Sambad Group organised the third edition of Sambad CEO Conclave-2024 in Bhubaneswar on Friday. The media group had held the first edition of the CEO Conclave in 2022. The theme of the third edition of Sambad CEO Conclave was ‘Sustainability Practices in Industry’.
CEOs and representatives from corporate as well as advertising sectors from across India and abroad attended the conclave.
Gracing the occasion as the Chief Guest Deputy Chief Minister KV Singh Deo focused on Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) aspects and opined that the corpotate sector should maintain a fine balance between these three factors for sustainable development.
Singh Deo said the Odisha government will introduce a single window system in true sense to provide hassle-free facility to the corporate sector.
“The previous government in Odisha often claimed that it has introduced a single window system for the industry sector. But, many corporate people told us that they were forced to go to multiple windows once they approached the so called single window system. On behalf of our government, I assure you that we will not make you run around here and there to get your work done. We will provide all facilities at one place,” said the Deputy Chief Minister.
Singh Deo also revealed the commitment of the state government in protecting the environment and natural resources of Odisha from the exploitation of the outsiders.
“Our government is committed that the people of Odisha will take their own decisions regarding issues related to the environment and natural resources. This is one aspect of the Odia Asmita (self-identity),” he said.
Cabinet Minister Suresh Pujari, as chief speaker of the occasion, highlighted that Odisha has been maintaining its own identity since long. The people of Odisha had fought against the Britishers much before the 1857 gutiny, he said.
Pujari sought cooperation from corporate sector to make a new and developed Odisha in the coming days.
“The BJP government is committed to implement all promises it has made in its manifesto in letter and spirit. We will make all efforts to create a new Odisha in five years. The corporate sector should come forward to assist the state government in achieving its goal. We assure you that the government will cooperate with you and provide you all facilities in time bound manner,” he said.
Delivering the inaugural address, Sambad and Kanak News Editor Tanaya Patnaik threw light on climate change and its impact on our daily life.
“In this summer, a few places in Odisha including Bhubaneswar and Baripada recorded maximum temperatures above 45 Degree Celsius. They were among the hottest places in the world. This is very alarming,” she said.
Patnaik opined that environmentally sustainable growth is the need of the hour.
“Development and preservation of environment should go together,” she added.
Patnaik expressed that Sambad Group has been giving importance to environmental issues in its print, television and digital platforms to create awareness among the people.
“The Sambad Group has launched the Punascha Pruthivi (Earth Again) intuitive a few years ago. Under the initiative, the media group has been publishing or broadcasting reports on climate change, pollution and other issues related to the environment on regular basis. We are trying to create wider awareness in this regard,” she said.
The Sambad and Kanak News Editor thanked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for introducing many promises related to environment and climate change in its poll
manifesto.
“A think tank comprising environmentalists, intellectuals and experts had prepared a white paper on climate change and drafted an action plan to tackle the issue. The group had sent its proposals to major political parties just before the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly polls. We are happy that the BJP introduced many of these proposals in its poll manifesto,” Patnaik said.
Speaking on the occasion, Avinash Pandey, CEO ABP Network; President, News Broadcasters and Digital Association and President IAA (India Chapter) thanked the Sambad Group for raising issues related to environment in its all platforms.
“Television viewership is larger than internet viewership in India. If we raise issues related to environment and sustainable development in television, they can reach common masses,” Pandey said.
He put emphasis on proper awareness among the people and concrete efforts by: stakeholders including the government and corporate sector to achieve environmentally-sustainable development. “We all should focus on 5 Ps-People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnership-to achieve sustainable growth,” Pandey said.
Madison World Chairman Sam Balsara, who was a guest at the event, claimed that the structure of Indian economy has undergone massive change in recent years.
“May people from the lower strata are now moving towards the middleclass bracket This is the first sign of development. Now, we have better infrastructure including road and airport. More and more job avenues are opening up to our youths. Small players in various sectors are now doing well. Our country has recorded the largest digital transactions in the world. Engineers from India are now managing the day-to-day operations of many corporate giants including the Google,” he pointed out.
Another guest Srinivasan K. Swamy, CMD, RK Swamy Ltd; Chairman, Asian Federation of Advertising Associations and Chairman Audit Bureau of Circulations, was of the view that the term sustainable development has more relevance for Odisha, a mineral rich state.
According to him, the corporate sector should focus on three aspects-people, planet and profit-to achieve sustainable growth.
