Harshavardhan Neotia takes over as FICCI president

Harshavardhan Neotia, the Chairman of Ambuja Neotia Group, has taken over as the next president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) at the conclusion of the chamber's 88th Annual General meeting.

Operating through several companies, the Ambuja Neotia Group covers the entire spectrum of the real estate industry, including housing, hospitality, healthcare and education.

Mr. Neotia did his schooling in La Martiniere for Boys, Kolkata and obtained B.Com (Hons.) from St. Xavier's College, Kolkata. Subsequently he completed the Owner President Management Program (OPM) from the Harvard Business School, USA.

Mr. Neotia was conferred with Padma Shri by the President of India in 1999 for his outstanding initiative in social housing. He was also honoured with YPO Legacy of Honour Award in 2005.

He is a Member on the Board of Governors of Indian Institute of Management, Kolkata and also a Member on the Society of Rajiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management, Shillong. He is on the Board of Shree Somnath Trust, Gujarat. Mr Neotia is the Honorary Consul of Israel in West Bengal.

Mr. Pankaj R. Patel, Chairman and Managing Director, Zydus Cadila - Cadila Healthcare Ltd, has taken charge as FICCI vice president. He brings with him over 35 years of professional experience and spearheads the affairs of Zydus Cadila.

He is the chairperson of the Board of Governors of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, IISER, Kolkata; a Member of the Board of Governors and also the Chairman of the Finance Committee of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad; Member Governing Board of The Ahmedabad University, Chairman of School of Life Sciences, Ahmedabad University; Member of the Board of Management of the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies and Executive Chairman, Vice President and Trustee of the Gujarat Cancer Society and Chairman of the Gujarat Cancer and Research Institute.

Mr. Rashesh Shah, who has also been appointed as FICCI vice president, is the Chairman and CEO, Edelweiss Group. He has spent over 25 years in the corporate and financial markets sector and is one of the leading spokespersons for the industry.

Mr. Shah started Edelweiss in 1996 that has since grown into one of India's leading diversified financial services conglomerates. The INR 270 billion Edelweiss Group is present across all significant areas of financial services including Credit, Housing Finance, Financial Markets, Commodities, Asset Management and Life Insurance. The Group has 240 offices in 125 cities, including eight international offices in New York, Canada, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Mauritius, Nigeria and Chad with headquarters in Mumbai, India.

Finance Asia, Hong Kong ranked Edelweiss as India's Best Managed mid-cap company in 2013 and 2014.

A regular commentator on macro- economic policies, development matters and financial markets in the mainline and financial media, Mr. Shah serves on the Boards of various companies and public institutions. He has previously been on the Executive Committee of the National Stock Exchange and also on the SEBI (Stock Exchange Board of India) committee to review Insider Trading Regulations. He currently serves as Chairman, Maharashtra Council of FICCI and is a part of the Directors Forum formed by corporate stalwarts under the aegis of the FICCI Center for Corporate Governance seeking to improve the quality of board-level governance in Indian industry. An MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, Mr. Shah also holds a Diploma in International Trade from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi.