The two-day event was attended by 228 senior leaders from various associations, who discussed best practices, the challenges faced by associations and their future.
Held from 24-25 August 2012 at Trident, Nariman Point, Mumbai, the programme of the 2nd Edition of the India Association Congress included panel discussions on several issues, such as the role of associations in nation building, future directions for India’s association industry, forging more powerful links with members and stakeholders, the role of events, the opportunities and challenges facing international associations, recruitment and retention, etc.
Commenting on the event, Prasant Saha, chairman of India Association Congress, put the accent of the important role played by "communication in building and sustaining an association."
Vibhav Kant Upadhyay, chairman of India Center Foundation, compared how the world used to function with how does today: "Associations are pillars of democracy. The world is a confused place today. The definitions we have created are all artificial and the systems we have in place were implemented some 250 years ago. At that time, aspirations were very limited and natural resources were unlimited. Today, aspirations are unlimited and natural resources are limited."
He then added: "India cannot ’cut and paste’ the same models that are being used in other parts of the world. We have to understand the limitations and advantages of India and create a new model that maps our aspirations to available resources. The point of nation building is to address what kind of nation we want to build."
Dr. Ashok Gupta (Padma Shri), Association of Plastic Surgeons of India, dispelled the myth of nation building: "Many people believe nation building is evolutionary rather than revolutionary. Although Tata and Birla have been emphasizing the importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) for some time now, in India it is still at a very nascent stage. Companies and associations need to understand that a healthy population leads to healthy nation."
Mumbai hosts 2nd edition of India Association Congress