“We all should adhere to the principle of 3 Rs-reuse, repair and recycle-to save our planet. We should conserve water and electricity and use eco-friendly products to protect our environment. The use of plastic should be brought to the minimum level.
I hope that the government will introduce chapters on climate change and sustainable growth in the curricula for our students,” averred Swamy.
Sambad Group Managing Director Monica Nayyar Patnaik delivered the concluding address.
“The Sambad Group has been organizing the CEO conclave for the last three years to deliberate on various issues. The first conclave in 2022 had deliberated on the post-pandemic scenario. The second conclave in 2023 delved into the emerging challenges before the corporate sector. The third conclave focused on sustainability practices in industry,” she said.
The Sambad Group Managing Director hailed the contribution of India-born CEOs in the development of the corporate sector in the world.
“Now, around three dozen India-born CEOs are managing business to the tune of $ 1 trillion. This is not a small achievement,” she mentioned.
She also highlighted the Punascha Pruthivi initiative of the Sambad Group for creating awareness on various issues related to our planet and environment.
On the occasion, Pradeep Dwivedi, Group CEO-Eros Media World, gave a presentation on ‘Emerging trends in global media business-Technology driving tectonic shifts.
He claimed that the use of Artificial Intelligence (Al) has brought a massive change in media, advertising and entertainment sector.
“The media and entertainment sector can develop their contents, editing and marketing aspects by utilizing Al and other advanced tools like Blockchain, Web3 and Tokenization,” he said.
Ashwin Padmanabhan, President-Investments, Trading & Partnerships, Group M India, gave a brief presentation on Leveraging influencers and branded content to drive engagement and consideration.
Padmanabhan opined that the role of influencers has gone up manifold in this era of social media. “Around 46 crore people in India are now using social media. The volume of influencer marketing in India has already reached Rs 1,275 crore and it is likely to go up further to Rs 2,800 crore by 2026,” he stated.
On this occasion, Asia Earth Day Network AV EARTHDAY.ORG collaborated with the Punascha Pruthivi initiative of Sambad Group to breate awareness on issues related to environment and pollution.
“Pollution has emerged as a major threat to our environment. EARHDAY.ORG has been creating awareness in this regard for last several years. We have felicitated the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (STA) for banning the use of plastic and polythene in the shrine. We are extremely happy for our collaboration with the Punascha Pruthivi initiative of the Sambad Group,” said Karuna Singh, the Regional Director of Asia Earth Day Network AV EARTHDAY.ORG.
A panel discussion on ‘Sustainability practices in industry’ was organised on the occasion.
Dr. Prasant Kumar Hota, President and Group Head, CSR, Education, Sustainability & Corporate Communications, Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL), Odisha and Dr.
Tapan Kumar Panda, Ex-Pro Vice-Chancellor, KIIT University, were the panelists while Swaraj Mishra, Editorial Advisor, Sambad was the moderator.
The panelists put emphasis on 5 Rs-reuse, recycle, reduce, repair and rethink-to achieve sustainable growth.
“Corporate houses should invest in the preservation of our environment to do better business in the next 100 years,” Hota said.
Panda urged the corporate sector to opt for green accounting and reduce carbon emission to protect our environment.
Bharat Avalani, Founder & CEO, Connecting the Dots Consultancy, Malaysia;
Secretary General of Asian Federation of Advertising Associations; Global Vice-
President, IAA, gave a presentation on ‘Business leaders as storytellers’
“Business leaders can give proper orientation to their employees through storytelling.
The practice will reduce the mental pressure of the employees and raise overall productivity,” said Avalani.
Abhishek Karnani, President, the Free Press Journal Group; Ramesh Narayan,
Director Strategy, Asian Federation of Advertising Associations and Rani Reddy of Sakshi Media Group also spoke at the conclave.
IAA governing body members-Ramesh Narayan, Avinash Pandey, Srinivasan K.
Swamy, Sam Balsara, Abhishek Karnani and Pradeep Dwivedi-were felicitated at the event.
The Sambad Group felicitated five best advertisers-Khimji Jewellers, Lalchnd Jewellers, TPCODL, Chandi Bhandar and Freedom Oil-on the occasion.
Similarly, best 11 advertising agencies-Fast Communication, Xpose Advertising, Display Line, Anita Advertisers, Star Advertising, Herald Advertising, Sanket Communications, Annapurna Advertising, NextGen Advertising, P&A Advertising Agency and Tarini Advertising Agency-received felicitations at the conclave.
Celebrity singer and multi-instrumentalist Raghav Sachar enthralled the gathering with his powerful performance.
