CA Neeraj Ghei’s four-decade legacy of leadership and integrity earns ICAI’s prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has conferred the CA Women Lifetime Achievement Award 2025 upon CA Neeraj Ghei at the World Forum of Accountants 2026, held at Greater Noida on February 1, 2026. This prestigious honour recognises her extraordinary contributions over a 40-year career as a business leader, industry pioneer, and dedicated philanthropist.

The CA Women Excellence Awards were instituted in 2023 to celebrate women leaders who have created a lasting impact within their organisations, the accounting profession, and society at large.

Upon receiving the award, Neeraj Ghei remarked, “I receive this recognition with humility and gratitude. Being a CA has been more than a profession to me—it has been a lifelong journey of learning, responsibility, discipline, attention to detail, and purpose. To be acknowledged by my peers and the profession I hold in the highest regard is truly meaningful. Over the years, the profession has evolved dramatically—laws keep changing, technology is transforming our work, and expectations have grown.”

She added, “Yet the core values of our profession remain constant: integrity, independence, and service to society. To the younger members of our profession, I would say: Skills can be acquired, knowledge can be updated, but integrity, if compromised, is difficult to reclaim. Our profession commands respect because society trusts us; please guard that trust fiercely.”

Neeraj Ghei’s professional journey began at Mohinder Puri & Co. after qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 1985. Her career has since been defined by a series of landmark achievements across multiple industries. In the travel and tourism sector, her tenure at SITA World Travel coincided with a period of significant operational expansion, during which the company’s branch network and market footprint grew substantially. She continues to serve as a Director at TRAC Representations (India) Private Limited, a pioneer in National Tourism Organisation representations in India.

Her industry leadership has been equally distinguished. In 1997, she became the first female and youngest-ever President of the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI). She was also invited to serve as a member on the Board of Trade constituted by the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India, where she played a key role in securing Export Industry status and formal recognition for the sector.

In the retail space, Neeraj Ghei was a Promoter Director in the conceptualisation and launch of Select CITYWALK, which emerged as a transformative shopping and leisure destination in Delhi. Her strategic vision continued to shape the sector when, in 2023, she was instrumental in steering the merger of Select CITYWALK with the Blackstone-sponsored Nexus Select Trust REIT, creating India’s first publicly listed Retail Real Estate platform.

Her contributions have been recognised through numerous honours, including the Outstanding Businesswoman Award from the PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry, the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award, the IMM Women Entrepreneur Award, and the SRCC Alumni Award for Excellence.

Beyond her corporate achievements, Neeraj Ghei has demonstrated a deep and sustained commitment to social impact. She serves as a Trustee for several organisations, including the Ghei Foundation, the Florimond Volckaert Benevolent Fund, and the Rotarian Naqshband Institute for the Physically Challenged. Her philanthropic initiatives span healthcare, education, and empowerment, ranging from providing advanced medical equipment to hospitals to sponsoring education and supporting the Golfing Girl Child Programme. Through this programme, underprivileged young women are empowered through sports, skill development, education, and environmental sustainability.

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