Month: July 2018

Narendra Damodardas Modi became the 14th and the current Prime Minister of India, after an impressive stint as the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014. He belongs to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and is also a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)
BY ANAM KUMAR

The story of Narendra Modi’s rise to become the most important person in India is really stupendous, as even after being born in a poor family of Gujarat, his resolve to do something great for himself and his country led him to move up in his political career, till he became the Prime Minister of the country.

STORY OF PERSEVERANCE

Back in his childhood, he used to help his father sell tea as a child, and then even had a tea stall of his own. Impressed by the ideology and selfless work of the RSS for the good of the nation, he joined RSS at the age of eight.

Born as the third of six children to Damodardas Mulchand Modi and Hiraben Modi, he completed his higher secondary education in Vadnagar. Though he was an average student, he took an interest in debating and theatre.

He was engaged to Jashodaben when both were children; however, Modi didn’t accept their arranged marriage.

The spirit to do something for the country was so strong in him, that he renounced his family, even his wife, and started working full-time in regional and national politics. After renouncing his family, he travelled around India for two years. Later, he became a full-time worker for the RSS, which assigned him to the BJP. His hard work paid off and he kept on rising within the party hierarchy until he became its General Secretary.

He got a tremendous opportunity, when Keshubhai Patel’s public image was hit after the earthquake in Bhuj, and he was appointed the Chief Minister of Gujarat in 2001. He wasn’t even a Member of the Legislative Assembly, but was elected soon after. His policies as the Chief Minister of Gujarat led to a high economic growth in Gujarat and were praised by all and sundry.

Modi has also been praised substantially because of his efforts towards improving efficiency in the bureaucracy. Other praiseworthy steps taken by Modi include abolition of the Planning Commission and creation of Niti Aayog, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Digital India campaign, Make In India campaign, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, Skill India campaign, etc.

MAN OF ACTION

Modi’s political success streak started with the win of BJP in the Ahmedabad municipal election in 1987, as he helped organise the BJP’s campaign and his planning played a major role in the win. Recognising Modi’s efforts, Shri L K Advani – who was the President of the BJP then – helped him become the organising secretary of the BJP’s Gujarat unit.

Modi quickly moved up the hierarchy in the BJP and soon became a member of the BJP’s National Election Committee, where he helped L K Advani in his Ram Rath Yatra of 1990, and helped Murli Manohar Joshi in his Ekta Yatra (Journey for Unity).

Taking advantage of Shankersinh Vaghela’ defection to the Indian National Congress and supporting Keshubhai Patel, he strategized and help BJP win the 1998 elections with an overall majority. Consequently, he was promoted and he became the General Secretary of BJP.

When Keshubhai Patel’s health deteriorated and there were charges of mishandling Bhuj earthquake of 2001, the national leadership of BJP started looking for someone who could take care of Gujarat administration, and Modi was selected to be the Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat under Keshubhai Patel. However, Modi declined the position to L K Advani and Atal Bihari Vajpayee saying that either he was “going to be fully responsible for Gujarat or not at all”.

Consequently, he replaced Patel as Chief Minister of Gujarat.

Soon after, Godhra riots took place and Modi submitted his resignation at the BJP national executive meeting in Goa; however, his resignation was not accepted. So, Modi took an emergency meeting of his cabinet, and resigned to the Gujarat Governor S S Bhandari. Consequently, the state assembly was dissolved. In the ensuing elections, BJP won 127 seats in the 182-member assembly.

Thus, Modi became the Chief Minister of Gujarat a second time. However, he was severely criticised for his relationship with Muslims by domestic and global agencies, and he was even barred from entering the United States. The UK and the European Union also barred him as they felt his role during the Godhra riots wasn’t satisfactory. However, overcoming all challenges, Modi kept on rising as a leader in India, and very soon the UK and the EU lifted their bans. Obviously, after his election as the Prime Minister of India, all bans by any country were automatically lifted.

AGENDA OF DEVELOPMENT

As Chief Minister of Gujarat, Modi worked for privatisation and also favoured a small government. He also reduced corruption in Gujarat during his second term as Chief Minister. He also developed financial and technology parks in Gujarat and because of his initiatives real-estate investment deals worth INR 6.6 trillion were signed during the 2007 Vibrant Gujarat Summit.

He also worked on the creation of groundwater-conservation projects, building check dams, regaining the normal groundwater levels in water-deficit districts, improving production of genetically modified cotton, and improving public irrigation measures through projects such as Sardar Sarovar Dam. He encouraged industrial investment as he invited Tata Motors to open their Nano car manufacturing plant in Gujarat after a popular agitation had forced the company to move out of West Bengal. This move encouraged several other companies, which also invested in Gujarat.

Modi improved Gujarat’s system of power distribution, helped farmers, and expanded the Jyotigram Yojana.

JOURNEY TO 7 RACE COURSE

In September 2013, Modi was projected as the BJP’s candidate for Prime Minister. He campaigned for elimination of corruption, and bringing 360-degree development in the entire country. His strategy found support among young Indians and the middle-class, and his Gujarat model of development became very popular. As a result, BJP won the general elections with 282 seats in the Lok Sabha, becoming the first party to win a majority of seats on its own since 1984.

After he became the Prime Minister, India considerably improved its Ease of Doing Business ranking by the World Bank. His foreign direct investment policies improved foreign investment in the country, and together with other economic reforms, helped the economic growth of India jump to 7.5 percent, making it the world’s fastest-growing major economy.

Everyone has a passion to attain greater height and traverse the life with a successful career. To achieve such a desire, many strive hard and always move on with an undying spirit of determination. One such perseverant personality is Jack Ma.

A not-so-very-talented child, he has become the most influential personalities of China who made a significant impact on the Internet industry of the country.

