Team News Riveting
Raipur, May 27
The Chhattisgarh State Council of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group, convened its first meeting the other day.
Abhijit Pati, Chairman, Chhattisgarh State Council FICCI, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Director of Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (BALCO), chaired the meeting. The main objective behind the meeting was to conduct a brainstorming session by allowing the members to discuss and deliberate about further strengthening the body and the modus operandi regarding addressing of key and crucial industrial issues at the state level.
The event was attended by U P Singh, AVP, Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL), Suyash Shukla, GM, JSPL, Shekhar Subhedar, Executive Director MHIDPL, Vikram Jain, Director SBT Textiles, R B E Rao, CEO, MHIDPL, Ashwin Garg, President URLA Industries Association, Manish Ahuja, Group CFO, IB Group, Aseem Ahuja, Treasury Head, IB Group, Rajan Pandey, MHIDPL and Shaleen Rao, Deputy Director and Head FICCI Chhattisgarh State Office.
In his address, Pati said, “We as members of a prestigious association should collectively work towards strengthening the presence of FICCI in the state through a deep understanding of the government’s approach towards industries and government’s understanding of industrial issues. FICCI is a platform to discuss and identify crucial issues faced by various industries of the state and we all have to work together towards transforming the industrial fabric of the state and nation at large through this platform. Our objectives can be achieved after active involvement with the state government, by supporting the government in policy reforms and by providing industrial inputs for Ease of Doing Business in the state, hence we should focus on further improving these two engagements. We as a responsible body should also help the government to identify sources of potential investment which can lead to resolving several important issues. Apart from raising our voice regarding key industrial subjects it is our responsibility to support and promote the MSME sector as well in order to support the holistic development of the state. I am confident that with all of our collective efforts, we can achieve all our goals.”
The FICCI Chhattisgarh State Council Chairman also emphasised on holding frequent member meetings and formation of executive committees within the member units as well as small executive committees which could meet frequently to review collective issues and make representation on matters needing urgent attention from the government. This could further culminate in meeting with the government stakeholders to resolve the issues. He concluded by saying that more vibrancy, initiatives & conviction with a strong eco system to perform to strengthen the industrial fabric of the state will help us grow enormously & also become visible as huge opportunities are there.
U P Singh, representing former Chairman Pradeep Tandon, President JSPL, stated that experts from various organisations and member units can become a part of the expert committee to delve on Mining, Forest & Environmental Clearances, Transportation and other relevant issues, with a focused approach.
Expressing his views, Ashwin Garg, President URLA Industries Association, said that industry associations work as a bridge between the Industry and government. He mentioned that while formulating Chhattisgarh Industrial Policy 2019-24, the government sought views from all the prominent industry associations of the State. He further stated that collective local issues can be taken up by FICCI Chhattisgarh Council to motivate member units, which can then be placed before the relevant government department as documentary evidence.
While R B E Rao, CEO MHIDPL raised the issue of shortage of cold storage across the state, Vikram Jain, Director, SBT Textiles talked about the importance of MSME in the growth of the economy and the importance of addressing local issues related to textile industries.
Manoj Ahuja, Group CFO, IB Group emphasized on resolving current challenges collectively.
Established in 1927, FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organisation in India. Its history is closely interwoven with India’s struggle for independence, its industrialization, and its emergence as one of the most rapidly growing global economies.
A non-government, not-for-profit organisation, FICCI is the voice of India’s business and industry. From influencing policy to encouraging debate, engaging with policy makers and civil society, FICCI articulates the views and concerns of industry. It serves its members from the Indian private and public corporate sectors and multinational companies, drawing its strength from diverse regional chambers of commerce and industry across states, reaching out to over 2,50,000 companies.
FICCI provides a platform for networking and consensus building within and across sectors and is the first port of call for Indian industry, policy makers and the international business community.
