India needs to move more faster towards renewable energy, spend more within the country: Sunil Mittal

Bharti Enterprises Founder and Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal | Photo Credit: -

The crisis in West Asia is creating tremendous pressure on economies globally and India is no different, Bharti Enterprises Founder and Chairman, Sunil Bharti Mittal said on Monday, adding that India needs to move more faster towards renewable energy and spend more within the country.

“We need to get away from this obsession of import of gold. We need to lower our energy costs. We need to move more faster towards renewable energy in our industry. And importantly, we need to vote with our feet within our country. Spend more here, put more capex here. My own company, Airtel, in 2024–2025, spent about ₹31,000 crore in capex,” Mittal said while addressing the CII Annual Business Summit 2026 here.

He said the investment will keep going up in the current year too.

“This is not the moment to shy away. This is the moment to invest, double down in our own country, because the underlying growth is there. This is a continent of consumers, large, young population wanting more products and more services. And let’s give them more from India, make in India, from India, serving India,” he noted.

He said though these are difficult times, India has been moving at a “fantastic speed”, growing at 6-7 per cent year over year.

“Generally, things are looking very good. But, there are situations that develop, which are beyond anybody’s control...We can’t escape the difficulties that the world is facing currently in economic terms. We need to play our part,” Mittal said.

His reactions come a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for measures by citizens to overcome the challenges emerging from the war involving the US, Israel and Iran, to help the country in many ways, including judicious use of fuel and saving foreign exchange.

Mittal added that the Prime Minister’s message was very profound and he would encourage most of the young budding businessmen, entrepreneurs to take responsibilities within CII because the government looks towards chambers, especially a chamber like CII, to work closely with them to guide their policy framework.

Meanwhile, Mittal was conferred with the CII President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement, recognising his enduring leadership, contribution to India’s economic progress, and commitment towards nation building.

Published on May 11, 2026