The Founder and Chairman of E-commerce giant Alibaba Group, Mr. Ma Yun, or as he is professionally called, Jack Ma, was born and brought up poor in communist China. As a child, he always wanted to learn English and would spend his mornings giving English tours to foreigners for free.

ONE WHO NEVER GAVE UP

Jack Ma saw numerous rejections in his life but never gave up on his dreams. In his childhood, he failed in Primary School examinations twice. Later, he failed 3 times in his Middle School exams. He got admission in Hangzhou Normal University after 3 failed attempts. His application for Harvard University received rejections 10 times. In an elongated series of failures, he could not make it to a job as he was rejected every time.

All these dejections are enough to shatter a person’s hopes, dreams and ambitions. But Jack Ma was an amazingly strong character & rose the way a phoenix rises from its own ashes. Instead of lamenting over his constant failures, he gathered courage, calculated his mistakes & turned them into his strengths.

In 1995, Jack Ma visited the US where he was introduced to the Internet and computers which were rare in Chinese market. To put his country on the map of Internet industry, he decided to lay down the foundation of his own e-commerce startup Alibaba along with 17 of his friends.

The company commenced its operations from his apartment. Initially, the company had no money but it later raised $20 Million from SoftBank and another $5 Million from Goldman Sachs in 1999. Since then there was no looking back. Jack Ma took risks and won the trust of his country emerging as the new face of the business world.

It sounds amazingly interesting that Jack Ma never wrote a single line of code or sold anything to anyone but today, he oversees one of the biggest E-commerce establishments of the world.

EMPOWERING THE NATION

Once he was out in the industry standing on the threshold of a glorious business, he stepped ahead with new opportunities focused to help the larger section of society. For instance, he established Jack Ma Foundation to work towards “a world with bluer skies, cleaner water, healthier communities and more open thinking.” Jack Ma is also associated with The Nature Conservancy’s China Program and holds the position of Chairman of the Board since 2013.

Named one of the top influential and powerful entrepreneurs of the world numerous times on international platforms, this soft-spoken yet strong-willed magnate has undoubtedly scaled unbelievable zenith of success in the modern business world.

Vineet Jain believes that excellence is a journey, not a destination – and that’s what drives him to do better, and to motivate his colleagues to keep raising the bar. For him work is pleasure, as it doesn’t seem like work! He doesn’t enjoy holidays beyond a week-10 days, and finds the urge to get back to work because it is creative, dynamic and exciting. He considers the creative process very exciting, and has taken several innovative initiatives – over the years, whose impact at the national and international levels is unfathomable – such as setting up Times FM in the 1980s almost as a garage start-up, with his personal collection of music; and establishing Times Internet as the undisputed leader in the country with original creators and distributors of online content.

RAISING STANDARDS

He reminisces about the Times FM, “It was our group’s first baby step beyond print. That later grew into Radio Mirchi, which is now a household name in cities across the country. In the 25-30 years since we started to seriously diversify, we have become the dominant No. 1 player in virtually every segment we’ve entered – radio, TV, online.”

He is the Managing Director of India’s largest media group – Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., and undeniably holds a vantage point where his perspectives would be entirely different than those of a layman, as his viewpoints, opinions and judgments are taken seriously nationally and internationally. Sharing his views on contemporary India, he feels that a real India cannot be pointed out as “This is real India, or that is real India,” and clarifies, “India lives in many centuries at the same time – both socially and economically. On the one hand, we still have far too many old and entrenched orthodoxies and feudal mindsets; on the other, we are blessed with millions of young and assertive citizens who are globally connected and modern in their thinking. Similarly, we have extreme poverty on the one hand and an expanding billionaire class on the other.” However, despite crisp diversity, he finds India extremely aspirational, which is reflected in the growing, educated, urban middle class that is reshaping our nation in big and small ways.

The media has also been playing a parallel positive role in the building and reshaping of India, as she has a fairly robust, independent-minded media even in challenging situations where journalists often face intimidation and violence, especially outside the big cities; and news organisations face frequent attacks on their freedom to write and report honestly and without fear, and even brave advertising bans from both government departments and corporate bodies. Opining that such bans typically impact smaller newspapers because many of them are financially weak, he strongly feels that media should stand together on such industry-wide issues and challenges, and should collectively support organisations that are facing threats from people and institutions in power. At the same time, he believes that, “Media too needs to continually raise its standards in terms of the accuracy and integrity of what it writes and reports, as well as be more knowledgeable and domain-specialised when it analyses complex issues.”

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

He has had his own share of professional challenges, as even under his dynamic and insightful guidance, changing mindsets especially in a 180-year-old company with an iconic brand, was not easy. He shares, “People tend to be complacent and risk-averse, especially when the traditional lines of business are making good money and the new businesses aren’t likely to yield monetary dividends in the short run. Their thinking is, why rock a stable boat?” However, with a firm belief in the capabilities of a young nation like India, he feels that, “We need to anticipate the future needs of those in their teens and twenties, the millennials. I try to cut through the surround sound of naysayers and status quoists, and zero in on the core of what we need to do, where we need to be.”

Protection of the freedom of speech and expression is a significant step towards a better India, as an independent media would also make India stronger. He definitely wants things changed for the better; however, feels that instead of reforming the entire media industry, some concrete steps towards an independent and transparent media would show the right way. He asserts, “Towards this cause, the judiciary needs to block all attempts at undermining press freedom – whether it is in the form of gag orders or advertising bans. Second, governments should not be in the media business because it creates an uneven playing field; unlike the private sector, they have free access to public funds without any pressure to be financially viable.

Third, if India is to have a healthy, diverse and competitive media ecosystem, telecom companies must not be allowed to favour their own content over that of others; also, just as TV channels are not permitted to own majority stake in cable networks, telcos should not be permitted to own majority stakes in content companies because it constitutes conflict of interest and can lead to restrictive and unfair trade practices. In an era in which digital content – be it news or entertainment – is increasingly being consumed through mobile phones, the principle of net neutrality must be extended to telcos.” He also clarifies on a burning contemporary issue of fake news, “India – and it is not alone in this respect – is facing the growing scourge of fake news and serious concerns about data privacy. We need well-thought-out regulation, not knee-jerk measures to tackle such complex socio-technological issues.”

