The founders of major UAE businesses including Lulu, the retailer Landmark Group, Gems Education and the UAE Exchange this week were recognised by Forbes Middle East as among the top 100 Indian business leaders in the country.
Yusuffali MA, the head of the Emke Group whose flagship company is the retailer Lulu; Micky Jagtiani of Landmark; Sunny Varkey of Gems, and BR Shetty of the UAE Exchange and NMC Healthcare were featured along with other executives in the magazine's debut ranking.
They were honoured in an award ceremony on Tuesday night at the Oberoi Hotel in Dubai.
About 28 per cent of those feted were from the retail sector, 19 per cent from industry and 9 per cent from the property sector.
"The role of Indian entrepreneurs and workers played a huge role in shaping modern UAE and has been appreciated by the locals and leaders of the country," Mr Yusuffali, who was named the top Indian business founder, said at the ceremony.
"And the Indian business community has not stuck to one or two industries but we see their contribution in all segments such as retail, hotels, hospitals and service industries among others, " he said.
Other executives honoured included Yuvraj Narayan, the chief financial officer of DP World; Sanjiv Mehta, the chairman of Unilever Mena; Rajeev Kakar, the chief executive of Dunia Finance and Sanjay Manchanda, the chief executive of Nakheel.
Among the honoured companies founded and headed by Indian-origin leaders were DM Group, the building materials company, along with Danube Group ETA Ascon, Star Group, Al Shirawi Group, Transworld Group JE Hammer and Group and SFC Group.
"I think it is important that the contribution of Indians to the UAE and the regional economy is being recognised," said Firoz Merchant, the chairman of Pure Gold Jewellers, which was ranked at number 14 on the Forbes list.
"It is a motivation for us to work harder and contribute to the social and economic development of this region that we have come to cherish as our home."
According to the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, 1.73 million Indians live in the UAE.
Bilateral trade between India and the Middle East reached US$144 billion in 20011.
The UAE takes a major chunk of that as the bilateral trade between India and the UAE was $72bn in 2011-12, making the Emirates India's second-largest trading partner behind China that year.
"The Indian community here can be a catalyst to further strengthening the trade relations between the two countries," Mr Merchant said.
