During the 10th edition of the IAA Leadership Awards, which took place in Mumbai on 10 August, Nadir Godrej, chairperson and managing director, Godrej Industries, shared a poetic and heartfelt opening address.
The poem had reflections on global challenges and India's rise to the top. Godrej was the jury chair for the 2023 edition of the awards.
This is what he narrated:
There are problems in the world, each year more around the world.
Climate change has been there, a pandemic broken share, inequality is very bad, and maybe getting even higher.
And since the Russia-Ukraine war, the world has had to endure an unexpected commodity.
All these dangers are constantly there and some countries succumbed to all this flak, but we are on a better track.
And as commodity prices are getting declined, I'm afraid inflation numbers should be fine.
We already know we will survive.
And now there's hope that we will thrive.
Our economy is growing fast and there a signs that this will last.
Our labour laws have been such that our industry couldn't do much in labour-intensive production.
There was far too much structure, but the stimulus of the ally in many industries we can thrive.
Defense exports are on the rise and in mobile phones, everyone thrives.
Thanks to our digital stack, there are many problems we can crack.
Indeed, India will succeed with knowledge, marked progress we can see in farming, chemicals and IT.
The pandemic has accelerated future trends long awaited.
E-commerce, AI and digitalisation are growing fast in every nation.
While digitisation was a trend, the curve is now fermenting.
The pandemic has made us wise and thought us how to digitise.
Even as the pandemic wanes, these learnings will be permanent gains.
The post-pandemic world for sure will be a new normal, not as before.
And these new trends can only grow good benefits are bound to flow.
The digital worlds are now at our feet and surely help us to compete.
And if we take the cruciform with an economy that works for all.
In a democracy with give and take where everyone has a stake, and discourse is free and polite.
When we listen and refuse to slide in dark times two, we will stand tall and ensure that we do not fall.
If we are smart, as well as wise, surely India's bound to rise.
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