First Chair and Co-chair of GCCA India's CEO Committee announced

Mahendra Singhi, managing director and CEO of Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Ltd, and Nilesh Narwekar, CEO of JSW Cement, have been elected as the chair and co-chair respectively of the Global Cement and Concrete Association India (GCCA - India). The chair and co-chair have been appointed for the first two years (2020-22).
 
Speaking at the GCCA India CEO meeting of the member companies in Mumbai, Benjamin Sporton, GCCA CEO, said: "I'm delighted to have overseen the first CEO meeting of the GCCA India member companies. It is important for the Indian cement sector to continue to work collaboratively on sustainability and innovation work.
 
"We now have eight major Indian cement companies contributing to the GCCA India work programme. India is a significant market in terms of cement producing capacity and, with population growth, the growing demand and need for affordable houses and infrastructure, cement and concrete are going to play an important role in the future development of the country. It’s very much the aim of GCCA India to help ensure that this is undertaken sustainably."
 
Members of the Indian cement industry have been working together to achieve low-carbon growth for the Indian cement sector. Mr Sporton recognised the efforts of UltraTech Cement and Heidelberg India in helping to establish GCCA India.
 
GCCA India has developed a work programme that will focus on the GCCA priorities but with practical application across the Indian built environment. GCCA India priorities include:
 
•    Fostering good health & safety practices in the cement and concrete industry
•    Providing thought leadership for cement and concrete
•    Outreach to more cement companies to make a positive contribution to sustainable development
•    Positioning concrete as the sustainable building material of choice
•    Fostering innovation in the cement and concrete sector
•    Sharing of best practices and benchmarking cement manufacturing processes
•    Promoting the principles of a circular economy across the value chain.