Horasis held the 2017 Horasis India Meeting on 25-26 June in Interlaken, Switzerland, co-hosted by the Canton of Bern and the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII). The 2017 Horasis India Meeting explored Indian firms’ rise to global eminence while engaging the Horasis Global Visions Community for dialogue and impact. Download the report and visit the photo gallery.
The symbiosis between Indian and Swiss economic development was emphasised by Christoph Ammann, Minister of Economic Affairs, Canton of Bern, Switzerland and Ram Madhav, National General Secretary, Bharatiya Janata Party, India. ‘Switzerland and India have recently signed numerous bilateral agreements,’ reported Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch, State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Switzerland. ‘India is a preferred partner country. Our talks to establish a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) are proceeding well,’ she continued.
‘I predict India’s GDP growth to be around 8% in the next two years,’ noted R Mukundan, Managing Director, Tata Chemicals, India. ‘This forecasted rate of growth vigorously supports India’s aspiration of being recognised as the most promising economy globally,’ Umberto de Pretto, Secretary General, International Road Transport Union (IRU), Switzerland, continued. Frank G. Wisner, Under Secretary of State (ret.), USA, saw India as the world’s new growth engine. ‘India is good news. Recent initiatives by the Union Government on FDI, economic growth and job creation elicit optimism,’ said Richard Howitt, Chief Executive Officer, International Integrated Reporting Council, United Kingdom. The Horasis India Meeting is the right forum to shape India’s global positioning and direction,’ added Rahul Bajaj, Chairman, Bajaj Auto, India.
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| Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch, State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Switzerland | R.V. Deshpande, Minister for Large and Medium Industries, Karnataka |
R.V. Deshpande, Minister for Large and Medium Industries & Infrastructure Development, Government of Karnataka, India, noted how the Indian regions were becoming more joined-up via infrastructure projects as well as through commercial and entrepreneurial development. N.K. Singh, Chairman, Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, India, acknowledged that free market capitalism has guided India’s economy to unprecedented economic growth. ‘We need now to ensuring growth that matters,’ Ajit Gulabchand, Chairman, Hindustan Construction Company, India, opined. In a special address, Kaspar Villiger, Former President of Switzerland, called on participants to support societies that promote justice and equality. ‘We need to tenaciously stand for democracy, the rule of law and freedom, even in adverse circumstances,’ he said.
Akhil Bansal, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, KPMG India, presented the prizes awarded by Horasis to the Indian Business Leaders of the Year. This year they were K. Dinesh, Co-founder, Infosys, India; Vivek Chaand Sehgal, Chairman, Samvardhana Motherson Group, India; Hemant Kanoria, Chairman, Srei Infrastructure Finance, India; and Amit Burman, Chairman, Dabur, India.
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| Rahul Bajaj Chairman Bajaj Auto | The award winners |
The co-chairs were:
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Rahul Bajaj, Chairman, Bajaj Auto, India |
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Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, Confederation of Indian Industries, India |
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Claude Béglé, Chairman, Symbioswiss, Switzerland |
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Lord Karan Bilimoria, Chairman, Cobra Beer Partnership, United Kingdom |
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Michael Carlos, Member of the Supervisory Board, Givaudan, Switzerland |
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Shea Gopaul, Founder, Global Apprenticeships Network, Switzerland |
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Ajit Gulabchand, Chairman, Hindustan Construction Company, India |
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Richard Howitt, CEO, International Integrated Reporting Council, United Kingdom |
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Asif Iqbal, President, Indian Economic Trade Organization (IETO), India |
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Baba N. Kalyani, Chairman, Bharat Forge, India |
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Shobana Kamineni, Executive Vice-Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, India |
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Rajive Kaul, Past President AIMA; Chairman, Nicco Group, India |
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Eliano Lodesani, Chief Operating Officer, Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy |
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R Mukundan, Managing Director, Tata Chemicals, India |
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Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman, Hero Corporate Services; President, AIMA, India |
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Dilip Piramal, Chairman, VIP Industries, India |
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Umberto de Pretto, Secretary General, International Road Transport Union (IRU), Switzerland |
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Philippe Reich, Vice Chairman, Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce, Switzerland |
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B.V.R. Mohan Reddy, Chairman, Cyient, India |
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Ron Somers, President, India First Group, USA |
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Frank G. Wisner, Under Secretary of State (ret.), USA |
The Horasis India Meeting is the foremost annual meeting of Indian business leaders and their global counterparts. With this meeting, Horasis offers business and government to discuss a wide range of issues related to the Indian economy. The location of the meeting rotates annually, and has been held in Munich (2009), Madrid (2010), Naples (2011), Antwerp (2012), Belfast (2013), Liverpool (2014), Interlaken (2015), Cascais (2016) and Interlaken (2017) so far.
Horasis as a global visions community is dedicated to inspire the future through the active participation of global business leaders in a series of annual meetings. In addition to the Horasis India Meeting, Horasis holds meetings on China and South East Asia, as well as the all-encompassing Horasis Global Meeting.
Co-hosts:
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| Bern Economic Development Agency | Confederation of Indian Industry |
Knowledge Partners:
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| SIX Swiss Exchange | KPMG |
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| Herbert Smith Freehills |
Portugal can be a doorway which can allow us to ensure that the trade with the rest of Europe can take place at a significant pace and volume.
V.K. Singh, Minister of State for External Affairs and Overseas Indian Affairs, India
Economic benefits can arise from more intense political contacts between the governments of Portugal and India.
Augusto Santos Silva, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Portugal
We want to attract investments and India has an important opportunity in Portugal.
Manuel Caldeira Cabral, Minister of Economy, Portugal
Maharashtra is a highly industrially state and a preferred location for FDI.
Subhash Desai, Minister for Industries, Government of Maharashtra
Portugal as the focal point for India’s relation with the Lusophony countries.
Miguel Pinto Luz, Vice Mayor of Cascais, Portugal
I see India with a great potential for sustainable development if it continues to modernize its infrastructure.
Eduardo Catroga, Chairman, EDP, Portugal
We have a visionary government with simplified policies and triggered reforms.
Rakesh Bharti Mittal, Vice Chairman, Bharti Enterprises, India
India needs an inclusive infrastructure.
Shobana Kamineni, Executive Vice-Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, India
Portugal is a very good base for Indian businesses to have in the EU.
Naushad Forbes, President, CII; Co-Chairman, Forbes Marshall, India