Former Maruti Udyog chairman V Krishnamurthy passes away

Mumbai: V Krishnamurthy, the former chairman of SAIL, BHEL and Maruti Udyog (now Maruti Suzuki) passed away on Sunday. He was 97.

Popularly known in the corporate world as the "turnaround man", he is credited to have made it possible for the middle-class Indian family, to own Maruti 800, an affordable small car, thus changing the automotive landscape in India.

He was also a mentor to many industrialists, helping them build businesses from scratch. Venu Srinivasan, CMD of TVS Motor Company, said in a eulogy: "V Krishnamurthy was my mentor right from the time I started work and right through his entire career. He had an important role to play in helping me build TVS Motor Company. He was one of the tallest leaders in the Indian industry. His contribution to the growth of India was immeasurable. Krishnamurthy is a great loss to Indian industry and to the country. I will certainly miss his genial and wise presence."


Krishnamurthy, was at the helm at BHEL, when he revived the fortunes of BHEL, and later SAIL. For his efforts, he was awarded three Padma awards - Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan. Krishnamurthy died due to age-related ailments and is survived by two sons, five grandchildren and three great grandchildren.