On 6th December 2017, members of AMCHAM ‘s National Executive Board met with the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Mr. Devendra Fadnavis, along with senior representatives of the state government at Sahyadri Government Guest House in Mumbai. The 16 member AMCHAM delegation led by Mr. Pratyush Kumar, Chairman, AMCHAM, had a candid and insightful discussion with the Hon’ble CM. The senior government officials present included Mr. Praveen Pardeshi, Additional Chief Secretary to the Hon’ble CM, Mr. Sunil Porwal, Additional Chief Secretary Industries, Mr. Rajgopal Devara, Principal Chief Secretary and Chief Protocol Officer, Mr. Suresh Kakani, Vice Chairman and MD, Maharashtra Airport Development Company Ltd., Mr. U.P.S. Madan, Metropolitan Commissioner and Additional Chief Secretary, MMRDA, Mr. S.V.R. Srinivas, Principal Secretary IT, Mr. Sanjay Sethi, CEO, MIDC and Mr. Nitin Kareer, Principal Secreatary, Urban Development Department.

The interaction was an important platform towards a significant dialogue which included insights on priorities and projects of the state government, best practices, acknowledgement of the support received by U.S. companies in the state and recommendations towards challenges faced by industry. Other important discussion points included growing business opportunities and recommendations to leverage on digital platforms in the state departments, updates on the new airports (Mumbai and Pune), metro, trans-harbour, CSR engagements of U.S. companies, fintech, smart cities (Nagpur, Aurangabad, Nashik), skill development and the need to integrate to develop industrial townships, etc. The meeting concluded with AMCHAM thanking the Hon’ble CM for his valuable time and support to U.S. industry in India.