DRIVING CHANGE & EMPOWERMENT

Mr. Jain derives a great sense of fulfilment when something his Group writes or does helps make a difference, be it at a micro or macro level. Being a fiscally responsible and socially progressive organization, his Group has always taken a cue from the world values and philosophies, and has argued – through Editorials and Times Views – for transparent, fair and optimal allocation of government-controlled natural and financial resources, including spectrum or coal; for an individual’s right to choose how he or she lives so long he/she doesn’t hurt or harm anyone else; for decriminalising homosexuality and suicide; and has helped drive numerous changes in laws, policies and practices. Mr. Jain summarizes it, “Ultimately, what matters is making a difference.”

He has also taken an active interest in helping drive change and empowerment, doing it consistently – at the individual, community and national levels. Describing further he says, “I believe there are few better ways of giving back to society than by educating the young. We’ve set up Bennett University as a not-for-profit initiative with a lot of thought and care because we want to provide students with world-class teaching and facilities, be it in engineering, management, law or media studies.

“I’d also like to briefly touch upon the work of our non-profit arm, the Times Foundation. It has helped build homes, hospitals and a school in states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and J&K in the wake of tsunami, floods and earthquakes. The Foundation has also been working quietly in the areas of health and nutrition, women’s empowerment, and education and skill development.”

Though he has received a number of awards over the years, he has always accepted them on behalf of the entire Times family, as he feels that they’re an acknowledgement not so much of one man’s efforts as the hard work and creativity of his colleagues. His role is to create an environment for them to be the best they can be.
Ever ready to encourage those who look up to him as their role model, he exhorts them thus, “Know who you are and stay true to yourself, follow your dreams and don’t let adversity knock you down, and enjoy life – responsibly.”

By ensuring focus and progressiveness, whilst preventing himself from being distracted by actions of others, he has been taking charge, making his own rules, and writing his own script for the future Thus, driven by his own ambitions, and not by others’, Dr. Chilwan believes in building capacity for future – financial, people, systems and technology – pre-emptively and continuously, and considers them key ingredients in the recipe for his success.

Though success may be a subjective term, and may be a matter of opinion, Dr. Chilwan feels that it is also definitely personal. Whilst many measure success via theirs or the organization’s financial achievements, he has a very different perspective, i.e. shattering myths and changing mindsets.

He shares, “My success story is not just about the transformation of DIB under my leadership. It is about the mindset change that has happened because of what I believed I have pursued over my entire working life – making Islamic finance the norm. From my earlier achievements in incorporating the model in foreign conventional players, to converting a conventional bank into an Islamic entity, to completely unleashing the true potential of the oldest Islamic bank in the world, all have led to this massive change, and shattered the myth that Islamic finance is limited to select Muslim populous. Clearly it is not and the world knows it now.”

TAKING AWAY THE “IM” FROM IMPOSSIBLE

He is also aware that the world sees only the tip of the iceberg and considers others’ successes easy, and fails to see the years of hard work in achieving any greatness, which is understood and felt by only those who see it through till the end.

He observes candidly, “For me, the journey is just as rewarding as the final result. My career has spanned some of the most tumultuous years in the history of the financial services industry, but what I saw during this time was opportunity. Ten years ago, when I joined the bank, I had a decade-long vision for the organization – I knew the bank could be the single most disruptive player in the financial sector in this time frame. But this message would have been a little difficult to digest at the time, given the effects of the global financial crisis and the positioning of DIB in those days.”

Renowned for taking away the “im” from impossible, Dr. Chilwan set about to adjust the sails, broke the plan down into intermediate goals over shorter horizons which appeared more realistic then, and all of a sudden, what seemed ambitious and virtually impossible in those days is a reality today – DIB is the 4th largest and the 3rd most profitable bank in the country, a jump of around 9 places in less than half a decade, and all of that was possible organically.

Acknowledging that every success is a team effort, and though uninhibited passion and belief played a major role in DIB’s current success, he is also aware that even if your ultimate vision, goal or game plan is visible to a limited few, break it down into manageable steps, keep providing input and guidance to steer and direct, and instead of waiting for things to improve in order to progress and grow, craft out opportunities in any given scenario.

GROWTH – ELUSIVE TO OTHERS, EXCLUSIVE TO US

Getting a chance to understand a situation through the eyes of an expert is priceless, and here Dr. Chilwan shares how around 2008 when the global financial crisis impacted the UAE and the region, he wielded a different approach than most of his competitors and first expertly created the foundation and then swiftly made DIB the fastest growing organization in the region. He reminisces, “In 2008, the impact of the global financial crisis had made its presence known in the UAE and the region, and it was quite a dismal picture across the industry at the time.

“Most players were effectively trying to gather themselves up quickly and grab whatever business was available in the market to show growth in size and profitability. To me, it was clear that we could not do what the others were doing. That approach was definitely not aligned to the long-term plan I had for the bank and the industry.

“So, irrespective of how the market was behaving or competitors acting, for us it was time to CONSOLIDATE. I had a two-pronged agenda in mind even at the time, the second leg being GROWTH, but I knew that we were not ready to get a glimpse of that currently. So I provided the first five-year consolidation plan with yearly executable targets and goals, which effectively aimed to strengthen the bank financially, create capacity (financial, personnel, systems) so as to establish a platform from where growth was inevitable. And then when the time came, well the rest
as they say is history!

“All the scepticism has disappeared, and the market in fact is expecting even more from us. And what to me is perhaps our greatest achievement is that in these last few years, we have made Islamic banking a household model across the country and are now spreading it to other markets as well.”

