New Delhi, Jan 23 (IANS): Neeraj Akhoury, President -- Cement Manufacturers’ Association and MD, Shree Cement Ltd -- has been appointed as the Chairman of the National Council for Cement and Building Materials (NCCBM) for a span of two years (2023 and 2024).

The decision was taken at a meeting of the Board of Governors of NCCBM held on January 10 at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi.

Akhoury brings with him over three decades of rich experience in the cement industry. Before joining Shree Cement, Akhoury worked with various marquee corporates, including Tata, Lafarge Group, ACC Limited, Holcim India and Ambuja Cement -- across leadership roles in two continents. He joined Shree Cement in October 2022.

The NCCBM is an apex Research and Development organisation under the administrative control of DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India.

Commenting on the development, L.P. Singh, Director General, National Council for Cement and Building Materials, said, “We are very fortunate to have someone like Akhoury Ji with his vast experience to lead NCCBM. Under his dynamic leadership, we hope to strengthen our research activities and take new initiatives in the development of low carbon cement, carbon capture and utilisation, and conservation of natural resources, which will lead towards sustainable development of the cement and concrete sector."

NCCBM is dedicated to research, technology development and transfer, education and industrial services for cement, allied building materials and construction industries. It has its corporate unit and main laboratories located at Ballabgarh (Haryana) and regional units at Hyderabad (Telangana), Ahmedabad (Gujarat) and Bhubaneshwar (Odisha).