- Chief Minister Omar Abdullah bets on Enterprise over Subsidies
- IIM Bangalore charts global leap by establishing first overseas campus in Indonesia and announces decision to admit undergraduate students
More than 1500 delegates came together at IIMBue 2026 this morning as IIM Bangalore's flagship alumni leadership conclave IIMBue 2026 opened under the theme 'Changing the Orbit'.
Prof. Dinesh Kumar, Director-in-charge, IIM Bangalore, while welcoming the delegates made two announcements. For the first time in its history, IIM Bangalore will admit undergraduate students through the newly established Gorur Ratan Tata School of Undergraduate Studies, supported by a grant from Tata Trusts and IIM Bangalore will establish its first overseas campus in Indonesia. The campus is expected to strengthen the institute's presence across Asia. "Nation building remains our key goal. We remain committed to making an impact. We are reimagining our engagement with our wonderful alumni”, he said.
Delivering the keynote address, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that the Union Territory's long-term prosperity would hinge less on government spending and more on creating an ecosystem where enterprise can thrive. He made a strong pitch for entrepreneurship as the next driver of Jammu and Kashmir's economy, saying confidence, strong institutions and policy predictability are the "real infrastructure" that attracts investment and creates jobs.
"Confidence is productive infrastructure," Abdullah said. "A government's task does not end with what it builds. It has to rebuild confidence, reduce uncertainty, improve predictability and restore the belief that effort will find opportunity." He argued that while governments can build roads, schools and hospitals, sustainable economic growth ultimately depends on whether citizens are willing to invest, innovate and take entrepreneurial risks.
Drawing a parallel with Jammu and Kashmir's landmark agrarian reforms after Independence, Abdullah said land was the defining productive asset of the last century, but enterprise occupies that position today. "If land was the productive asset of that age, ours is enterprise. Broadening access to enterprise is the modern equivalent of broadening access to land," he said, adding that entrepreneurial capability must be built through strong institutions rather than distributed through state patronage.
The announcements by IIM Bangalore and Abdullah's call for enterprise-led growth converged around a common message at the conclave: India's next phase of development will be driven not merely by public investment, but by institutions that inspire confidence, entrepreneurship and innovation.
At the opening fireside chat of IIMBue 2026, 'Bridging Capital, Building Futures: The India-Japan Story', Sundeep Sikka, MD & CEO, Nippon Life India Asset Management Ltd., joined Prof. Chetan Subramanian of IIMB for a conversation on long-term capital, investing and the lessons India and Japan can learn from each other. "India has scale; Japan teaches you how to sustain that scale. We need to mesh Indian flexibility with Japanese discipline and long-term planning”, said Mr. Sikka, arguing that lasting partnerships require adapting global best practices to local realities rather than replicating models wholesale.
At IIMBue 2026, Siddharth Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, Tata Trusts, offered a compelling perspective on influence, which he said acquires meaning only when it creates lasting public value “The strength of a nation must be determined not only by what it produces, but by what it enables— opportunity, trust and dignity for its people. That idea has guided the Tata philosophy for well over a century. For us, philanthropy has never been separate from nation building; it has been one of the most enduring ways of making nation building possible. It is particularly meaningful to discuss this here, having announced our philanthropic commitment towards IIM Bangalore’s School of Undergraduate Studies. Through such endeavours, we encourage ourselves to not only ask how far India can go, but what kind of society we hope to leave behind.”
At IIMBue 2026, Vineeth Suresh, Centre Director & India Head, Heineken Business Services India, and Deval Shah, VP & GCC Practice Head, Infosys, joined Dr. Anilesh Seth, GCC Advisor, to discuss how Global Capability Centres are evolving from delivery centres into engines of enterprise transformation. The panel agreed that AI is reshaping not just technology stacks but operating models. "GCCs that are close to the enterprise have a deep and clear understanding of the business”, said Vineeth Suresh. "They bring in the transformation by driving acceleration and best practices”.
Deval Shah echoed the need for agility, observing that AI strategies are constantly evolving and organizations must "build a talent force of engineers, not developers”, with “constant recalibration” becoming the new normal. The discussion also highlighted governance as a strategic priority, with accountability to customers and regulators, shared responsibility across partners, and talent models that move young professionals from operational execution to informed decision-making.
