The supply disruption in China has compelled companies around the world to think of diversifying their sourcing base, which has created a huge opportunity for competing countries in emerging markets. India has raised the decibel level at the right time, attracting investments from companies by offering fiscal incentives. Eventually, the investments that will happen on the ground will be a function of what the nation has to offer. This is where the specialty chemicals and the pharmaceutical industry fit the bill perfectly in terms of their ability to scale.
With a strong foundation of complex chemistry and adequate supply of skilled manpower, India has the essential ingredients to scale up and grab a significant portion of the global value chain. The government is taking baby steps – apart from the prevailing tax incentives for new investments, a list of bulk drugs and intermediates have already been approved for production-linked incentives (PLI), and the list could grow longer as the government evaluates expanding the scope of the PLI scheme. How, where and what needs to be done by the government – and the industry – to unleash the true growth potential here.
Join the conversation with industry captains at Innovassynth presents Outlook Business Advantage India Summit scheduled on 27th February 2021 at 11:00 AM
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Managing Director, BASF India Ltd. and Head, BASF, South Asia (India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh)
Narayan Krishnamohan joined BASF in 1995 as part of their Product Management- Leather Chemicals & Sales Management- specialty Chemicals Team and since then has been an integral part of BASF’s concept of “Creating Chemistry” through successful business & strategy development with regional and international integration.
Krishnamohan was born in India in 1971. He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Nagpur University, India. He is married and has twin boys. Apart from managing businesses, he is passionate about engaging with next-generation business managers and leaders as well as long distance running.
Vice President & Regional Head, SABIC South Asia & ANZ
Janardhanan Ramanujalu (JR) is Vice President & Regional Head for SABIC South Asia & Australia since beginning 2012. In his current role, he leads the region of South Asia comprising Indian Sub-continent, South East Asian countries and ANZ. JR leads SABIC Boards in India, South East Asia and SABIC Asia Pacific as Chairman.
Based in Gurugram/Delhi NCR, JR is responsible for the growth of SABIC through close partnerships and collaboration with industry, government and other stakeholders across South Asia, ASEAN & ANZ. In addition, JR is the focal point for Business Development activities for SABIC in South Asia Region as well as governance of all legal entities in the region.
He is an engineering graduate (Mechanical) and MBA with more 33 years of industry experience (including 25 years with BASF) and held various AsiaPac & global responsibilities, including Marketing, Product Management, Industry Management & Market Development in the field of Polymers, Styrenics, Engineering Plastics, Chemicals and Performance Chemicals. He has extensive experience Strategy and Business Development and in Governance of entities across the region.
JR is National Executive Member and serves Chemicals Committee of CII, FICCI and Indian Chemical Council. He is also the Co-Chairman of FICCI Petrochemicals Committee, serves CII EXIM committee, and is actively engaged with Governments in the Region.
Chairman, Pharmexcil (Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council of India)
Dr. Dinesh Dua, is currently the Executive Director of M/S Nectar Life sciences Ltd.-a US$ 450 Mio.(Rs. 3114 Crs.) Niche company in life sciences.
Immediately prior to NLL, he was Managing Director of Akorn India Pvt. Ltd.,a 100% subsidiary of US MNC,Akorn Inc., which was a sequel to a very successful 6 year stint at M/S Nectar Lifesciences Ltd. As CEO & Director on Board between 2007 & 2012.
Dr. Dua holds a Masters in Business Management (M.B.A.)-1979 batch from Harvard Business School promoted, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
He has over 41 years of professional experience across varied industries in leadership positions such as Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals & Biologicals, Petrochemicals and Consumer goods, having worked in multinational organizations such as Hoechst (Sanofi Aventis), Berger Paints, and large Indian Corporates like Reliance, Jubilant Organosys, Zydus Cadila Healthcare & as President of Wockhardt Ltd’s International & Biotechnology Strategic Business Unit (SBU)
He is currently Chairman, Pharmexcil, Ministry of Commerce, Govt. of India, North India Chairman for Regional Committee on Lifesciences for Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) & is also Past Chairman of CII, Chandigarh Council, Member Executive Council, BDMA & is also a visiting faculty to leading & reputed Management institutes in India.
Managing Director, South Asia, Corteva Agriscience
Rahoul Sawani is the Managing Director, South Asia, Corteva Agriscience. In this role, he is responsible for strategic planning, operational excellence, and the financial results for both the Seed and CP business platforms across South Asia.
Rahoul’s career spans more than 20 years in leadership roles in product development, business strategy and sustainability across the specialty materials and automotive industries in India, the US and Singapore
Rahoul has a passion for driving sustainable solutions to enrich the lives of farmers and consumers.
He earned his MBA from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Corporate Finance and Sustainable Enterprise. Rahoul currently lives in Singapore with his wife and 2 daughters. In his spare time, he enjoys reading on subjects across economics & science and is also an avid squash player.
