“A dynamic platform that showcases the India growth story, and highlights collaborations between the University of Oxford and Indian business leaders.”
“A pivotal platform to inspire, drive collaborations and showcase the India growth story.”
Empowering India’s Future: A Global Platform for Collaboration and Thought Leadership
Our Initiatives:
- Host the largest India-focused conference at a university in Europe
- Drive collaboration between the University of Oxford and Indian businesses on research, technology and policy
- Curate impactful year-round speaker series featuring global thought leaders
- Enable Indian companies to attract and integrate top global talent
Guest of Honor
Ajay Piramal
Chairman, Piramal Group
Speakers
S.Somanath
Former Chairperson, ISRO
Kalli Purie
Vice Chairperson, India Today Group
Rajeev Chandrasekhar
State President, BJP Kerela. Former Minister of Electronics & IT, Government of India
Preetha Reddy
Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals
Vikram Doraiswami
High Commissioner of India to the UK
Naushad Forbes
Co-Chairperson, Forbes Marshall
Ronnie Screwvala
Co-founder, upGrad & Swades Foundation
Priya Agarwal
Chairperson, Hindustan Zinc Non-executive Director, Vedanta
Shashwat Goenka
Vice Chairperson, RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group
Gauranga Das
Spiritual Leader
Vijay Chauthaiwale
In-Charge, Foreign Affairs Department, BJP
Sameer Chauhan
Director (CEO), UNICC
K.T. Rama Rao
President, BRS Former Minister, Government of Telangana
Rishabh Shroff
Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas Law
Varun Chaudhary
Managing Director, CG Corp
Sunil Kant Munjal
Chairperson, Hero Enterprise
Annurag Batra
Chairperson, BW Business World, exchange4Media Group
Lord Karan Bilimoria
Founder, Cobra Beer
Chandrajit Banerjee
Director General, CII
Rajiv Memani
Chairman and CEO - EY India
Moderators
Shankar Vanavarayar
Educationist, Entrepreneur & Cultural Advocate
Prachetas Bhatnagar
Head of Strategy & Operations, Policy & Politics, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, London
Mitesh Kothari
Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer, White Rivers Media
Meghna Das
Head of International Programmes Impact, UNICEF UK
Radhika Khosla
Associate Professor, Smith School of Enterprise and Environment
Kanksshi Agarwal
Convenor, Oxford India Forum
Presentation Schedule / Agenda
A platform to Inspire, Collaborate and Showcase the India Growth Story
Guest of Honor
Ajay Piramal (Chairman, Piramal group) Defining India’s Future Trajectory
Opening Remarks
09:00 am - 09:05 am
Inaugural Address: Vision, Partners, and Purpose
Speaker
Archita Sarangi (Co-Head Partnerships Team)
Discussion
09:05 am - 09:35 am
Why stop at the Moon? How India’s Space Missions are rewriting space innovation
Speaker
S. Somanath (Former Chairperson, ISRO)
09:35 am - 10:15 am
A Blueprint of Social Conscience: India’s Role in a New Multi-Polar World
Speakers
Gauranga Das (Prominent Spiritual Leader)
Vijay Chauthaiwale (In-Charge, Foreign Affairs Department, BJP)
Moderator
Annurag Batra (Chairperson, BW Business World, exchange4Media Group)
10:15 am - 10:35 am
Coffee Break
Discussion
10:35 am - 11:10 am
Unlocking the 5 Trillion Economy – Activating Engines of Growth
Speakers
Rajiv Mamani (Chairman and CEO - EY India)
Naushad Forbes (Co-Chairperson, Forbes Marshall)
Moderator
Shankar Vanavarayar (Educationist, Entrepreneur & Cultural Advocate)
11:10 am - 11:35 am
Climate Innovation & Industry: Powering India’s Energy Future
Speaker
Priya Agarwal (Chairperson, Hindustan Zinc Non-executive Director, Vedanta)
Moderator
Radhika Khosla (Associate Professor, Smith School of Enterprise and Environment)
11:35 am - 12:05 pm
Cultural Capital: Investing in the Arts & Creativity as a Pillar of Democratic Growth
Speaker
Sunil Kant Munjal (Chairperson, Hero Enterprise)
Moderator
Chas Bountra (Pro-Vice Chancellor for Innovation)
12:05 pm - 12:40 pm
Unlocking the FTA (UK – India) & Beyond
Speakers
Lord Karan Bilimoria (Founder, Cobra Beer)
Chandrajit Banerjee (Director General, CII)
Moderator
Faisal Devji (Professor of Indian History)
12:40 pm - 01:00 pm
Lessons in Building a South Asian Multinational
Speaker
Varun Chaudhary (Managing Director, CG Corp)
Moderator
TBD
01:00 pm - 02:00 pm
Lunch
Discussion
Spotlight Session
02:00 pm - 02:45 pm
India @100 – A Developed, Confident, Compassionate Nation
Speaker
Guest of HonorAjay Piramal (Chairman, Piramal group)
Moderator
Vivek Agarwal (Country Director, India, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change)
02:45 pm - 03:05 pm
Legal Reforms and Policy Changes for India’s next Decade of Growth
Speaker
Rishabh Shroff (Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas Law)
Moderator
Kanksshi Agarwal (Convenor, Oxford India Forum)
03:05 pm - 03:25 pm
Coffee Break
Discussion
03:25 pm - 03:55 pm
Sustainable Growth & Demographic Dividend: Unlocking Wealth Creation for India’s Youth
Speaker
Shashwat Goenka (Vice Chairman, RP - Sanjiv Goenka Group)
Moderator
Meghna Das (Head of International Programmes Impact, UNICEF UK)