Prof. Dinesh Kumar, Director-in-charge, IIM Bangalore, while welcoming the delegates made two announcements. For the first time in its history, IIM Bangalore will admit undergraduate students through the newly established Gorur Ratan Tata School of Undergraduate Studies, supported by a grant from Tata Trusts and IIM Bangalore will establish its first overseas campus in Indonesia. The campus is expected to strengthen the institute's presence across Asia. "Nation building remains our key goal. We remain committed to making an impact. We are reimagining our engagement with our wonderful alumni”, he said.
Delivering the keynote address, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that the Union Territory's long-term prosperity would hinge less on government spending and more on creating an ecosystem where enterprise can thrive. He made a strong pitch for entrepreneurship as the next driver of Jammu and Kashmir's economy, saying confidence, strong institutions and policy predictability are the "real infrastructure" that attracts investment and creates jobs.
"Confidence is productive infrastructure," Abdullah said. "A government's task does not end with what it builds. It has to rebuild confidence, reduce uncertainty, improve predictability and restore the belief that effort will find opportunity." He argued that while governments can build roads, schools and hospitals, sustainable economic growth ultimately depends on whether citizens are willing to invest, innovate and take entrepreneurial risks.
Drawing a parallel with Jammu and Kashmir's landmark agrarian reforms after Independence, Abdullah said land was the defining productive asset of the last century, but enterprise occupies that position today. "If land was the productive asset of that age, ours is enterprise. Broadening access to enterprise is the modern equivalent of broadening access to land," he said, adding that entrepreneurial capability must be built through strong institutions rather than distributed through state patronage.
The announcements by IIM Bangalore and Abdullah's call for enterprise-led growth converged around a common message at the conclave: India's next phase of development will be driven not merely by public investment, but by institutions that inspire confidence, entrepreneurship and innovation.
At the opening fireside chat of IIMBue 2026, 'Bridging Capital, Building Futures: The India-Japan Story', Sundeep Sikka, MD & CEO, Nippon Life India Asset Management Ltd., joined Prof. Chetan Subramanian of IIMB for a conversation on long-term capital, investing and the lessons India and Japan can learn from each other. "India has scale; Japan teaches you how to sustain that scale. We need to mesh Indian flexibility with Japanese discipline and long-term planning”, said Mr. Sikka, arguing that lasting partnerships require adapting global best practices to local realities rather than replicating models wholesale.
At IIMBue 2026, Siddharth Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, Tata Trusts, offered a compelling perspective on influence, which he said acquires meaning only when it creates lasting public value “The strength of a nation must be determined not only by what it produces, but by what it enables— opportunity, trust and dignity for its people. That idea has guided the Tata philosophy for well over a century. For us, philanthropy has never been separate from nation building; it has been one of the most enduring ways of making nation building possible. It is particularly meaningful to discuss this here, having announced our philanthropic commitment towards IIM Bangalore’s School of Undergraduate Studies. Through such endeavours, we encourage ourselves to not only ask how far India can go, but what kind of society we hope to leave behind.”
At IIMBue 2026, Vineeth Suresh, Centre Director & India Head, Heineken Business Services India, and Deval Shah, VP & GCC Practice Head, Infosys, joined Dr. Anilesh Seth, GCC Advisor, to discuss how Global Capability Centres are evolving from delivery centres into engines of enterprise transformation. The panel agreed that AI is reshaping not just technology stacks but operating models. "GCCs that are close to the enterprise have a deep and clear understanding of the business”, said Vineeth Suresh. "They bring in the transformation by driving acceleration and best practices”.
Deval Shah echoed the need for agility, observing that AI strategies are constantly evolving and organizations must "build a talent force of engineers, not developers”, with “constant recalibration” becoming the new normal. The discussion also highlighted governance as a strategic priority, with accountability to customers and regulators, shared responsibility across partners, and talent models that move young professionals from operational execution to informed decision-making.
IndianWeb2.com is an independent digital media platform for business, entrepreneurship, science, technology, startups, gadgets and climate change news & reviews.
