Civil Engineering January/February 2021 | Vol 29 No 1

“I was very proud of these achievements as it was a recognition by my peers in the profession,” he says. Vishal does not highlight the high- value projects he has worked on. Instead, he stresses the importance of small, simple projects that have a direct impact on people’s lives. “It’s not about the project value, it’s about making a direct impact.” He recalls the words of his former Deputy Head at eThekwini Municipality, Randeer Kasserchun, who always encour- aged staff with the phrase, “Make every excuse to get the job done.” CHALLENGES While Vishal faced many challenges in his life, none was worse than the racism he experienced both early on and later in his career and the hands of managers and colleagues. This led to him resigning from two of his jobs and saddens him as he be- lieves that it showed that some individuals were not amenable to change and that they felt a sense of entitlement. MAKING AN IMPACT Vishal finds inspiration in his fellow col- leagues who, like him, have managed to find success despite facing many challenges in their careers. “I look up to many high- profile individuals and it inspires me daily to work hard to follow in their footsteps.” His passion lies in developing the younger generation of engineering profes- sionals. “I see them as future leaders as well as the future of SAICE and I make every effort to mentor, advise, and create opportunities for our young members to achieve success,” he says. He stresses the importance of mentor- ship and cautions older engineers not to forget what it was like to be a young engi- neer and to remember that there are also opportunities to learn from the younger generation. His message to mentors is simple: mentor wholeheartedly and build a future mentor for someone else. Vishal believes that SAICE is heading in the right direction as the institution already has some new young and dynamic members who are champions of key areas of the Growing Forward Together strategy. “The enthusiasm we see from the various branches and divisions bodes well for the sustainability of SAICE and we are confident that we will survive the effects of the pandemic and will see an upturn in the membership of SAICE,” he says. Vishal is also very passionate about gender inclusivity and diversity and hopes to contribute to the drafting and imple- mentation of best practice guidelines for gender inclusivity in the workplace. This, he says, is a daunting task as it requires the co-operation of various stakeholders and changing of mindsets of individuals who have been set in their ways for many years, and who perhaps are not amenable to change. FAMILY LIFE SAICE’s new president identifies as a family man and enjoys spending time with his immediate and extended family. Vishal and his wife Ashmal recently celebrated their 25 th anniversary and have two children together. Their daughter Adharta is 23 and a civil engineer, while their son Raúl has just 6 January/February 2021  Civil Engineering SAICE Durban Branch’s 2014 annual bridge building competition Vishal, with his children Adharta and Raúl in front of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France Ashmal, Raúl, Adharta and Vishal at the Colosseum in Rome, Italy