For him, the true satisfaction is the achievement of what he is pursuing – rewards and accolades are a mere ratification and reaffirmation of what he already believes to be true. His steely self-belief, firmness of purpose and passionate efforts have naturally brought him various recognitions of the highest order, as he has been ranked amongst the top 3 Indian leaders in the Arab world by Forbes, and also in the CEO rankings in GCC. He has also won multiple awards and accolades for his vision and excellence in Islamic banking, including the Islamic banker of the Year award multiple times.

Believing that success is not static, and is not a point in time, but is the ability to build on what has already been achieved to reach newer, greater heights, his thirst for more keeps him inspired and motivated, while he follows his true passions, and always seeks more beyond the horizon. At the same time, his philosophy is reflected in the vision of the organization as well – progressiveness, constantly evolving, improving and moving in a northbound direction.

Committed to give back to the society, which has helped him achieve tremendous success, he is deeply involved in CSR activities. More than just about money, his CSR goes well beyond financial commitment and support. He believes in positively impacting lives of others in a variety of ways, and accordingly devotes his time to propagating not just the business model he believes to be the most appropriate for today’s world, but also his own learnings and experiences to students and practitioners across the globe.

Competing with himself, he believes in daily improvements, which can do wonders while continuously moving towards one’s goals. “One does not need complex strategies and plans and huge towering targets. Incredible things happen if you believe and follow the concept that you are your own competition in this world. My first thought every morning and my life-long motto is simple – TODAY WE NEED TO BE A TINY BIT BETTER THAN WHAT WE WERE YESTERDAY.”

The story of Anil Agarwal, the Founder and Chairman of Vedanta Resources Plc., is not only of humble origins, but also of a person who has a knack for taking risks, doing experiments and creating a conglomerate that is spread across continents. Having grown up in bylanes of a small Indian town – Patna, he has created Vedanta Group – an Indian diversified natural resources multinational (as he prefers to call it) – from scratch and is present across commodities – zinc, oil and gas, iron ore, copper, aluminium, silver, lead, power, gold.

Belonging to the Marwari community of Rajasthan – who are known for their entrepreneurial abilities and business acumen in India for centuries – the two abilities come naturally to Agarwal. The same was visible at a very early stage of his life, when he joined his father’s small business of making aluminium conductors while studying in Patna’s Miller High School. And when he was approaching 20s, he moved to Mumbai (then Bombay) for creating his own niche in the society and in the business community away from his family.

Starting with trading in metal, he soon acquired Shamsher Sterling Corporation with the help of loans from family members and bank. For about a decade, he ran these two businesses, and then launched his own company by the name, Sterlite Industries, and set up a factory to manufacture jelly-filled cables. With his sharp entrepreneurial mind, he soon realised that backward integration of his businesses was required to keep costs low and that led to manufacturing of copper & aluminium, and he entered into mining of various minerals. Thus started the journey of Anil Agarwal as we know him today, the Mining Moghul.
Soon after opening up of the Indian economy in 1991, he moved to start India’s first private sector copper smelter and refinery and later acquired Madras Aluminium, a ‘sick’ company as per Government of India norms, thereby continuing the backward integration process of his business.

His penchant for taking risks and becoming the ‘Turnaround Man’ became known to the world when he acquired two loss-making and almost written off state PSUs – Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO) and Hindustan Zinc (HZL) from Government of India in the early years of present millennium and converted them into leaders in their respective businesses. Today the success of both the companies is visible to everyone.

Envisioning bigger things & setting his eyes on world stage, Agarwal established Vedanta Resources Plc (which would later become the parent company of Vedanta Group) & got it listed on the London Stock Exchange, the first Indian firm to do so. Today, Vedanta Resources Plc is a LSE-listed diversified FTSE 100 metals & mining company.

Even after listing Vedanta on LSE, he continued with his acquisition spree and increased group’s presence in various minerals through inorganic growth across continents. This includes acquisition of Konkola Copper Mines in Zambia, Africa; acquisition of India’s largest private sector iron ore producer-exporter Sesa Goa; acquisition of South African miner Anglo American’s portfolio of zinc assets in Namibia, Ireland and South Africa and acquiring a controlling stake in Cairn India – India’s largest private sector crude oil exploration and production firm. The group has assets in Australia also.

In 2012, various companies and businesses of the group were restructured again to create a simplified organisation, Sesa Sterlite Limited (now knowns as Vedanta Limited), which is listed on the BSE and NSE – the two leading Indian stock exchanges and is under direct control of parent Vedanta Resources Plc. Later in 2017, Cairn India was merged into Vedanta Limited to create sixth-largest natural resources conglomerate in the world in terms of EBITDA.
Agarwal’s audacious story is still unfolding as this year (2017) he has acquired over 20% stake in his personal capacity in Anglo American – one of the top 5 global mining companies – to become its largest investor.

WINDOW TO THE FUTURE

Anil Agarwal has plans to invest $8-9 billion across his business verticals – oil and gas, aluminium, zinc, copper, power, silver, rock phosphate, etc. which are spread all over India. He is also looking to increase his oil production to 50% of country’s total oil output.
He shares, “We are planning to step up our production of oil and gas to half of India’s crude oil output (from 27% in 2016-17).” This is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policy of lowering India’s import dependence on oil by 10 percentage points by 2022. “I am very passionate about our investments in India,” shares Anil Agarwal and adds that “we have significant expansion plans in all our businesses for expanding capacities of zinc, aluminium, iron ore, copper, power, pig iron, etc.”

Today, almost half of India’s non-service sector GDP is used to import oil and gas, fertilizers and chemicals, gold, copper, other metals and minerals & electrical machinery, etc. for domestic consumption. These imports are expected to double in coming few years.
Agarwal believes that with the encouraging business environment, these products can be produced in India in an environment-friendly and sustainable way and increased domestic production of these things will not help in saving billions of dollars of forex but would also lead to creating millions of jobs and eradicating poverty to a big extent.

