Nilesh Shah, Navneet Munot and Vivek Prasad deliberate on India's growth beyond 5 Trillion Economy at TLOI's exclusive on-ground engagement

New Delhi [India], March 17 (ANI/SRV): "For years on end, women were told they will be empowered. The PM insists that if India is to be empowered, then development in our country has to be female-led. This change in the narrative itself indicates to society at large what is the potential role we as a community see for women in future," said the Honourable Ministry for Women and Child Development, Smriti Irani in her virtual interaction with the members of Thought Leaders of India.
The Honourable Minister was to deliver her Chief Guest Address in person at the first on-ground engagement of TLOI in Mumbai. However, owing to the current geopolitical situation and elections, she joined the members virtually.
With March being the month to celebrate women, the Honourable Minister for Women and Child Development delivered her Chief Guest Address on the topic - Why we need more Women in Executive Leadership? She mentioned that the fact that the Indian Constitution prescribes equal roles vis-a-vis responsibilities and rights to men and women in our country is a cause for celebration. Picking up from her experience at the Union Ministry of Textile, she talks about the growth and success journey of India by becoming the 2nd largest exporter of PPE kits in just 3 months. "This achievement was only possible due to the 80% women workforce that took charge even in the lockdown condition. The fact that as a female minister in textile, I saw the vibrancy, the capacity and tenancy of Indian women workforce and is something that I will cherish for the rest of my life."

As the Minister concluded her address, she mentioned she was extremely grateful to be amongst Thought Leaders, Leaders who have functionally contributed to the economic and societal growth of the nation and leaders who will lead India to a new horizon, new prospect and new potential.
Some of the dignitaries and members that graced this event in person included Anand Rathi, Founder, Anand Rathi Group; Vijay Chandok, Managing Director, ICICI Securities; Abhinaj Jain, Partner Gaja Capital; Sunu Mathew, Managing Director, Leap India; Bhaskar Sharma, CEO - India, Red Bull and many more.
As the evening continued at the Sahara Star Hotel in Mumbai, the members witness an exclusive fireside chat between Nilesh Shah, Group President and Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company Limited and Navneet Munot, MD & CEO, HDFC Asset Management Company Limited on the topic - Double-Digit Growth for India: Beyond a 5 Trillion Economy. This session was moderated by Vivek Prasad, Market Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers Private Limited.

When asked about the growth drivers that will lead India to grow beyond a 5 trillion economy, Nilesh Shah said, "Our growth drivers are driven by what we do. When you join all the dots of moderate inflation, high foreign exchange reserve, infrastructure availability, digital infrastructure better than the best in the world, availability of capital and government who is now trying to be regulator rather than a player in the business world; if this combination cannot create growth for us, nothing else can." He also mentioned even though we have achieved everything for the 5 Trillion and beyond the economy, there are two things missing - The Rule of Law and Respect for Business. When we do not allow the business to suffer due to the absence of law and start respecting entrepreneurship, there is no force in the world that can stop our growth.
Advancing this conversation, Navneet Munot was asked what is the key thing working well for India's growth and he said, "With all the recent reforms by the Government coupled with ease of doing business and digitalization, there is a large part of the economy moving from the informal sector to formal sector. Formalization of the economy doesn't lead to a substantial increase in the GDP, because a large part of the informal economy may not be paying taxes but it still gets captured in the GDP in some manner. But what it will do is actually substantially increase in the tax revenue of the government at all levels." He further added that over the next few years you will see an increase in corporate tax rates across the world, while India will end up with one of the lowest corporate tax effective in the world.
"Looking at the last 3 decades since the opening up of the Indian Economy and the reforms that have come through, the India Economy has grown leaps and bounds but more importantly it has weathered many storms. These storms have been both global as well as domestic" said Vivek Prasad, Market Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers Private Limited. He said that the key feature for this has been the resilience with which the economy has been able to come back is extremely heartening. He believes, the whole push towards digital is extremely important and continues to be a big enabler as we move forward.
The evening concluded with a motivational session by Divyanshu Ganatra, Founder and Director, Adventures Beyond Barriers Foundation. One of the leading speakers on leadership, inclusion and innovation, Divyanshu lost his eyesight to glaucoma at the age of 19. He is India's first blind solo pilot. He inspired the audience by explaining, there is not a single example of the world being a fair place yet we have fed ourselves demanding fairness. He said, "You create your realities, you reimagine possibilities and you rethink your situation. Because no situation in the world has any inheriting value by itself, it is neutral." He left the audience with the empowering thought, "We are the masters of our reality."
Rishi Kapoor, Associate Partner & Business Head, Sapphire Connect spoke on leadership being harder than it looks. He said, "Lot of people aspire to be leaders. However, Leadership doesn't come with a step by step manual. Leadership is personal, to the individual and also the environment it takes place in. That is why to be a great leader, one needs to observe and interact with great leaders first. TLOI provides this exceptional opportunity to all its members - an opportunity to network and enjoy peer-based experiences."
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