Managing Director, India & South Asia, Thermo Fisher Scientific
Amit joined Thermo Fisher Scientific India in May 2007 as Managing Director for their Laboratory Products Group in India, and was named Managing Director for Thermo Fisher’s India and South Asia operations in March 2011.
Amit started his career at ICI in India where he served for 18 years in a variety of commercial, M&A, manufacturing and General Management roles based in India as well as in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he managed commercial and operations functions for ICI’s specialty chemicals business, Uniqema, for Asia Pacific.
Amit holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, an MBA from XLRI India, and an Advanced Management certificate from Leeds University, UK.
MD & Country Speaker Merck, India & Head of Research Solutions Business, Merck Life Science
Sunil Punjabi is the Managing Director, Country Speaker Merck India and Head of Research Commercial Business for Life Science in India. Prior to the current role, Sunil Punjabi was also the Managing Director for Sigma Aldrich in South East Asia based out of Singapore for period 2011-2013.
Sunil has a master’s degree in Business Management from IIT Bombay & Washington University St. Louis. He also has completed his B.Sc. & M.Sc. (Hons) studies in Biophysics from Punjab University.
He worked for a brief period as a research fellow in PGIMER Chandigarh and CSIR-IIIM Jammu before joining Boehringer Mannheim in 1990. He has number of international publications to his name in reproductive biology and parasitic immunology research area.
He joined Sigma Aldrich (Part of Merck) in 1992 as the first employee in India, and has been Instrumental in developing the business, operations and other support systems in India from the beginning.
Sunil is a passionate, empathetic, result oriented business leader with 28+ years of management experience in Sales & marketing, Supply Chain Management including manufacturing and country management in India and South East Asia. He brings in rich experience in driving growth strategies, proven track record in generating value, meeting and delivering on organisational goals and objectives. He is skilled in team development and ensuring collaborative approach across department, Enables and ensures leveraging the capabilities of others as team to achieve organisational goals.
Sunil is passionate about people development and nurturing talent at all levels. He is an active change leader who drives for innovation aligned with strategic goal. Sunil has proven financial management qualification and experience in delivering both top and bottom line targets.
Sunil has been an active speaker at IBC Singapore, IIMM India and other management and commercial seminars in India and abroad in the past.
Chief Procurement Officer at Aceto US, LLC
Varun is the Chief Procurement Officer at Aceto based out of India. He is responsible for driving the procurement and sourcing process globally including India & China.
Varun has extensive experience in varied areas including strategy, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, business development, operations, general management, creating technology and shared services centres, as well as supply chains.
Varun has been with global firms such as Cummins, ArvinMeritor and Actuant both in USA and India. He also co-founded Radeo Engineered Components, prior to joining Aceto.
Varun’s accolades also are:
A Motivational Leader by mind and a Chefpreneur by heart, Varun also hosts a YouTube channel expressing his hidden interests in culinary skills.
Varun holds a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics & Physics from Elon University and a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State University.
President & Executive Director, Eisai Pharmaceuticals India Pvt Ltd
Dr. Girish Dixit was appointed President of Eisai Pharmaceuticals India Visakhapatnam operations in November 2019 and Executive Director of board of Eisai pharmaceuticals India Pvt Ltd, subsidiary of Eisai co Ltd, a Japan based leading healthcare company with global presence in the area of neurology and oncology
Dr. Girish joined Eisai India in 2009 as Head Research and Development and supported in Multi fold growth of API operations. Over the last 4 years, he has led the strategic lead in supporting API solution Division team of Generic API manufacturing and supply strategy for Japan Generic market.
Dr. Girish started his career with Dabur and actively involved in process development and intellectual property generations for several organizations during his vast experience of over 27 years
Dr. Girish is Doctorate in organic chemistry and MBA from ICFAI.
Editor/Publisher, Chemical Weekly
Ravi obtained his M.S. in Polymer Chemistry from Drexel University (USA), after his B.Sc. (Tech) (Plastics) from UDCT.
In 1986, he joined Chemical Weekly, where he is presently Editor/Publisher.
Ravi is also responsible for strategic planning for the group, which is also into exhibitions/conferences and in strategic market research and consultancy.
He has written extensively on the chemical industry and presented papers at numerous business conferences in India and abroad.
Ravi is
Chief Executive Officer, Innovassynth
Dr. Hardik Joshipura is the Chief Executive Officer of Innovassynth, a Custom Development & Manufacturing organization in India.