“Thereby, it would lead to developing socio-economic infrastructure of the country and India taking giant leap towards development,” he says, adding that “the time has come for India to eradicate poverty and that can be done through increasing the contribution of minerals and metal sector in India’s GDP from existing 2% to 7%. This will create millions of jobs, boost ease of doing business and invite huge investment, he emphasises.
“We need Housing, Healthcare, Education and Employment for everyone. Let’s all come together to create massive alternative revenue streams without increasing the burden of taxes,” he says.

He is consistently endeavouring to eradicate poverty, create jobs and contribute to India’s economy and has been enthusiastically working for the good of the society through several initiatives taken by his Group companies and the Vedanta foundation, such as building hospitals, schools and infrastructure, conserving the environment, funding community programs that improve health, education & livelihood, and child welfare & women empowerment. Latest offshoot of this is setting up of 4,000 Nandghars – state-of-the-art Anganwadi (village child and women welfare) centres in India.

Agarwal has also pledged to donate 75% of his wealth to charity, fulfilling a commitment made to his grandfather long time back. He believes that high standards of Corporate Governance are critical for any business to succeed.

Believing that “No one person can define success or happiness for anyone else; one has to find one’s own path,” Tapan Singhel defines success as “to be simple, take life as it comes, and to help people I meet smile more.”

DESTINY INSURED

He reminisces that he always wanted to be a scientist and was trained to be one. However, a challenge by a friend – that he of course won – got him into insurance. The story goes like this, in his own words: “One of my friends suggested that I take part in an entrance exam to be recruited as a senior officer in a government insurance company. I refused but he challenged me saying it’s just an IQ test. I took up the challenge, cleared it and joined the company in 1991, which was also my first job. Since then there has been no looking back.”

He has not only been associated with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company (BAGIC) since its inception, but he has also consistently achieved significant newer milestones for BAGIC, finally bringing it to the pedestal of one of Asia’s best insurance companies through his lofty vision and untiring efforts. Being a thorough professional, he has made significant and path-breaking contributions to BAGIC and while doing so has created an exceptional and incredible experience for himself throughout his journey.

DARK HORSE OF THE LONG RACES

Mr. Singhel’s love for challenges has always enabled him to triumph with an edge over others, be it winning clients, achieving targets, and getting a good P&L ratio in his profession or achieving varied forms of success in his personal life. His experience during his college years, when he finally pulled himself back together in his final year and secured a position among the toppers, after lagging behind in his first two years of graduation, left him with a great learning that “one can bounce back and emerge stronger from any given situation.”

His positive thinking, passion, enthusiasm and the white heat of desire to make the most of any given situation invariably gave him an additional sway over any impediments that came between him and his goals. He shares, “I never got disheartened or depressed whenever I faced hurdles in my journey. I would always put my best effort and never lost faith in my abilities. Facing and overcoming these challenges have played a major role in shaping my personality.”

NEED FOR TRANSFORMATION

One of the most knowledgeable persons on earth on insurance issues, Mr. Singhel has been endeavouring on two fronts to develop the insurance sector as one of the most rewarding in our economy: creating sturdy infrastructure through development of technology, and creating ample awareness so people are inclined to utilize the benefits and financial tools provided by various insurance policies.

Realizing that the optimum level of development, awareness, inclusiveness and participation in this sector can be achieved only with concerted and joint efforts of the government and the private sector, he has contributed immensely in his own capacity towards growth of insurance as a social cause. Being ever-optimistic about public and private sectors together achieving towering targets, he feels, “Together they have introduced and implemented several schemes for Crop, Personal Accident, Health and even Life Insurance. Several more such ideas and suggestions are in pipeline. The key to this lies in implementing insurance solutions and creating awareness by bringing together entire communities right from the grassroots, into the mission. Insurance would be a household name if all the stakeholders put collaborative community-level efforts.”

His devotion for making valuable changes in the insurance sector is reflected in his insights that he offered to AsiaOne on being asked what reforms would he bring if he had a wand of absolute power. “I would have made the entire economies understand the role of insurance as a social cause, a powerful tool that bridges the gap between economic losses and insured losses. Also I would take insurance to the last mile of the country, with seamless transactions and products simplified to a level where anyone would be able to choose the best cover as per his/her requirements. And lastly, I would take away the negative perception that is associated with this industry. We are in the business of doing good, by helping out people in their direst hours of need. It is actually one of the noblest professions one could be in!”

REWARDING LIFE

To promote the nobility of his profession, he has been spreading the awareness on goodness of insurance since beginning. In the process, he has gathered invigorating memories and profound moments of satisfaction since the beginning of his career. He recalls one incident where he went personally to give the cheque to the widow of an accident victim. “The tears that I saw in the eyes of the widow and her kids when we handed over the cheque made me realize the importance of my work and its impact on the society at large.”

He has drawn constant inspiration from his family – his parents were his greatest teachers who have greatly contributed in making him what he is today. His wife and daughters have taught him to be agile and take challenges head on.

Though he has won several awards in his life, he still considers that his biggest award is the smile on the face of the person who has faced a lot due to unforeseen circumstances.

BACK TO THE SOCIETY

Believing that like individuals, companies too have a soul and a thought process that drives them to take up social causes, personally and professionally he has made immense difference to the lives of people. He and BAGIC have undertaken activities for the welfare and empowerment of local communities, consequently enhancing lives of children from underprivileged background, with the understanding that they are the future of the country, and irrespective of their background they should get equal opportunity to create a bright future for themselves. He is associated with NGOs such as Smile Train India, Association of Rural and Urban Needy – Project Rainbow Homes, SOS children’s village and have created care centres and charity trusts at some of the leading hospitals in Maharashtra that take care of treatments for the indigent.

