At the seminar held on February 4 and February 5, management practitioners, medical professionals, policy advisors, academicians, ministers and local sarpanch’s came together on a single platform to understand the emerging trends in rural management sector and discuss various management solutions to the problems in rural India.

The two-day agenda broadly covered topics such as ‘Energy and sustainability’, ‘The business of agro products’, ‘Entrepreneurship at grassroots’, ‘Role of IT in rural development’ where speakers elaborately discussed on the management of energy needs and providing sustainable solutions, issues of marketing agro products from rural areas, the need for culture specific and customized entrepreneurial education. The emergence of new technology for enhancing competitiveness of rural India and finance for sustainable development in rural area.

Speakers at the seminar underlined the need to pay attention to the vast underdeveloped rural sector given the size of India’s rural population and the heightened pace of her burgeoning economy. 

The inaugural address was delivered by Hon. Shri Jayant Patil, Union Cabinet Minister for Rural Development. Shri Jayant Patil pointed out that the empowerment and development of rural India is the quintessential requirement for alleviating rural backwardness. The minister who spoke at length said, “The Government of India initiated different programs of rural development and empowerment beginning from the inauguration of the Panchayati Raj System in 1959 to the implementation of NREGA in 2004, RTI in 2005 and creation of rural courts in 2009. The five year plans were focused towards special benefits for the rural community. Some of the objectives have been achieved and others failed but the efforts for further development has never ceased.” Stating that seminars such as these help intelligentsia and policy-makers to introspect and develop a vision for the future, he said that development without the inclusion of rural India is unsustainable.

Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe, Group Director Welingkar Institute of Management, said there is a greater need for managerial input in rural India. He further stated that the actors in the management process are the people inhabiting the rural areas, and no long term plan can be pursued or achieved without their willingness, collaboration and participation. 

“In today’s era of liberalization and globalization management education is playing a key role in systematizing various activities in business environment. There is a greater need now for a culture specific and customized management education that takes into account the socio-economic factors influencing decision-making,” he said.

The seminar was also addressed by Dr Ramesh Poddar of Jeevan Hospital, Mr Zubin Daruwala of Johnson & Johnson and by top honchos of IBM and Microsoft among others.

About Welingkar Institute of Management development & Research

Established in 1977, Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research, Mumbai is a leading Business School in India. The Pune based S.P. Mandali Trust, is the governing body. The trust manages 43 educational Institutes in the state of Maharashtra. Welingkar delivers programs recognised by the AICTE, Govt. of India and University of Mumbai apart from industry focused autonomous programs and programs with International collaboration.

Welingkar is accredited by the National Board of Accreditation (NBA), an apex body constituted by the Govt. of India. Welingkar is ranked 4th in the Recruiters category, 3rd in Mumbai and 15th in the Best B-Schools category by Business Today 2009. Its also ranked 15th in the Best B-Schools category by India Today 2009 and ranked 9th in the private B-School category by The B-School Survey 2009 by Outlook. Welingkar has two campuses – Mumbai and Bengaluru.

Amongst the first schools in India to realise the importance of Global Affiliations and Tie-ups, Welingkar has many international partnerships to its credit. Some of the best B-schools like New Castle Business School, Northumbria University, UK; Nottingham Trent University, UK; Bamberg University, Germany; Audencia Nantes, France; Jonkoping International Business School, Jonkoping University, Sweden; Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster University, UK.

Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe, Welingkar Institute has received several awards and established many firsts in the world of management education with new programs in niche areas such as E-business, Retail Management and Commodities Market, Business Design and Healthcare Management.  He is best described as a person with a penchant for excellence in anything undertaken in the academic and corporate world.