Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC) head Dilip Sinha and his family members in Dubai were conferred ten-year golden residency visa by the country.
Sinha, the secretary-general of IBPC has been a resident of UAE since March 1990.
The vice president of NVent, an electrical connection and protection solutions company, Sinha said he hopes to further UAE- India business relationship and support the Indian business and professional diaspora in the UAE, according to reports.
Sinha has held leadership positions in global MNCs like Honeywell and Rockwell Automation and was named one among the 100 most powerful people in 2010-2011 leading trade journals in the UAE.
A native of Bihar, Sinha was raised in Mumbai and finished his secondary and university education in the Western Indian city.
After completing his MBA from the Bradford University in the UK, Sinha aspired to move to the United States and work for American multinationals.
"I moved to Muscat after University and my plans were to move to the US eventually. However, fate had other plans for me," he said.
Sinha joined Rockwell Automation in the 90s and moved to Dubai to expand the company's EMEA operations.
"I grew tremendously in the organisation. It was a very enriching experience. Moreover, I was the only Indian man in the company back then," he said. In September 2001, Sinha moved to Honeywell and undertook a key leadership position.
"It was a shift in industry as well. From commercial and building infrastructure, I got into industrial automation and control. The company figured it could do with a fresh pair of eyes," he said. A turning point in Sinha's career was when he forayed into the environmental and commercial businesses.
Sinha said his meteoric career growth in the UAE encouraged him to stay in country. In 2008, amid the financial crisis, international publications had written off Dubai, according to Sinha.
"However, look at where we are now. The city is extremely resilient. It has world class infrastructure, it is a very safe city, and like any place, it too has suffered several ups and downs. However, the leadership is very far sighted and I think this is the best place to live," he said.
In another decade, Sinha predicts the city will witness rapid growth in all sectors, especially the technology and manufacturing industries.
Under his leadership, IBPC continues to organise multiple events to boost India-UAE trade relations.
"On an average, we conduct 50 to 54 events every year. Due to COVID, a lot of the events have been webinars. I think Expo 2020 is going to be monumental in improving trade relations between both countries," he stated.