India's Ethanol Capacity Has Grown Faster Than Its Demand | Markets Today #259

📌 In this episode of Markets Today, we decode 3 big stories — India’s ethanol sector sitting on 7 billion litres of unused capacity with distilleries at 60% utilisation, HCLTech’s ₹3,500 crore AI data centre signalling Indian IT’s shift from asset-light to infrastructure-heavy, and Adani vs the Indian government in Mumbai High Court over nicotine pouches at duty-free stores.

#1 ⛽ India’s Ethanol Oversupply Crisis Production capacity 20 billion litres. E20 demand 11 billion litres. Unused capacity 7 billion litres. Distilleries at 60%. Maharashtra worst hit. Export ban on 1G ethanol still in place. Consumer backlash on engine damage fears growing.

#2 💻 HCLTech’s ₹3,500 Crore Data Centre 50 MW AI-ready facility. Full-stack AI vision. TCS also planning 1 GW data centre. Indian IT shifting from consulting to infrastructure ownership. Risk: capital-intensive, GPU lifecycle just 18-24 months.

#3 ⚖️ Adani vs Government — Nicotine Court Battle Duty-free stores selling unapproved nicotine pouches. Adani says customs warehouse means Indian drug laws don’t apply. Government says Mumbai territory means no exceptions. Mumbai High Court ruling will define duty-free regulation nationwide.