Event Overview
On September 2 2026, Godrej Industries Group (GIG) hosted the third edition of its National Chemistry Day Summit in Mumbai. The summit, a joint initiative of GIG’s subsidiaries Godrej Industries (Chemicals) and Astec LifeSciences, was themed “Staying Resilient in a New Age World”.
Core Themes and Takeaways
The summit focused on building resilience in the Indian chemical sector through four pillars: stronger collaboration across the value chain, artificial‑intelligence‑driven innovation, talent development, and a shift toward green chemistry and responsible manufacturing. Leaders asserted that collaboration, technology, and skilled human capital are essential for long‑term competitiveness and growth.
Panel Discussions
Resilience Beyond the Enterprise
The first panel, moderated by Vishal Sharma (Executive Director & CEO, Godrej Industries (Chemicals) and Chairperson, Astec LifeSciences), featured Murali Krishna Duvvuri (Senior Managing Director, Life Sciences, Asia & India, Croda), Alexander Gerding (Managing Director, BASF India) and Bankim Patra (Country Head – Lubes, Indian Oil Corporation Limited). Participants stressed an integrated ecosystem approach, calling for deeper technology and R&D partnerships, supportive infrastructure, enabling policies, and accelerated project execution to sustain investment, innovation and scale.
Resilience for the Enterprise
The second panel, moderated by Sandeep Arora (Chief Commercial Officer, Godrej Industries (Chemicals)), included Raj Tiwari (CEO, SUPERFORM and Whole‑time Director, UPL Limited), Ajith Kumar (Chief Operating Officer, Birla Opus) and Vimal Bhola (Co‑founder & Chief R&D Scientist, Innovist, formerly Onesto Labs). The discussion highlighted how organisations can enhance resilience through talent development, product differentiation, deep customer insight, a culture of innovation, long‑term planning and sustained R&D investment, balancing short‑term execution with future‑focused research.
Emerging Priorities Sessions
A dedicated session titled “Preparing for the Next Decade: AI in the Chemical Industry” featured a keynote by Sambit Patra, Senior Partner, Chemicals Practice, Bain & Company, who explored AI’s potential to reshape growth trajectories and operational efficiency in chemicals.
A fireside chat, “The Talent Imperative: Attracting, Developing, and Retaining Talent in a Rapidly Evolving Chemical Industry”, brought together Shefali Kohli (CHRO, Global Chemicals, Fashion Yarn & Insulators, Aditya Birla Group) and Poonam Burman (Chief Human Resource Officer, Godrej Industries (Chemicals)). The dialogue underscored the strategic importance of human capital, emphasizing recruitment, skill development and retention as critical levers for resilience.
Company Background
Godrej Industries Group serves over 1.4 billion people worldwide across FMCG, real estate, financial services, agriculture and chemicals. For FY 26, the group reported USD 7.2 billion in revenue and a market capitalisation of USD 19 billion as of 31 March 2026. It leads the Indian market in residential real estate, animal feed, crude palm oil, oleochemicals, household insecticides, hair colour and air care. The group’s Good & Green programme targets net‑zero operations by 2035 and responsible supply chains by 2047. In 2025, Godrej Consumer Products and Godrej Properties were ranked number one globally in their categories on the Dow Jones Best‑in‑Class Sustainability Indices.
Godrej Chemicals, a subsidiary, supplies oleochemicals, surfactants, speciality chemicals and biotech products to more than 70 countries. With an integrated Indian manufacturing footprint, it posted revenues exceeding INR 4,216 crore in FY 26 and continues to focus on green chemistry and responsible manufacturing.
Significance
The summit positioned resilience—through collaboration, AI, talent and sustainability—as a defining capability for the Indian chemical industry, urging participants to move beyond reactive measures toward proactive, ecosystem‑wide strategies.