He is extremely passionate about life, and thus advises the youth to be passionate about everything they do in life, and also enjoy what they do thoroughly.

Niranjan Hiranandani is one of the few special real estate entrepreneurs who have actually rewritten India’s real estate story, and has changed Mumbai’s skyline. He is India’s ‘builder extraordinaire’, and has revolutionized the
real estate industry in the country. Under his able guidance, the Hiranandani Group has come a long way and is recognized for their modern state-of-the-art mixed- used township projects in Powai & Thane, both of which have become preferred residential and commercial locations in and around Mumbai.

A billionaire Indian entrepreneur, Niranjan Hiranandani is the Co-founder and Managing Director of Hiranandani Group, engaged in real estate business.

Along with members of his family, Hiranandani controls the privately owned Hiranandani Group. The Group is renowned for its projects of Hiranandani Gardens, Powai; Hiranandani Meadows and Hiranandani Estate, Thane; Hiranandani Business Park, Powai and Thane; Hiranandani Upscale, Chennai and Bangalore; and Hiranandani Upscale SEZ & Residential, Hyderabad, His stint with business was unconventional, as his father, Lakhumal Hiranand Hiranandani, was an ENT surgeon in Mumbai, who was also a recipient of the Government of India’s Padma Bhushan Award.

Having finished his schooling from Campion School, Mumbai and holding a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Sydenham College in Mumbai, he is a Chartered Accountant, and started his career by taking a job as an accounting teacher. Eager to start a business, he opened a textile weaving unit in Kandivali, Mumbai in 1981. Progressing gradually, he bought 250 acres of land in Powai, Mumbai in 1985 with his brother Surenda, and started a real estate business under the name Hiranandani Gardens.

Through his family office Nidar Group, Niranjan Hiranandani has also invested in energy infrastructure, and in building natural gas pipelines and two gas storage terminals. Upcoming projects include projects in Pune, Ahmedabad and Alibaug.

Apart from construction, the Group has diversified into education, horticulture, hospitality, entertainment and retail. Since its inception in 1978, the Group has reiterated its commitment to the conception and development of world-class products and services in every chosen business activity.

Mr Hiranandani has brought a fresh air to the real estate industry in India, as he has consistently and insistently followed ethics in an otherwise not-so-honest industry. He shares about the past era of real state industry when he entered it, “Although that time real estate was considered as dirty industry and people associated with it as corrupt, so it was really a big risk to venture in this sector but we didn’t lose hope and worked hard and with our consistent efforts, we got our first spark of recognition in the construction line with our work in Versova, Andheri in the mid-eighties. Another big break came when we got an opportunity to develop a large township at Powai with modern Infrastructure of concrete roads, regular water supply, recycled sewerage water plant, electric & high-tech communication networks as well as top-of-the-line commercial, residential, and educational facilities. Since then, the Hiranandani Group has come a long way to be recognized countrywide for their modern and state-of-the-art mix-user township projects.”

“AS A LEADER, HE IS A COMBINATION OF SEVERAL RARE QUALITIES, AS HE OWNS A SHARP BUSINESS ACUMEN, UNDERSTANDS HIS SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND WORKS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE SOCIETY”

ONE-OF-A-KIND INTELLECTUAL

To describe Niranjan Hiranandani, right choice of words is very important and sometimes words are not enough, as one has to meet him and listen to his deep and insightful conversations to understand him. He is a brilliant leader who never gets tired of creating innovative ideas and his enthusiasm and zest to implement every revolutionary idea that comes to his mind is unparalleled. Still, he is known for his down-to-earth approach. If one has to explain his entire success story in as few words as possible, it would be ‘labore et constantia’, i.e. with consistent efforts, one can scale great heights.
As a leader, he is a combination of several rare qualities, as he owns a sharp professional business acumen, is a concerned citizen who understands his social responsibilities and works to make a difference in the society, is always up-to-date on industry and general information, and takes special care that his company is working to give the due value to every customer. Under his dynamic leadership, the Hiranandani Brand is synonymous to quality, timely completion of projects, and total township development.

As is usual for a businessman of his stature, he is on board of 17 schools, including the Hiranandani Foundation School in Powai and Thane, is the past President of the Maharashtra Chambers of Housing Industry, Chairman of Mumbai City, Development and Environment Committee of the Indian Merchants Chambers (IMC) Mumbai, Member of the Task Force of the Government of India for reforms in housing and urban development and Member of the study group Slum Rehabilitation Scheme, Government of Maharashtra.

Actually, he helped the government draft the State Policy for Slum Rehabilitation in Mumbai, which was designed to improve the wellbeing of over 6 million slum inhabitants. He has also served on the Board of the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO), an organization which distributes over USD 3 billion per annum to help fund building homes for low-income families, and has been an adviser to the Government of India on the Housing and Habitat Policy for over a decade.

He is the Chairperson of the Priyadarshni Academy which facilitates social and cultural work. He is also on Board of Trustees – Nathdwara Temple Board, Nathdwara in Rajasthan, Babulnath temple, and Jhulelal temple.
He is the President of the Hyderabad (Sind) National Collegiate Board, which manages 22 educational institutions including secondary and higher secondary schools, polytechnics, and degree and post-graduate colleges. He is also the former Chairman of Advisory Council of Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Association of India (CREDAI).
Ever since its inception in 1978, Niranjan Hiranandani has believed in the philosophy that success of any organization comes from its people, because wherever there are people there is an opportunity to serve.
Foraying into international market, the Hiranandani Group is launching 23 Marina – a 395m-high 90-storied neo-lifestyle residential tower in Marina region of Dubai.

