Business Leader K V Kamath takes over as new CII president; Venu Srinivasan, MD, Sundaram-Clayton new Vice President

He succeeds Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal as the new CII President. Mr Venu Srinivasan, Managing Director, Sundaram-Clayton Ltd has been elected as the Vice President of CII for the year 2008-09.

As if well known, Mr Kamath is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ICICI Bank Limited, Indias second largest bank by assets. He is widely seen as of the best professional managers in the country.

He started his career in 1971 at ICICI, an Indian financial institution that founded ICICI Bank and merged with it in 2002. In 1988, he moved to the Asian Development Bank and spent several years in South-East Asia before returning to ICICI as its CEO in 1996. Over the next few years, the ICICI Group transformed itself into a diversified, technology-driven financial services group that has leadership positions across banking, insurance and asset management in India, and a growing international presence.

Mr. Kamath was conferred with the Padma Bhushan, one of Indias highest civilian honours, in 2008. He was named Businessman of the Year by Forbes Asia and The Economic Times Business Leader of the Year in 2007, the Asian Bankers Leadership Achievement Award for the Asia Pacific & Gulf region for 2007 amongst several other awards.

Mr Kamath has been conferred with an honorary PhD by the Banaras Hindu University. He is also the member of the boards of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and the Manipal University.Mr Kamath holds a Degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Mr Venu Srinivasan, Managing Director, Sundaram-Clayton Ltd, a leading automotive component manufacturer and the Chairman & Managing Director of TVS Motor Company Ltd, Indias third largest two-wheeler manufacturer. Mr Srinivasan is recognized as one of the foremost leaders in the manufacturing sector.

Mr Srinivasan is the Honorary Consul General of Republic of Korea, Chennai and is a Member of the Prime Ministers Council on Trade & Industry. He also held positions as President ofAutomotive Research Association of India and President, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.

Mr Srinivasan was chosen as a Star of Asia by the Business Week International, along with the Chairman of Toyota, Japan. He was the firstIndian industrialist to be conferred with the honorary doctorate degree in science by the University of Warwick, U.K. for excellence in manufacturing and contribution in the field of technology and R&D.

Both Sundaram-Clayton Ltd and TVS Motor Company have been awarded the prestigious Deming Prize by the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE), Japan.He holds a Bachelors Degreeof Engineering from Madras University and a Masters Degree in Management from Purdue University, U.S.A.