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VENGADESHWARAN SUBRAMANIAM
The Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) appointed eight new board members at its 79th annual general meeting on May 15.
Mr Maneesh Tripathi and Mr Chandra Mohan Rethnam came in as vice-chairmen and Mr Hanif Moez Nomanbhoy as honorary treasurer. The new directors are Mr Muralli Rajaram, Mr Raj Kumar Perumal, Mr Yahiya Khan, Mr Tushar Doshi and Mr Saravanan Krishnasamy.
Dr T. Chandroo remains chairman for a second term.
"SICCI can play an important role both in the Singapore business community and the Indian business community," said Mr Tripathi, the chairman of Affinity Capital and group chief executive officer of SEVAK, a leading telecom and IT service provider.
"There are opportunities in the supply chains and SICCI can play an important role in linking small and medium businesses in Singapore with other Asian countries," he added.
He also aims to improve the international branding and visibility of SICCI.
Mr Rethnam, a partner at law firm Rajah & Tann, said: "This is a difficult time for the country as well as businesses in Singapore. I intend to put in my best effort to help Indian businesses and the Indian community.
"We want to help Singapore businesses and Indian SMEs internationalise and explain to them the importance of internationalisation and help them identify suitable markets. We also want to connect them to various government agencies and schemes."
Mr Nomanbhoy is a director of Nomanbhoy Sons, one of Singapore's oldest establishments trading in spices and commodities.
Nine members from the previous board will serve a second term, including Dr Chandroo. The others are the assistant treasurer Dr Zahabar Ali and the directors Mr Kishore Jethanand Daryanani, Mr Rajan Bagaria, Ms Shobha Tsering Bhalla, Mr M.S. Maniam, Mr Parthiban Murugaiyan, Mr Muralikrishnan Rangan and Ms Purnima Kamath.
All 17 board members were elected or re-elected unopposed.
Dr Chandroo, who is the chairman and chief executive officer of Modern Montessori International, thanked the business leaders who have volunteered to help SICCI during this tough Covid-19 period.
Welcoming the new board members, he pointed out that some of them bring decades of experience in key areas such as finance, law and strategy implementation which are vital to SICCI's future operations and strategy.
"Their counsel and expertise will strengthen SICCI's commitment to uplifting the business community in Singapore as well as help build deeper relationships and collaborations with both local and international trade associations and chambers," he said.
"We are confident that they will provide valuable perspectives as we continue to drive membership and new strategies for the benefit of our members."
For the first time in SICCI's 96-year history, the AGM was held in the form of a Zoom webinar.
Later, SICCI said in a statement that it is committed to helping its members and the business community during these difficult times.
SICCI will be working closely with Enterprise Singapore to set up the SG Together Enhancing Enterprise Resilience (STEER) Programme, which was announced during this year's Budget.
It also intends to launch a two-year pilot programme called Executive-in-Residence, which will help companies develop long-term strategies in productivity, internationalisation and capability building.
Among other initiatives, SICCI will be strengthening the capabilities of its SME Centres and launching a two-year pilot programme where it will serve as a growth partner for promising micro and small enterprises.
Other projects include a job placement service for Indian graduates and a business management programme which will help foster leadership qualities, upgrade management skills and increase job skill sets.
