IndiGo appoints Venkataramani Sumantran as independent director

Venkataramani Sumantran, the chairman and managing director of Chennai-based Celeris Technologies, has been appointed the independent director of IndiGo, the airline said on Friday.

Sumantran will hold the post for the next five years.

He serves as an adjunct professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is on several statutory and advisory boards in India, Europe and the US, it said.

"Dr. Sumantran, with a rich experience of over 35 years having worked in the USA, Europe and Asia, has been an industry leader, technocrat, academic and author," the airline said in a press release.

Between 2001 and 2005, he held the position of the executive director of Tata Motors Ltd. and was the chief executive of its car business during its formative years, the airline stated.

"Until 2014, he served as Executive Vice-Chairman of Hinduja Automotive, UK, the auto and manufacturing sector holding company of the Hinduja Group as well as Vice Chairman of Ashok Leyland Ltd," IndiGo said.

"I feel privileged to join the Board of Directors of InterGlobe Aviation Limited. In a relatively short time, IndiGo has not only established itself as a market leader, but has also set new benchmarks in professionalism, efficiency, and customer satisfaction," Sumantran was quoted as saying in the press statement.

Before the coronavirus hit the country, IndiGo had around 48 per cent share of the domestic air passenger market.