The 23rd Annual General Meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce in India (AmCham) was held on 28th April 2015 in New Delhi. During the Statutory of AGM, Mr. Ajay Singha, Executive Director, AmCham welcomed the members. Besides the statutory business like adoption of Annual Report and audited accounts for the year 2014-15 and appointment of auditors for 2015-16, Mr. Singha announced the election results and composition of the National Executive Board of AmCham for 2015-16.

While presenting the Annual Report for 2014-15, Mr. Singha briefed members about some of the important activities undertaken by the Chamber during the past one year; the challenges ahead and issues to be taken up. Mr. Singha also made a presentation on type of membership, spread of members, events and meetings organized by different regions as also of revenue received and spent.

The meeting concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr. Gulshan Kumar Sachdev, Vice Chairman, Amcham India, and Managing Director, Quaker Chemical India Limited. He said that 2014 had been an exciting and eventful year for the Indian economy as well as for Amcham. He requested members to enroll in the sectoral Committees of their choice, participate in the activities of the Chamber and send their suggestions for the Chamber’s focus in the coming years and for any improvement so that the Chamber could service the members more meaningfully.

Panel Discussion on ‘Smart Infrastructure for Digital India – Focus on Sustainable Growth’

A Panel Discussion on ‘Smart Infrastructure for Digital India – Focus on Sustainable Growth’ was organized on the occasion of Amcham’s 23rd AGM on 28th April 2015 in New Delhi. The Panel Discussion was chaired and moderated by Ms. Vanitha Narayanan, Managing Director, IBM India Pvt. Ltd. Presentations on various topics were made by the following panelists:

Mr. Banmali Agrawala

Chairman, American Chamber of Commerce in India; and
President & CEO, GE South Asia

(Smart Energy, Smart Grid, Renewable Energy)

Ms Kaku Nakhate

Vice Chairperson, American Chamber of Commerce in India; and
President & Country Head (India), Bank of America N.A.

Ms Kaku Nakhate

Mr. Venkatesh Kini

President – India and South West Asia
Coca-Cola India Pvt. Ltd.

(Supply chain and water)

Mr. Varun Khanna

Managing Director
BD India

(Healthcare)

Mr. John M. McCaslin

Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs
U.S. Embassy

(Smart Cities)

Mr. Ramkumar Ramamoorthy

Senior Vice President
Cognizant Technology Solutions

(Social infrastructure including education skills required for Digital India)

Mr. Palash Roy Chowdhury

Country Manager – India
United Technologies Corporation India Pvt. Ltd. (Pratt and Whitney)

(Significance and impact of Energy efficiency in Smart cities and Aerospace infrastructure)

After a Q&A session, the discussion was concluded by Ms Vanitha Narayanan.
The Panel Discussion was followed by a Luncheon Session.

Luncheon Session

A Luncheon Session was organized on the occasion of Amcham’s 23rd AGM on 28th April 2015 in New Delhi. Mr. Banmali Agrawala, Chairman, Amcham, in his opening observations, spoke about Indo-U.S. relations and Amcham’s role in promoting U.S. investment in India. This was followed by the addresses by the guests of honour, Mr. Amitabh Kant, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Government of India, and H.E. Mr. Richard R. Verma, U.S. Ambassador to India. Ms Kaku Nakhate, Vice-Chairperson, Amcham, proposed the vote of thanks.

The Luncheon Session was followed by the First Meetingof the newly constituted National Executive Board of Amcham.

Meeting of Amcham’s National Executive Board

The First Meeting of Amcham’s National Executive Board for 2015-16 was held on 28th April 2015 in New Delhi. The following were elected office bearers for 2015-16:

Chairperson:

Ms Vanitha Narayanan
Managing Director
IBM India Pvt. Ltd.

Immediate Past Chairman:

Mr. Banmali Agrawala
President & CEO
GE South Asia

Vice Chairman:

Mr. Richard Rekhy
Chief Executive Officer
KPMG in India

Vice Chairman:

Mr. Gulshan Kumar Sachdev
Managing Director
Quaker Chemical India Limited

Hon. Secretary & Treasurer:

Mr. Atul Dhawan
National Leader, Clients & Markets
Regional Managing Partner (North)
Deloitte Haskins & Sells