That was as interesting as ever. My big takeaway was the Old Monk comment. Kudos to you on the 18 books and the way you took us through them.

I am not very sure that economists do not get their light under the sun, but a very good morning to all of you. It is an absolute pleasure for me. This is a very august gathering, and I was talking to Mr. Ahluwalia and Mr. Bibek earlier. It is an absolute pleasure to be part of such luminaries and leaders who have definitely helped shape India through the last few decades and given us the India that we are so proud of today. So thank you for that, and a warm welcome again to the India Economic Forum as well as the Lit Fest 2022.

I am excited to be part of this celebration for a variety of reasons, but most of all, it is the underlying vision of inclusive growth that we are standing for here today, which is super critical.

To talk about SKOCH and Samir from my view, and I think a lot of you will agree, they have been a very persistent voice of change as far as India gets to shine on all fronts. When I say all fronts, I mean all facets—whether it is social, financial, or digital.

Through the India Economic Forum, SKOCH has clearly sparked a dialogue by getting our policymakers, year on year for decades, very close to the reality and the real issues that India faces. That is super work. The essence of getting the best minds to brainstorm on real issues is fantastic. So kudos to you, Sameer, and to your entire team for doing this consistently for decades.

I am also excited today to be co-presenting the Lit Fest awards that Sameer mentioned to some highly respected stalwarts of the country. My compliments in advance to all the award winners. There will be thousands of readers who will benefit immensely from your work and your prints of wisdom.

As Gursharan mentioned, the CAII, or the CEOs’ Association for Inclusive India, remains very closely associated with SKOCH even from a vision perspective. We share a common vision and collectively strive to shape India’s path toward inclusive growth. We do that by providing policy inputs and alternative narratives to the government, keeping social and economic development front and center as our key theme.

A platform like today clearly lives up to the motto of CAII. This is a great forum to advance the inclusiveness that we are building from the corporate world with the CEOs’ Association, and we are very proud of what we are doing.

My last point—because Sameer mentioned it—is about sustainability and climate change. The India Economic Forum has always taken on important issues head-on, both nationally and globally. When it comes to sustainability, through my lens, it is perhaps the most important issue impacting us, and the most important human mission of this century.

All of us today are experiencing the impact of climate change in some way or the other. From our perspective, we do not have the time anymore to decide whether we want to act or not—that time is gone. Environmental consciousness is critical for all of us, and it is no longer a matter of choice.

The silver lining is that whether I look at corporate enterprises or consumer India, there is more awareness and responsibility building up. You may call it an optimistic approach, but I see it every day. We are not just talking about it—we are starting to act, measure our footprints, and work together. This is a team effort, and we are building a more vibrant ecosystem.

I would therefore appeal that we must take sustainability front and center in every policy and management decision we make. There is no point in achieving massive economic growth if we do not protect our environment and planet.

With that, once again, a warm welcome to this event. I look forward to interacting with you through the day.

Thank you very much, and over to you.

Kulmeet.

Participants at the India Economic Forum & LITFest