The Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA), the apex think tank for the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India, today commenced the "Two Day Familiarisation Programme for Independent Directors" underscoring its commitment to advancing corporate governance excellence in India, aligning with the government's vision.

Dr. Niraj Gupta, Head of the School of Corporate Governance & Public Policy at IICA, marked the commencement of the event by welcoming the distinguished participants and speakers. Emphasising the essence of the programme, Dr. Gupta highlighted the significance of professionalising Independent Directors (IDs), ensuring their genuine independence, enhancing their effectiveness, and the perpetual learning ethos advocated by the IICA. He also accentuated the symbiotic learning potential between the public and private sectors.

The event has drawn the attention of over 60 distinguished directors from a diverse mix of top Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) and leading private sector entities. Renowned attendees include representatives from Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, Cochin Shipyards, UCO Bank, PwC, J&K Bank, Power Grid Corporation, Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency, MSTC Ltd, Power Finance Corporation, and Indian Railway Finance Corporation.

The sessions are scheduled to feature insights from an esteemed panel of faculty members:

• Shri. Parvatheesam Kanchinandam, Company Secretary and Chief Legal Officer, Tata Steel
• Dr. Ashok Haldia, Former MD & CEO, PTC India Financial Services.
• Shri. Shashank Karnad, Partner & CEO- Forensic Services, Mahajan & Aibara.
• Shri Ajay Nanavati, Former Chairman, Syndicate Bank.
• Shri. Nawshir Mirza, Professional Independent Director serving on multiple company boards.
• Shri. Robin Banerjee, Chairman, Nucleon Research Pvt. Ltd.
• Shri. Mohan R. Lavi, Renowned Financial Advisor.

The programme is coordinated by Shri. Manoj Singh, Chief Programme Executive, SoCGPP, IICA, and Shri. Mathew John, Programme Manager, National CSR Awards Secretariat, IICA.

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PPG/KMN

Independent director professionalisation strengthens corporate governance by enhancing independence, role clarity and board effectiveness. Professionalisation of Independent Directors is advanced via a two day familiarisation programme focused on strengthening director independence, role clarity, board effectiveness and continuous learning. The initiative promotes cross sector knowledge exchange between public and private boards and delivers multi disciplinary governance, regulatory, fiduciary and forensic insights to improve board oversight, compliance and ongoing professional development for non executive directors.