The journey of the Confederation of Indian Industry, CII, commenced 125 years ago in 1895, when 5 engineering firms came together to form the Engineering and Iron Trades Association (EITA) to garner orders from the then Government for companies based in India.
EITA became the Indian Engineering Association (IEA) in 1912, focused on promoting the cause of Indian manufacturers.
The Engineering Association of India (EAI) was established in 1942 to promote small and medium engineering firms, mostly promoted by Indians.
The merger of IEA and EAI in 1974 to form the Association of Indian Engineering Industry (AIEI) strengthened the association, which became the Confederation of Engineering Industry (CEI) in 1986. Post India’s liberalization, in 1992, CEI became the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to reflect the diversification and expansion of the association and its activities, and the changing socio-economic landscape.
All through, the association has worked towards the development of India in partnership with the Government, industry, civil society and other stakeholders.
This year, 2020, marks 125 years of CII’s partnership with the nation and celebrates the very essence of CII – its unwavering commitment towards India’s development.
It undertakes a gamut of initiatives under its 4 Pillars of work: policy advocacy, building competitiveness of industry, expanding industry’s global footprint and creating an equitable society.
Under policy advocacy, CII works with the Central and State Governments to create an environment conducive to the growth and development of industry, and thereby, India.
It enhances competitiveness of industry through its 9 Centres of Excellence which offer a range of services such as advisory and training programmes. These dedicated Centres of Excellence cover areas such as quality and lean management, leadership and small enterprise development, sustainability, green buildings, energy and water management and technological transformation.
The Centres of Excellence are located as follows:
- CII Institute of Logistics, Chennai
- CII Institute of Quality, Bengaluru
- CII – ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development, Delhi
- CII-Centre of Excellence for Competitiveness for SMEs, Chandigarh
- CII – Naoroji Godrej Centre of Manufacturing Excellence, Mumbai
- CII – Sohrabji Godrej Centre of Excellence, Hyderabad
- CII – Suresh Neotia Centre of Excellence, Kolkata
- CII – Triveni Water Institute, Delhi
- CII – FACE, New Delhi
CII has worked assiduously over the years to enhance the global footprint of Indian industry. Through its various initiatives, it enables Indian industry to reach out across the globe. Connecting with both global and Indian businesses, it aims to bring about new opportunities for the country. It also organizes strategic dialogues with several nations, interactions with visiting business delegations and takes Indian business missions to different parts of the world.
Under the fourth pillar, CII builds Indian Industry’s engagement with society in general, through initiatives focused on women empowerment, skills, rural development and the differently abled, among others.
In fact, social development has been an integral part of CII’s work and in 2011, CII set up the CII Foundation to institutionalize its developmental and charitable activities and initiatives across India. The CII Foundation focuses on early childhood education, women empowerment, disaster relief and rehabilitation and climate change resilience.
In 2020, to reflect 125 years and emphasise its mission for the future, the new logo of CII carries the words, ‘Business and Beyond’. This reflects the two-fold interventions that CII has espoused: first, working for Indian industry’s competitiveness as a potent instrument of growth and development and second, to strengthen community and societal development with the partnership and support of Government, industry, and other stakeholders. Strengthening its agenda of ‘Business and Beyond’, CII celebrates 125 years of partnership with India in 2020 with a range of new initiatives lined up for the future!