NRI Pulse


City News

Port City Savannah Hosts 2nd Annual India’s Supply Chain Conference

UIBS
L to R: Ani Agnihotri, Program Chairman India's Supply Chain: Markets and Opportunities Conference (ISCMOC), Honorable Edna Branch Jackson, Mayor of Savannah, Honorable Ajit Kumar, Consul General of India, Atlanta Judy Reinke, Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs, U.S. Commercial Service, India and Dr. John R. McIntyre, Director of the Georgia Tech – CIBER. Photo by Bytegraph.

Atlanta, GA: USA India Business Summit (UIBS) has a distinguished history of being the largest conference in the South–East USA that promotes business relations between USA and India. The goal of UIBS is to bring investment, partnerships and businesses between the United States and India on a common platform and accelerate growth in key areas of science & technology, energy, supply chain, logistics, infrastructure and investment etc. The 2nd annual India’s Supply Chain: Markets and Opportunities Conference (ISCMOC) in the port city of Savannah was successfully organized by UIBS and it was attended by about 95 delegates.

Honorable Edna Branch Jackson, Mayor of Savannah, Georgia inaugurated the conference on April 2nd in Savannah. Mayor Jackson warmly invited delegates to explore Savannah’s rich history, tradition and heritage.

L to R: Ani Agnihotri, Chair, India’s Supply Chain: Markets and Opportunities Conference (ISCMOC), Dr. John R. McIntyre, Director of the Georgia Tech – CIBER and Honorable Edna Branch Jackson, Mayor of Savannah, (4th from left) with Indian and American delegates. Photo by Bytegraph.

The day-and-a-half long executive business forum was designed for business decision-makers, strategic business planners, consultants and senior academics interested in the business opportunities and profit potential afforded by the rapid expansion and globalization of India’s supply chain.

Presenting partners included USA India Business Summit (UIBS), Georgia Ports Authority, Georgia Tech Center for International Business Education and Research, and Georgia College.

The conference included two keynote addresses; the first by Honorable Ajit Kumar, Consul General of India, Atlanta on  “India’s Supply Chain: Markets and Opportunities” and the second one by Judy Reinke, Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs, U.S. Commercial Service, India on “India’s Supply Chain: Incredible Opportunity.” Consul
General Kumar informed the delegates that India’s trade with US has touched USD $100 billion last year and has the potential to grow to up to USD $ 1 trillion. Indian businesses are creating value, wealth and thousands of jobs in the USA, he added.

India, with a growth at a predicted 5%, better than expected, stands out as one of the most promising markets in   sectors such as agriculture, engineering goods, fast moving consumer goods, pharmaceuticals, textiles, infrastructural projects and telecoms, among others. This rise of the past few years has given a new lease on life to its logistics markets and is likely to gain   momentum as India finds creative ways to lead the wave of  recoveries in the current evolving global downturn.   Fast-paced growth in the  Indian industrial sector coupled with its continuous ascent in agricultural production and
distribution have required a rapid extension of India’s  supply chains across a continental-sized mosaic-like country to ease distribution and sourcing of production.

Indian distribution entails numerous layers of intermediaries and retailers across a widespread and complex country characterized by cultural and linguistic diversity.   This complexity and particular moment in India’s economic history both combine to continue creating unique opportunities for logistics service providers, established in
other national and regional markets,   to consolidate a lasting foothold in the Indian marketplace.

The time is long gone when India’s creaking road and rail networks limited its ability to make the leap forward into the global markets.  Large-scale projects now dot the India’s geography, harbingers of the tremendous growth potential and pent-up demand for a more efficient, state of the art, logistical network to respond to the economic and
demographic march forward.  The opportunity is now while the rules of the game are being redefined and the markets are taking off with new actors in a reconfigured global economy.  This conference opens vistas on this ongoing process and opportunity.

22 distinguished speakers participated in six panel sessions including ‘Perspectives on USA and India’s Supply Chain & Logistics Industry Services’, ‘New Innovations in Supply Chains Leveraging Technologies’ and ‘India’s Integration with Global and USA Supply Chain’.

According to Ani Agnihotri, Conference Chair, Georgia has a growing relationship with India. With opening of a new consulate in Atlanta we feel that Georgia as well as India business community has to plenty of opportunities to explore in traditional areas like software, and technology as well and emerging areas like Pharma and supply Chain.

Related posts

Raksha’s Aparna Bhattacharyya in Atlanta Magazine’s 500 most powerful list

Veena

Atlanta student Aditya Suri wins Grand Prize from Samsung App Academy

Veena

Indian American couple charged in Atlanta for laundering $400,000 on behalf of phone scammers

Veena

Leave a Comment