BACK TO THE SOCIETY

As Niranjan Hiranandani likes to be actively involved in Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives in his personal and professional capacities, along with his brother, he has opened Charitable Trusts. Thus, through Hiranandani Foundation, he has contributed immensely to the Indian education sector; the Trust runs three well-acclaimed schools in Powai, Thane and Chennai all from KG to 12th Grade. In addition, he has interests in improving the healthcare sector of India, and once again with his brother, he is made concerted efforts towards various improvements in the quality of healthcare in India through Dr. L.H. Hiranandani Hospital, a multi-speciality hospital at Powai.

Regarded as one of the most sensational cricketer of the era, Mr. Virat Kohli is coasting high on success, money and fame. At a very young age of 28, Mr. Kohli possesses maturity at the crease far beyond his age and class off the field.

Whether through making a century on field or taking some most important wickets for the team, Mr. Kohli is a cricketer who can deliver a comfortable game while keeping his calm most of the time.

BEGINNING OF AN ERA

Virat’s cricket love goes back to his tender age of 9. It was when his father Prem Kohli decided to enroll him and elder brother Vikas at the West Delhi Academy in the neighborhood so the two wouldn’t just while away their summer holidays.

His first coach at the academy, Rajkumar Sharma, remembers him as a chubby, naughty kid. “Raju Sir” as Virat would call him, is the guiding force behind the superstar and also the first person he would call after a match.

After many innings, each bigger and better than the last, with the most recent redefining the benchmark of big earnings in the world of cricket, he’s proven that it’s possible to cultivate adoring fans and also please the critics.

Mr. Kohli’s stance is that of a winner. But his mood is surprisingly grounded and self-aware, after years of aggression; today he knows how to keep his cool. In a heart-felt interview, he stated that he is afraid of losing, though with time he has learnt to deal with losses on field, but in life, he just cannot loose. Maybe that is the success mantra many youngsters were looking out for.

THE EFFORTLESS SEDULOUS

It’s with this fervor that Mr. Kohli has capped a prolific career at such a young age and has climbed up the success ladder to become the biggest global celebrity of India. It is the conviction of this man who has led India to be at the top of the Test rankings.

Born conquerors are always looking for new ways to brush up their talent, same is the case with Mr. Kohli, he is unique with his game and is rightly called as the biggest Indian sporting talent that the world has seen in generations put together. There isn’t a better time: cricket is celebrated as a religion in India and at such a young age when he surpassed Scahin Tendulkar’s record on field, there were no second thoughts about him being a commercial behemoth, quite unlike anyone the game has ever seen.

His cheekiness and self-assured attitude are adored by the millions of fans in India and across the globe. From a small kid who played for the local cricket teams to the captain of Indian team, Virat Kohli had a long and inspiring journey. Today, at a young age, this right-handed middle order batsman isn’t just another Captain that the team has had already, but he looks to become one of the most efficient captains the team had ever had.

Today, Mr. Kohli visits old age homes, is setting up charities and working hard to focus on the future. Going by the basics, he is undeniably playing the best cricket of his life. His focus is unwavering and the form is unmatched. Not many people know about the kind of passion Mr. Kohli has for his game as it was heart-wrenching when an 18 year old hardworking sportsman showed up and won a match for Delhi, a few hours after his father passed away. Reaching the zenith of success he is still the most charming son.

Firm Believer in Values and Fair Practices

Born to Government employees, Syam Prabhu holds the traditional values of truth, honesty, and self-discipline very close, and centralizing his professional life around these virtues, he has established Aurion as an expert in international business consulting. Educated at Sainik School, he developed a determination to always win, never ready to settle in a comfort zone, and eager to do what coincided with his passion, through Aurion he has already incorporated more than 1200 free zone companies and 3000 offshore companies, without any hassles to the investors.

A Graduate in Law from the University of Kerala, he initially started working tirelessly as a jurist and lawyer in the Kerala High Court and District Courts, offering free legal consultation to the poor. He was not only instrumental in eradicating the anomalies present in the medical and engineering entrance examinations in Kerala, his efforts translated into a new dimension to the Fundamental Right in the Indian Constitution, which was developed in writ petition that read “Right to Education includes right to fair examination.” Having decided to expertly utilize his legal acumen combined with excellent public relations, he established Aurion.

Quickly reaching various milestones of success, he not only opened a branch in Dubai Airport Freezone by the side of the run-way, so international clients would found it easy to visit his office adjacent to the airport, he also got Aurion registered as a corporate service provider in all major freezones and offshore jurisdictions.

He takes active interest in the operations and management of his organization for optimum excellence. He has developed Aurion website in English, Arabic, Chinese & Russian, and has developed the mobile app in Android & iOS, whereby clients can get important relevant notifications. He has also been instrumental in developing customized Office Management System software so that each staff can have access to their area of activity and clients.

Being a powerful yet empathetic leader, he takes care of his team and incessantly instills confidence in them. He takes care that they have enough freedom to bring out the best in them, while offering security of job and financial incentives to them making them in turn affectionate to the company and passionate about the job. Also moving with the times, he is implementing block chain technology in his organization to expedite the process of incorporation and bringing efficiency.

Success and the Power of the Mind

Under his insightful leadership, Aurion is evolving a strategy to spread its wings to United States, Europe, Africa and Asia, as he wishes to establish franchises with the work model that suits to each country. His team of policy strategists have already earmarked 30 countries to distribute franchiseships.

Firmly believing that giving back to the society through CSR actually contributes to the overall growth of the organization, Aurion gives 50% discount to people with disabilities and senior citizens. They have also been sponsoring 150 poor children from fishermen community in Alappuzha, coastal state of Kerala, and to protect the environment, they are making use of digitalization, avoiding use of paper at all levels.

