The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : CII summit to grapple with realities

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Thursday, Feb 07, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

CII summit to grapple with realities

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: The Confederation of Indian Industry’s youth movement is looking at blunt realities in its fourth national summit, which will be held here on February 15 and 16, with the theme “Wake Up, India.”

“When we first started CII Young Indians in 2002, one of the biggest objectives was to create pride in being Indian and to grow Brand India. Five years on, this doesn’t seem as relevant anymore. Our targets have shifted and the focus has changed. Today, the question is how do we contain ourselves, with all the optimism going around and how do we deal with the reality… We are now confident enough to deal with some of the more pressing issues that are not so popular to talk about,” said Jay Galla, chairman of the summit and managing director of Amara Raja Batteries.

The cornerstone of the theme will be the recently completed CII-World Economic Forum report on “India@Risk.”

As part of the focus on climate change, R.K. Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, will deliver the inaugural address. Ashok Khosla, founder director of India’s Office of Environmental Planning and Coordination, and a former director of the United Nations Environment Programme, will share his insights into the environmental challenges facing the country. ICICI Bank chief executive K.V. Kamath will deliver the keynote address.

The 300 delegates expected to attend the summit will seek to create a framework for inclusive growth, focussing on the role of youth in bridging divides.

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