Prior to joining Innovassynth in May 2020, Dr. Hardik had spent several years at Leadership roles at Merck KGaA/Sigma Aldrich across different functions. His last assignment with Merck was as Head of Global Strategic Marketing for Pharm Materials, focusing on driving Global franchise strategies for process Chemicals & custom manufacturing services. Prior to which he was General Manager-SAFC (Sigma Aldrich India, later acquired by Merck KGaA) and responsible for Sales & Marketing of Custom Chemicals Business in India. Dr. Hardik joined Sigma Aldrich in 2006 as “Principal Scientist” & led Catalogue Chemicals manufacturing operations for few years before moving to a business role.
He started his career as Project Leader-R&D in Fine chemical business of Zydus Cadila, Ahmedabad & was responsible for driving R&D for CRAMS unit.
Dr. Hardik Joshipura is a Ph.D in Organic Chemistry & an Alumnus of Harvard Business School, Boston, MA, USA.
Editor, Outlook Business
N Mahalakshmi has been with Outlook Publishing since 2007 and has over twenty years of experience in financial research and business journalism. Prior to joining Outlook, she headed Smart Investor, the investor supplement of Business Standard. Currently Editor of Outlook Business, Mahalakshmi was responsible for the re-launch of the magazine in 2012 when the magazine distinctly decided to focus on Enterprise, Strategy and Markets. Under her editorship, Outlook Business has grown to become the second-most read magazine in its genre, with a fortnightly circulation of 190,000 copies, ahead of home-bred incumbents as well as foreign titles like Forbes and Fortune. Some high-profile print editions executed under her watch include Secret Diary of an Entrepreneur/CEO, a series which captures the journey of high-achievers, Masterspeak, a biennial edition of interviews with thought leaders; Warren Buffett special, an annual edition targeted at the value investing community around the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting in Omaha and The World’s Greatest Philanthropists which carried exclusive interviews with Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Chuck Feeney, David Rockefeller Jr among others. Besides, she has spearheaded the transition of the magazine into a brand that intimately connects with targeted business communities through a multi-channel approach. Leading Edge, Outlook Business' annual conclave is conceived for business leaders; Smart Enterprise, a platform for mid-sized business-owners to voice their challenges as well as exchange ideas, and Outlook Business WOW, introduced in 2015, is a forum for women entrepreneurs.
Chairman & Managing Director, Aarti Industries Ltd.
Mr. Rajendra Gogri has been with the company since its inception and was appointed as Managing Director in 1993. He eventually became the Chairman & Managing Director in 2012. He holds a master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from USA and is a rank holder from UDCT, Mumbai. He worked along with Shri Chandrakant V. Gogri, Founder Chairman, Aarti Industries Ltd. to help the Company achieve its present stature. Mr. Gogri has played an instrumental role in expanding the company’s presence in International markets. In addition to his technical qualification, he has expertise in handling financial and commercial matters as well.
He had been awarded the prestigious "Distinguished Alumnus Award" from UDCT in the year 1995 for his excellent performance as an entrepreneur in Chemical Industry. Hurun Report also presented Mr. Rajendra Gogri with the Hurun Industry Achievement Award 2019 in the Specialty Chemicals segment for the exceptional growth of Aarti Industries over the years.
Managing Director, India DuPont Sustainable Solutions
Joseph has 32 years of experience in Manufacturing and Supply Chain in different types of industries. He was progressively responsible for Leadership roles in Manufacturing, Operations and corporate functions in the Asia Pacific Region. During his career, he has proven his leadership skills in building and leading organization in a multicultural regional and global work environment. He has also advanced from an individual contributor to strategic leadership roles through the company’s accelerated leadership development program, which required successful performance in different job roles in Line Management, Functions, multiple businesses, Product lines and regions with core strengths in EHS (Environment Health & Safety), Cost Management, Quality, Supply Chain, Production, Manufacturing Technology, Projects, Six Sigma Continuous Improvement and Maintenance.
Chairman and Managing Director, Meghmani Finechem Ltd.
Maulik Patel is a young entrepreneur and technology enthusiast. He is CMD of Meghmani Finechem Ltd, the chemical complex Involved in Manufacturing of Chlor- Alkali and its Derivatives.
Meghmani Finechem Limited is material subsidiary of Meghmani Organics Ltd (MOL) which is like to be listed by 1st quarter of FY 2022, as a scheme of arrangements is under progress.
He has successfully commissioned downstream value chain and expanded existing Caustic Soda capacities at GIDC Dahej which has now become the largest Chloro-Alkali and derivative Complex in India.
Maulik Patel holds a Bachelor Degree in Engineering (Chemical) from the Sardar Patel University-Anand, Master of Science(Chemical Engineering) from University of Southern California, USA and Master of Business Administration from Long Island University, USA
His visionary planning, Innovative ideas & Excellent Project management skill has set the company at a new benchmark. Today under his guidance the company is setting tough challenges to the established giants In the Industries and poised to be multi Fold Company amidst the stiff competition in the coming years. With his continues efforts and positive approach, company has transformed into a diversified business conglomerate of multi-product portfolio.