“I have lIved by a sIngle mantra that Is If you cannot do great thIngs, do small thIngs In great ways”

Marching Ahead on The Green Road to Prosperity

Besides possessing a rich experience of more than 45 years and receiving numerous professional accolades, the Founder-cum-Managing Director of HPM Chemicals & Fertilizers Ltd., Mr. Ashok Aggarwal

also has a heart of gold and is ever ready to share his insights with the youth and give back to the society in every possible way

the old adage, “Hard work is the key to success” holds true for Mr. Aggarwal who has been trodding on the path to fame and success owing to his earnestness. His humble disposition is quite apparent from  the fact  that he has high regards for his team and gives it due credit while elaborating on his success. Significantly, he talks about his struggles and disappointments unabashedly: “The story of my success is not just mine, it is the result of our whole HPM team’s hard work. Looking back at the past years,  I have grown and learned so much here in agrochemical industry. I have struggled tremendously in the past years. I never thought that I would actually accomplish my dreams and be successful in my life, but I definitely have proved, myself wrong. Many times I was confronted with huge disappointments, conditions were not generally positive to me. Obstacles came in my way and I continued pushing forward. Failure is the highway to success, ‘If you want to succeed, double your failure rate.’ I love knowing that I am doing great and I will really try to do my best in future.”

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES WITH ÉLAN

Life is full of challenges, it’s our perception which decides whether we choose to recognize them as opportunity or threat and this approach makes all the difference. Sharing with AsiaOne some of the challenges that Mr. Aggarwal faced and some of his self-devised techniques which he employed to counter them, he says: “In our personal and professional lives we face many challenges that test our emotional and mental condition. We are all learning. No one gets it right every time. The dynamic process of life — trying, succeeding, failing, and trying again — is the only way to develop lasting confidence in ourselves. I saw many fluctuations in my life. But I always thought about my farmers, my people and my country, that I could have done better for everyone.”

He adds, “I worked hard day and night and never looked back. Some of the times I had no idea how would I overcome the challenges. But I never lose hope. My whole life is filled with challenges. Many people spread rumours and many  negative  words about  HPM,  but I just did and am still doing my work with dignity and hard work, without paying any attention to their point of view. I specifically learned while overcoming those challenges that facing life challenges with fear will take you nowhere unless you accept the fear and make it your strength. Do something that will make your today better than what’s come before.”

SKILLED FARMERS; PROSPEROUS NATION

A noble soul who is deeply concerned about the welfare of others, Mr. Aggarwal is an ardent advocate of skill development of farmers and believes that they need to be trained in order to gain financial prosperity. He elaborates, “Despite the tremendous success of agro chemical industry, I feel farmers are not getting benefit in the real sense. What I feel is that a huge turnover is generated with the help of farmers so even they should get some real benefits from it. I think farmer education and awareness is intrinsic for improving the financial growth of farmers, as in many foreign countries they produce a relatively larger profit from farming than in India. If I get a chance, I would open an institution for farmers where they would be able to learn tactics to reap maximum profit out of their land, efforts and money.”

CHERISHING ASSOCIATIONS

Mr. Aggarwal is a person for whom family comes first and feels grateful to have a strong support system and always takes pleasure in giving his family due credit for his success. Reminiscing his moments of triumphs, he says, “Everyone has their own unforgettable moments, including me. I have many moments of triumphs. I have received many awards and all those are unforgettable moments. But when my daughter Mrs. Tapasya Goel joined HPM that was the actual moment of triumph for me. My family supported me in every thick and thin. Whenever obstacles came in my way they always stood up with me. As I said before, when my daughter Mrs. Tapasya Goel joined HPM as Executive Director of the company she took every responsibility. Today, the company is at the height of success and she has a huge contribution in it.” He derives motivation to work hard by working for the welfare of others and bringing about a positive change in the life of the people whom he associates with. As he puts it: “If I am talking about my motivation – that comes from providing excellent service to every farmer with whom I come in contact. Whenever I see farmers working day and night, their work inspires me to do better in my profession. I look for opportunities to improve my service skills so that each farmer I interact with will have a positive experience.”

“I thInk farmer educatIon Is IntrInsIc for theIr growth … If I get a chance, I would open an InstItutIon for farmers where they would be able to learn tactIcs to reap maxImum profIt out of theIr land, efforts and money”

SERVING THE SOCIETY

According special emphasis on corporate social responsibility, Mr. Aggarwal feels that his highest career point was when his employees participated dedicatedly in a CSR initiative rolled out by his company. HPM has been an early adopter of a strong CSR agenda. HPM has had many different CSR ventures, which have proved to be massive crowd pullers & are great initiatives. All tasks are arranged in a participatory way, in counsel with the group, truly sitting with them, and checking their fundamental needs. HPM has taken the path of inclusive development to address their basic needs. HPM cumulatively touched the lives of millions of farmers in villages and various urban locations. HPM strives to uphold its dignity in every sphere of society. HPM had always indulged itself in the processes related to the social, economical & environment viabilities. We have had events like ‘ Green Nation Clean Nation ‘ which proved to be a massive crowd puller & was of great initiative. We have had events like ‘Santosh Krishi Divas’ where books & several goodies were distributed free of cost, enhancing the school outlook in backward areas. We have done CSR like ‘Help him to breathe’. It’s a story of a small child who was suffering from the heart valve blocked disease, we have done CSR like ‘Make Sure they have smile too,’ in this CSR campaign we adopted 9 girl children and took the responsibility of their education and bright future.”

INSPIRING FUTURE GENERATIONS

Mr. Aggarwal’s straightforwardness and humble approach has won the hearts of numerous budding entrepreneurs, giving them their major  life  goals.  His message for the  young  generation  is  “Get  out of negativity, stop blaming everyone else for your problems, and stop blowing up small issues into epic tragedies. If you wallow in misery, you’ll never find a way out. Find the strength within yourself. Stop giving others the responsibility and power to the outcome of your life. Stop looking to others, and be your own hero, be the best that you can be. Save your own life, because when it comes down to it you are the only one who can. Make every day something you can be proud of.”