Reaffirming its commitment to strengthening India’s footwear ecosystem and advancing industry excellence, FDDI, in collaboration with the CII Institute of Quality (CII IQ), successfully organized the Leaders’ Town Hall on “Transforming the Footwear Industry for Global Competitiveness” on 05 June 2026.
The Town Hall was chaired by Mr. Razak, Managing Director, VKC Group, and graced by Mr. Vivek Sharma, IRS, Managing Director, FDDI, along with Mr. Neil Castelino, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), CII Institute of Quality (CII IQ).
The Leaders’ Town Hall witnessed the participation of distinguished leaders representing diverse segments of the footwear, leather, manufacturing, quality, and allied industries including Mr. Vishal Saxena, Senior Consultant, CII IQ; and Mr. Biju K. Raj, Principal Counsellor, CII IQ, Mr. Nikhil Dua, Whole Time Director, Relaxo Footwears Ltd.; Mr. Ashish Nigam, AVP, Relaxo Footwears Ltd.; Mr. Arush, Superhouse; Mr. Arvind, Managing Director, Arvind Gramodyog; Mr. Nalin Gupta, Managing Director, Infinity; Mr. Parimal Bajpayee, Director, Amit Gramodyog; Mr. Imran, Managing Director, S.G. Exports; Mr. C. Govindraju, Vice President, Bata India; Mr. Saurabh Bairathi, Managing Director, Bairathi Shoes India; Mr. Sushil Agarwal, Managing Director, Derpa Industrial Polymer; Mr. Pawan Agrawal, Managing Director, Bansal Industries; Mr. Yunus, Managing Director, East West Tanners; Mr. Tauseef Mirza, Director, Mirza International (Unit–VI), Noida; Mr. Pradeep Sharma, Managing Director, Abros Sports; Mr. Madan Sharma, Managing Director, Dharamveer & Sons; Mr. Sanjay Gupta, President, Indian Footwear Components Manufacturers Association (IFCOMA); Mr. Ajay Gaur, Deputy Director, IFCOMA; Mr. Rohit Bansal, Managing Director, Sumanglam Footwear Pvt. Ltd.; Mr. Vipan Seth, Managing Director, Versatile;; Mr. Dharmender Narula, Managing Director, Guru Kripa Footwear Industries Pvt. Ltd.; Mr. Raj Kumar Gupta, Managing Director, Action; and Mr. Praveen Sharma, Plant Head, Roorkee, Mallcom (India) who shared valuable perspectives on quality excellence and industry transformation for enhancing India’s global competitiveness and accelerating sectoral growth.
Their participation and insights enriched the deliberations and reflected a collective commitment towards strengthening India’s footwear ecosystem through quality, innovation, collaboration, and global competitiveness.
The deliberations focused on key industry priorities including quality excellence, productivity enhancement, operational efficiency, sustainability, innovation, export readiness, and emerging growth opportunities. Through insightful discussions, case studies, and exchange of best practices, the event created a dynamic platform for meaningful collaboration and knowledge sharing among stakeholders.
Representing FDDI, Mr. Prashant Kumar Saxena, Head – Business Development; Ms. Rashmi Asthana, Head – International Testing Centre (ITC); Mr. Sharad Srivastava, Joint Director – Centre of Excellence (CoE); and Ms. Shraddha Tripathy, Head – Placements & Alumni Connect, actively contributed to the discussions and strategic deliberations.
As part of the event, FDDI also organized a Memento and Certification Distribution Ceremony to recognize and honour its esteemed Gold, Silver and Bronze Members for their continued commitment to quality, compliance, testing excellence, and industry best practices.
Mementos and certificates were presented by Mr. Vivek Sharma, Managing Director, FDDI; Mr. Razak, Managing Director, VKC Group; and Mr. Neil Castelino, CEO, CII Institute of Quality, in recognition of the members’ valuable association and contribution towards strengthening the quality ecosystem of the footwear and leather industry.
The ceremony reflected the strong industry partnerships nurtured through FDDI’s Business Development initiatives and the dedicated support extended by the International Testing Centre (ITC) in advancing testing, certification, and quality assurance practices across footwear, leather, and allied sectors. Through its state-of-the-art testing and certification infrastructure, ITC–FDDI continues to support industry in meeting national and international quality benchmarks while enabling enhanced competitiveness in global markets.
These initiatives collectively reflect FDDI’s vision of building a future founded on quality, innovation, sustainability, collaboration, and responsible growth, strengthening India’s journey towards a globally competitive and environmentally conscious industrial ecosystem.
