customers, policymakers, contractors, financiers, suppliers, and technology leaders, creating an ecosystem for strategic collaboration and long-term business growth. JCB exports to more than 135 countries from India and this year we also have customers from South Asia, Africa Region and South-East Asia visiting us. Excon allows us to understand evolving market needs and demonstrate how our latest solutions align with both global and India’s infrastructure demands," said Deepak Shetty, CEO and MD, JCB India. 

JK Tyre Unveils Four New OTR Tyres at Excon 2025

JK Tyre Unveils Four New OTR Tyres at Excon 2025

JK Tyre & Industries Ltd launched four new Off-the-Road (OTR) tyres at Excon 2025 in Bengluru. Unveiled by Dr R Mukhopadhyay, Director (R&D), JK Tyre, the four new OTR tyres further expand the company's portfolio in construction and mining equipment. 
The Sky Grip tyre for example is engineered specifically for Aerial Work Platforms (AWPs) and Boom Lifts used across construction, infrastructure maintenance, warehousing and industrial operations. The 355/55D625 Sky Grip tyre is designed to offer enhanced stability, superior traction and consistent performance at elevated working heights and is compatible with articulated and telescopic boom lifts, telehandlers and even rough terrain aerial platform. 
The three other OTR tyres are designed for critical industrial and mining applications. The 14.00-25 GTL Plus, for example, is a backhoe loader tyre that offers strong stability, durability and dependable performance during frequent loading and excavation operations. The 23.5-25 GTL Plus variant, on the other hand, supports wheel loaders with improved traction and endurance on demanding surfaces. F
or underground mining requirements, the 14.00-20 VEM AS-UG OTR tyre features a reinforced casing and specialised compound designed to withstand abrasive environments and the rigorous duty cycles of shuttle cars.
“India is witnessing a transformative phase in infrastructure development, and JK Tyre remains committed to support this journey. With the launch of our new OTR range at EXCON, we are strengthening our support for equipment that powers critical infrastructure, enabling greater productivity, durability and operational safety across the country’s construction, mining and industrial projects," averred Srinivasu Allaphan, Director-Sales & Marketing, JK Tyre & Industries. 

Mahindra Compax Mini Compactor Unveiled

Mahindra Compax Mini Compactor Unveiled

Mahindra’s Construction Equipment business (MCE) launched the Compax mini compactor at EXcon 2025 in Bengluru. The mini compactor, aimed at the road construction industry, packs cutting edge techbology to deliver best-in-cass fuel efficiency and reliability. It is built robust and furthers the standards in the category to ensure better returns to the operators. 

“Mahindra commercial vehicles and construction equipment machines are known for their cutting-edge technology, best-in-class fuel efficiency, robust built and reliability that helps deliver substantially higher earnings and profitability for our customers. The new Mahindra COMPAX reflects the same Mahindra DNA and is poised to deliver higher profits and prosperity to our customers. Our deep understanding of the challenges of the Indian infrastructure ecosystem and strong capabilities of indigenous manufacturing makes our machines, including the new mini compactor, an ideal choice for demanding compaction tasks,” said Dr Venkat Srinivas, Business Head – Mahindra Truck, Bus and Construction Equipment, and Executive Director & CEO, SML Mahindra Ltd.