Dear Shareholder,
It is both with a sense of pride and profound sadness that I write to you today at a
very solemn moment in the Company's history. A deep sense of honour, as I embark on a
journey to lead this exemplary Company as its Chairman & MD, and yet at a time when we
grieve the loss of a guiding light for the ITC family of stakeholders, our former Chairman
Mr YC Deveshwar.
Undoubtedly, Mr Deveshwar's memory will be cherished for long with respect and
reverence for the legendary stewardship he provided to ITC's remarkable voyage of
transformation. A visionary leader and patriot, his clarion call to "Put India
First" re3ected his deep belief that India needed national champions in business -
corporations with an Indian soul that would use their immense managerial and innovative
capabilities to serve the country's larger priorities. This conviction shaped ITC's vision
not only to be an engine of growth for the Indian economy, but to ensure that growth was
sustainable and inclusive. Today, this commitment is manifest in ITC's growing presence
across all the sectors of the economy - agriculture, manufacturing and services with
innovative business models that synergise competitive growth with large scale societal
value creation and environmental stewardship. Recognising his outstanding contribution to
the nation, Mr Deveshwar was conferred the Padma Bhushan, one of the highest civilian
honours, by the Government of India. Mr Deveshwar indeed leaves behind a rich legacy, and
one that will continue to inspire us in the years ahead. I have had the privilege of being
associated with ITC for over 33 years across various Businesses and group companies. It
has been an enriching experience to engage with and witness the evolution of the Company
as it traversed many a trial and tribulation to emerge as a vibrant and valuable
multi-business conglomerate. Today, the mature businesses are leaders in their segments
whilst the newer businesses are making appreciable progress. Given the emergent
opportunities in a relatively fast growing economy like India, each of our businesses
holds immense promise for the future. This potential is even greater in our newer
Businesses like FMCG where there is considerable headroom to grow. It is our aspiration to
be a leader in every business segment that we operate in and be acknowledged as a trusted
provider of best-in-class products and services. Towards this, our relentless focus on
building international competitiveness in each business will be supported by appropriate
investments not only to reinforce the pole position that we have achieved in several
segments but also to speedily attain leadership in the newer businesses. While this will
undoubtedly entail upfront investments and gestation costs in the short term, particularly
in the non-cigarette FMCG businesses, such investments will be a source of competitive
advantage and create sustained value for stakeholders over the medium to long term as our
brands garner larger scale and deepen their connect with consumers. ITC's diverse
portfolio of businesses and competencies provide vibrant synergy that lend unique sources
of competitive advantage. Whilst fortifying these enterprise strengths, structural
capabilities are also being enhanced by investing in distributed supply chain
infrastructure, including state-of-the-art company-owned integrated consumer goods
manufacturing and logistics facilities, world-class pulp and paperboard technology, and
iconic hospitality properties. Further, focussed innovation, deepening of R&D
capabilities and the increased use of emerging digital technologies such as Industry 4.0,
Arti3cial Intelligence, Big Data, and Machine Learning across areas such as consumer
engagement and insight discovery, smart manufacturing, agri value chains, supply chain
agility and front end execution will also lend new wings to our e3orts in making each
business extremely competitive. As we build scale, we remain deeply committed to go beyond
market leadership alone to creating much larger societal value in an exemplary fashion.
This vision to put ‘Nation First' with the credo of ‘Sab Saath Badhein'
inspires us to integrate sustainability as a bedrock of our corporate strategy as we shape
an inspired Indian enterprise of tomorrow. ITC's pledge to serve national priorities
whilst achieving international benchmarks in competitiveness is manifest in our chosen
approach to growth which we call ‘Responsible Competitiveness' – a paradigm that
remains at the core of our thought, strategy and action. As a new Government takes o3ce
with a resounding mandate from the people of India, we are con3dent and optimistic that
their proactive endeavours to create structural drivers of rapid growth will augur well
for the economy. Signi3cant reforms such as GST have stabilised well and the various
social schemes that are shaping ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas' point to an
optimistic future. With rising incomes, a young demographic pro3le and concerted e3orts to
enhance agricultural & social development, a New India is indeed being shaped. ITC is
well poised to bene3t from the anticipated acceleration in the growth trajectory whilst
simultaneously making a meaningful contribution to the Government's vision for inclusive
socioeconomic development.
As I traverse the journey ahead at the helm of your Company, I am reassured by the
strength of our world-class talent who have ingrained in themselves ITC's DNA to pursue
competitive growth with respect for environment and social development. I will look
forward to your support and guidance, as always, to take this institution to even greater
heights.
Best Regards, Yours sincerely,
Sanjiv Puri