While the country is gearing up for the upcoming festival season, we notice a positive vibe throughout every sector. The growth of the economy can be seen in the increasing purchasing power and the record growth of e-commerce across the nation. In this issue, we discuss two of the most important industries of the country- Petrochemical and Polymers.

The growth story of India will be incomplete without the mention of these two industries which have led the chemical sector. As a major raw material provider to a range of industries, petrochemical plays a crucial role in the development of the economy.

Major private players like Reliance are investing in the petrochemical industry in order to meet the domestic and global demands. Crude oil is a significant raw material for industries across the globe and the demand for the same is always on a rise. India can expand its capacity and meet the global demands to a certain extent. This will put India into the global map and ensure that it meets the domestic demands with ease and tries to provide for the global demands as well. Analysts expect huge growth in the industry within the next two years.

The coming together of three major players in the country has given birth to one of the world’s largest refinery complex in Maharashtra. These companies, namely, Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd and Indian Oil Corp Ltd are the top players in the economy and will take the industry to a new level. 2017 has seen various changes across the industry and it carries a positive growth expectation for the coming years. The implementation of GST was a turning point in the country but it is expected to have positive long term impact on all the sectors of the economy.

This issue also covers the much needed award ceremony recognizing key members and companies in various categories in the chemical industry that took place at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai, India. It was my first meet with the man himself, Mr. Mukesh Ambani and it was RIL who achieved a prestigious award. More details can be found in the article titled "ICC Award Ceremony Results in Mumbai, India"

Along with this, we are happy to announce that we will be media partners with Gujarat Chem 2018, the exhibition that will take place in October 2018, in Mumbai.
We also covered the IFAT exhibition which took place at NSE ground in Mumbai from 26th - 28th September 2017. IFAT is one of the prestigious exhibition with attendees from all over the world trying to solve a major problem related to water treatment and solid waste management which is the need of the hour. All the major companies mostly from Germany and India took part in the exhibition trying to solve this problem and providing solutions to the municipalities of the country. We also saw some speaker sessions from local government bodies and companies interested to provide solutions to address the problem.

With so much going on, I am sure the upcoming festive season around the world will bring cheer and hope and refresh you with new vigour and energy to solve the challenges that will come across to build the businesses of tomorrow.

- Rajiv Parikh