Dr Binod Chaudhary, Chairman of CG Corp Global and a strong investor in the Indian hospitality sector, was named the Outstanding Leader – SAARC at the CEO Awards 2019 held in Mumbai recently. The prestigious annual awards celebrate excellence in the boardroom and beyond and is touted as one of India’s most transparent and well-researched awards where a highly credible jury reviews industry leaders on their performance at work, work-life balance and the larger impact of their actions. Chaudhary’s award is doubly prestigious as corporate leaders from all eight SAARC countries were in fray for the SAARC Award and he was the only non-Indian among the corporate stalwarts felicitated.
The very first and only billionaire in Nepal (as published by Forbes), in accepting the award Chaudhary continued his call for stronger regional cooperation. “We have, over the years, worked through different forums including the SAARC Chamber. There’s a lot that needs to be done and I think the time is right now. We must race forward.”
Chaudhary who heads a global conglomerate of over 190 companies and 76 brands manned by a team exceeding 10,000, has within his business purview FMCG, electronics, education, cement, energy, hospitality, real estate development, financial services, telecom, Ayurveda, biotech and construction.
Chaudhary is a global player in Fast-Moving Consumer Goods and the brain behind Wai Wai, CG’s iconic brand that earned him the epithet, “Noodle King.” Thanks to Wai Wai, he has over 2 percent of the world’s shares in the noodle market.
His hospitality arm extends to his home country of Nepal, India China, Philippines, India, UAE, Maldives, and Seychelles. Have stakes in multiple Taj (IHCL) properties, Fern hotels, The Zinc, The Zinc Journey, The Zinc Living, and Radisson.
In the citation delivered at the awards, it was mentioned that this award of The Outstanding Leader – SAARC is awarded to an extraordinary individual with strategic foresight and leadership to deliver superior performance in a SAARC Company. As Director CG Corp Global Varun Chaudhary articulated to the packed venue holding some of the most distinguished corporate stewards, mentors, visionaries and leaders in India, “A small man from a small country with big dreams; this is what defines my father. He has made it to where he is today because he chases dreams.”
Among those felicitated at the CEO Awards were Chairman of the Bajaj Group Rahul Bajaj as The Visionary, Executive Chairman of Murugappa Group M M Murugappan as The Boundary Breaker and Group Chairman of Larsen & Toubro Limited A M Naik as The Mentor.