The event began with Mr Rajive Kaul introducing Mr. Behuria. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Behuria took to the lectern. Mr Behuria described todayas changing times and said that it is high time that all companies accept this and move on. He said that these changing times are a major threat to all players and that it is time that new benchmarks for the future were set. In addition to this, there are a lot of challenges being faced by the future generation like shrinking of boundaries and a general slowdown in growth. Mr. Behuria said that it would be extremely naA ve to assume that the economic slowdown wouldnat affect India much.

Moving on to the subsequent expected recovery phase, Mr. Behuria said that then, the major problem would be the oil and gas demand supply issues. He said that here in India, we are vulnerable to volatile oil prices and face tough choices to limit inflationary pressures and reduce fiscal burden due to fuel subsidies. However, this also puts us in a better position to absorb external shocks and adjust to oil price fluctuations. Mr. Behuria said that reforms in the energy sector in India could be brought in only by greater education in energy affairs and an increased public understanding of the energy challenges. He said that eventually, our success in solving problems like water and food scarcity will be greatly determined by how we solve, or fail to solve, the issues of energy.

Mr. Behuria also highlighted the imbalance in the energy consumption between rich and poor countries, which posed a major challenge. As nearly every aspect of development requires accessible, reliable and affordable energy, developing countries will be driven by the desire to improve the lives of their citizens. This would eventually lead to a fierce competition for resources. Mr. Behuria concluded by saying that in the context of fast-changing paradigms, issues like climate change and environmental degradation cannot be ignored. The rapid increase in the human footprint isnat helping either. He said that the recent global meltdown in economies has primarily emanated from unbridled greed, lax regulations and excessive dependence on market forces. In such a scenario, economic sustainability rather than profits alone should be key entrepreneurial objectives.

After the conclusion of Mr. Behuriaas speech, the floor was thrown open to questions from the audience which asked queries like the issue of greater autonomy for PSUs in India, integration with ONGC, new generation fuels like bio-diesel and ethanol-blended petrol. The vote of thanks was proposed by Fr. P. T. Joseph.