In his inaugural address, Indian Consul General, H.E. Randhir Kumar Jaiswal, a career diplomat with over two decades of diplomatic career serving in Portugal, Cuba, South Africa and at the Permanent Mission of India in New York, greeted the community of Indian Chartered Accountants in the United States as well as those around the world connected online to the event on the occasion of inauguration of the New England Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI).

“There is an expansive partnership already in place between the New England region and India, and with the opening of the [ICAI New England] chapter, I expect many new milestones”, H.E. Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General of India, New York said on Sunday, January 24th.

Consul General Jaiswal emphasized the importance of the overall partnership between India and US, especially for economic cooperation, and collaboration for trade and investment. While dealing with the challenges of the pandemic, a slew of reforms were recently announced in several segments, notably, food processing, space, civil aviation, and financial services that got the stakeholders here in the U.S. energized. One key area of collaboration and enhanced engagement would be the health segment, specifically around the vaccines program between the two countries. India has already shared the vaccine with several countries as a gesture of friendship and to others, which is in line with the thoughts and belief in the age old Sanskrit maxim of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam meaning the “World is one family”. CG provided strong support for the Chapter and its initiatives and offered to meet the team during his next visit to Boston.

Consul General Jaiswal was joined at the inauguration by CA. Mahaveer Singhvee, Joint Secretary in India’s Ministry of External Affairs, ICAI President Atul Gupta, ICAI Vice President Nihar Jambusaria, and a distinguished panel of speakers including CA. V.G. Narayanan (Professor, Harvard Business School), Ms. Nileema Pargaonker (Head, Policy Advocacy for Financial Services, Capital Markets, Tax, and Real Estate at U.S. India Business Council); Ms. Shuchita Sonalika (Director and Head- North America, Confederation of Indian Industry), and Ms. Anu Chitrapu (President TiE Boston and Senior Vice President, Bank of America).

CA. Nihar Jamusaria, Vice President, ICAI, acknowledged that despite the pandemic, the bold vision of ICAI President Gupta resulted in the formation of ICAI New England within a short span of time creating a win-win situation for CAs both in the United States and those in India looking for global professional opportunities.

CA. Atul Gupta, President, ICAI, noted that there are about 4,000 CAs based in the United States. This large presence speaks to the strength and skills the CAs possess to be able to serve in a global economy. CAs can act as a catalyst to build strong bilateral relationships between India and the U.S. through research, mutual initiative, and skill development programs. The Ministry of External Affairs has recognized that ICAI’s overseas Chapters will be treated at par with other prominent organizations such as CII and FICCI.

CA. Mahaveer Singhvi, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, congratulated ICAI on this momentous occasion. He emphasized the key priority of the ICAI leadership to expand horizons for CAs internationally to connect and harness synergies from the vast network of over 50,000 plus ICAI members located outside India. CA. Singhvi encouraged ICAI New England to collaborate with embassies and consulates on programs to disseminate the knowledge about India; and work with local investors to expand the business relationship with India. US being the largest trading partner in terms of goods and services, there is an immense scope to strengthen the U.S.-India bilateral relations.

One of the founding members of the chapter, Dr. Mark Chockalingam opened the event by recounting the journey to get to the inauguration and the President of San Francisco chapter CA. Geetha Ramakrishnan provided her perspective.

CA. Sanjay Aggarwal, Chair, ICAI New England shared a key skill that CAs possess, which is their training in the art of asking insightful questions. He shared the vision that the Managing Committee has laid out for the New England Chapter, which would be to make the Chapter fully operational, building a strong member base and provide opportunities to network, develop professional skills and capabilities, and career opportunities. Sanjay acknowledged that one of the key objectives of the chapter was to ensure that the Chapter is focused on connecting with organizations that work in the U.S.-India bilateral corridor.

CA. Dhvani Doshi, Vice Chair ICAI New England noted that on the journey to being a Chapter, many of the CAs, specifically those early in their career have already seen the benefits of the power of tapping into those that have walked the steps before, such as: focused interactions on knowledge share, guidance for career transitions, jobs and business referrals, and this was just the start. She observed that through a shared commitment, the chapter expects to increase contribution to the communities we live in, engage with regional and global professional organizations to advance mutual professional interests, and provide more visibility for the CA brand in the New England region.

Dhvani further led a panel conversation on the theme: “ICAI New England Advancing the CA brand of Trusted & Innovative Global Leaders”, with leaders in the U.S.-India bilateral relationship. The panelists emphasized the importance of CA brand and the strategic lens that they can bring to business relationships between the two countries, including a thriving startup culture, educational partnerships, and support of small and large businesses, including women leadership.

The event was emceed by Board member CA. Divya Singhal-Chandra and was followed by a private virtual reception.

The event was organized by the ICAI India leadership and Managing Committee of the New England Chapter comprising CA. Sanjay Aggarwal (Chair), CA. Dhvani Doshi (Vice Chair), CA. Bhanu Suryadevara (Secretary), CA. Balaji Sivakumaran (Treasurer), Dr. Mark Chockalingam, CA. Divya Singhal-Chandra, and CA. Tejal Sanghvi.

ICAI New England is a chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. The Chapter aims to operate as a not-for-profit organization incorporated under Massachusetts General Law established with the primary objective of providing networking and professional development opportunities to Chartered Accountants (India) across the New England region, USA. The CA fraternity in New England, nearly 300 strong, represents a diverse group of professionals, from public accounting to entrepreneurs, corporate managers to private equity partners, from CXOs to students who are just starting their careers. Each member has had a special contribution to make, to give and take, and add to the power and richness of this platform.

The event was telecast live on ICAI’s YouTube channel and viewed by over 3,500 members globally.

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