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Kiran Karnik appointed Nasscom president

Our Correspondent in Bombay

Nasscom, the apex industry association of IT software and service companies in India, on Monday confirmed Kiran Karnik as its new president.

The much-awaited announcement came after the selection committee recommendation on Karnik's name was unanimously approved by the executive committee of Nasscom which includes industry luminaries like Infosys chairman N R Narayana Murthy, Arun Kumar of Hughes Software Systems, Saurabh Srivastava of Xansa India.

Karnik is a well-known industry figure and was previously heading the operations of Discovery Networks in India. He is expected to assume office in September 2001.

Speaking on the appointment, Phiroz Vandrevala, chairman, Nasscom, said: "We are delighted to have Karnik take over as president of Nasscom. He is widely recognised as one of the key figures in the broadcasting sector due to the numerous initiatives that he took in the development of the Industry. We feel that with his drive and experience, he will be the ideal candidate to lead Nasscom in its efforts to develop India as the next IT superpower."

Harish Mehta, chairman, Nasscom selection committee, added: "We were overwhelmed by the interest shown by a number of industry leaders to opt for the post of the president of Nasscom."

"The selection committee based its decision on four key criteria. The first was building Nasscom as an industry institution. The second was marketing the India Inc brand effectively. Third is to involve Nasscom in a developmental role for the IT industry in areas such as infrastructure. And last, consensus building for the industry. Karnik is the most suitable on all these points and was therefore the unanimous choice of the executive council," he stated.

Speaking on his appointment, Kiran Karnik said: " I am looking forward to working at Nasscom to be able to contribute to the development of the India Inc brand such that India becomes a premier IT destination. My endeavour will be to work closely with the industry and align Nasscom to be a more corporatised organisation to fulfill the industry's objectives."

Before taking up this assignment Kiran Karnik was the managing director at Discovery Networks in India.

Most recently, he was also the director of the Consortium for Educational Communication, where he oversaw the production and transmission of educational television programmes for college students in India.

He has also served as the director of the Development and Education Communication unit of the Indian Space Research Organisation.

His work included strategic planning, which help launched India's National Satellite/Communication system and the Kheda communications project - a pioneering effort in the use of local television of rural development.

Karnik also managed the Indo-US satellite instructional TV experiment, India's first large scale, satellite-direct broadcasting initiative. An expert on technology applications and communications, he has consulted for Unesco, Ford Foundation, World Bank and Johns Hopkins University and authored several journal articles.

Karnik holds a Masters in Business Administration from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and a Bachelor's degree in Science from the Bombay University.

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