03:55 pm - 04:25 pm
Disrupting Sectors: Story-telling, Skilling, Rural Empowerment to Entrepreneurship
Speaker
Ronnie Screwala (Founder, UpGrad & Swades Foundation)
Moderator
Mitesh Kothari (Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer, White Rivers Media)
04:25 pm - 04:55 pm
Bridges Across Centuries: Leadership Lessons for the Algorithm Age
Speaker
Kalli Purie (Vice Chairperson, India Today Group)
Moderator
Kanksshi Agarwal (Convenor, Oxford India Forum)
04:55 pm - 05:35 pm
AI is India’s Strategic Moment: Building Innovation, Shaping the Global Order
Speakers
Rajeev Chandreshakar (State President, BJP Kerela. Former Minister of Electronics & IT, Government of India)
Vikram Doraiswami (High Commissioner of India to the UK)
Sameer Chauhan (Director (CEO), UNICC)
Moderator
Prachetas Bhatnagar (Head of Strategy & Operations, Policy & Politics, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, London)
05:35 pm - 05:40 pm
Empowering India’s Youth
Speaker
Ketan Deshpande(Founder, FUEL)
Reception
07:00 pm - 08:00 pm
Speakers
Ayaan Agnihotri(Executive Director at Four Aces Fashion House)
Vijay Raghvan(Professor, National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research)
Gala dinner
08:00 pm - 10:30 pm
Speaker
Annurag Batra (Chairperson, BW Business World, exchange4Media Group )
Anuj Gupta (Founder, Green Van)
Past Speakers
Annamalai K
State President, BJP (Tamil Nadu)
Jayant Sinha
Former Minister of State for Finance, Civil Aviation
Mohandas Pai
Chairman, Aarin Capital Partners and 3One4 Capital
Ananya Birla
Businessperson
Rohan Murty
Founder and CTO, Soroco
Harsh Jain
CEO & Co-Founder, Dream Sports and Dream11
Sunjay Kapur
Chairman, Sona Comstar
Christoph Tang
Professor of Cellular Pathology
Myles Allen
Professor of Geosystem Science
Advisors - Industry
Ananya Birla
Businessperson
Vivek Agarwal
Country Director, India, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change
Rishabh Shroff
Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas Law
Boria Majumdar
Prominent Sports Journalist
Advisors - Professors
Chas Bountra
Pro-Vice Chancellor for Innovation
Dean Soumitra Dutta
Professor of Management, Saïd Business School
Maya Tudor
Professor of Politics and Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government
Harish Bhaskaran
Associate Head of Division, Department of Materials
Faisal Devji
Professor of Indian History
Subir Sarkar
Professor of Theoretical Physics
Arjune Sen
Consultant Neurologist; Head, Oxford Epilepsy Research Group
Ankhi Mukherjee
Professor of English and World Literatures; Tutorial Fellow, Wadham College
Siddharth Arora
Programme Director, Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development
Akshay Mangla
Associate Professor of International Business
Diwakar Acharya
Spalding Professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics
In News
FAQs
Park End Street, Oxford OX1 1HP
Best option: Public transport to Park End Street.
Train
Our Park End Street venue is adjacent to the train station. There is a direct mainline service between Oxford, London and Birmingham. From Heathrow Airport there is a fast train link to London Paddington which connects directly with services to Oxford.
Coach from London, Heathrow or Gatwick
There is a regular coach service (X70) from both airports to Oxford city centre. Taxis are available at the Gloucester Green Bus Station, although Park End Street is just a short walk away.
Visit the Oxford Bus Company website for more information: https://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/
Park and Ride
Oxford offers an excellent Park and Ride system, with 5 sites providing excellent access to the city centre.
Visit the Park and Ride website: Park and Ride Oxford http://www.parkandride.net/oxford/html/oxford_parkandride.html
Yes! In conjunction with GWR we offer conference delegates a preferred rate on train fares from London Paddington:
- £15 return in Standard Class
- £30 return in First Class
Important: When travelling you must be able to show confirmation that you are attending one of our conferences. Without confirmation proof, you may have to pay the full fare.
How to book discounted tickets:
- Click on: GWR Conference Booking
- Under Plan Journey, click on Conference and Accommodation
- Select Oxford
- The destination box will already be populated with Oxford Conf, add London Paddington in the From box and select dates
International delegates: You can book the GWR integrated ticket via any worldwide travel agent. This ticket includes GWR, Heathrow Express and Airline ticket. Partner airlines: British Airways, Singapore Airlines, Avianca, Cathay Pacific, Oman Air, Royal Brunei.
We don't recommend travelling by car, but if you need to there are car parks in the city centre.
Unfortunately we are unable to offer car parking on-site, however, if you have any accessibility requirements special arrangements can be made.
Nearby car parks:
- Oxpens car park - Postcode: OX1 1RQ
- Worcester Street car park - Postcode: OX1 2BQ
- Gloucester Green car park - Postcode: OX1 2BN
For Sat Nav devices please use: OX1 1HP