The moment of reckoning had come.

After months of collating and analysing data b y scores of researchers, it was time to declare and fete Indias Best Managed Comp anies, the winners thrown up by theBusiness Today and Ernst & Young survey of In dian companies and their business practices. An aura of power and pelf pervaded the ballroom at the ITC Grand Central hotel in Mumbai, as the big barons of Indi an industry and business gathered at the glittering venue to applaud the winners . Quite appropriately, Kamal Nath, the Minister for Commerce and Industry and the man who has passionately espoused the cause of Indian industry at various intern ational trade forums, was the Chief Guest for the function that was attended, am ong others, by Harsh Goenka, Chairman of RPG Group; Jalaj Dani, President, Inter national, Asian Paints; Jim James, Director, Haymarket India; Hital R. Meswani, Executive Director, Reliance Industries; Kaushik Chatterjee, Vice President, Fin ance, Tata Steel; Chanda Kochhar, Joint Managing Director, ICICI Bank; Sangram T ambe, Vice President (HR), Tata Motors; Brahm Vasudeva, Chairman, Hawkins Cooker s; and Subir Raha, Executive Vice Chairman, Hinduja Group, who was on the eminen t panel of jurists that included Bakul Dholakia, former Director of IIM Ahmedaba d and Amal Ganguli, a leading independent director. Kamal Naths trademark pep and good humour was in evidence as he addressed the gat hering. He talked about, among other interesting things, a queer paradox that fa ced him now. Recalling how tough it used to be in the old days to convince foreign companies to invest in India, he said today there were so many coming into the country that it was becoming difficult for him to identify enough areas for them to invest in . The winning nine Automotive - Tata Motors Banking & Capital Markets - ICICI Bank Energy, chemicals & utilities - Reliance Industries Industrial Products - L&T Materials - Grasim Metals & mining - Tata Steel Retail & consumer products - ITC Transport & logistics - Great Eastern Shipping Technology, media & telecom- Bharti Airtel

Business Today Editor Sanjoy Narayan, in his welcome address, extolled the effic acy of these awards, saying they serve a two-fold purpose. They not only acknowledge and salute excellence but also help in unearthing and creating role models for others to emulate. Prabhu Chawla, Editor, India Today and Group Editorial Director, noted that Indi an industry was moving out of the comfort zone, adding that it was time for it t o develop its own management practices. Kamal Nath presented the awards to nine companies that won from each of the nine industry sectors (See: The Winning Nine). However, the top honours went to Larsen & Toubro (L&T), which was adjudged the b est of Indias Best Managed Companies. Speaking after receiving the award, A. M. Naik, CMD of L&T, said: It is a tribute to the professional management team at L&T, where empowerment and accountabilit y are of paramount importance. In 70 years of its existence, L&T has created a m anagement culture that is rooted in ethics, integrity and a deep sense of patrio tism. We sincerely believe that nation-building is at the core of all our activi ties. The awards function, which was conducted charmingly by emcee Shefali Talwar, was followed by cocktails and dinner, where the guests mingled and networked with e ach other freely. Ashish Bagga, CEO, Living Media Group, proposed the vote of th

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