• Keshub Mahindra, a pioneer of the Indian auto industry and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd chairman emeritus, passed away in Mumbai. He was 99. 

• Keshub had led the Mahindra Group for 48 years as chairman and expanded it from being an automobile manufacturer to other business segments like IT, real estate, financial services and hospitality.

• With a net worth of $1.2 billion, Keshub Mahindra was India’s oldest billionaire, according to Forbes.

• Born on October 9, 1923, in Shimla, Keshub was a graduate from Wharton, University of Pennsylvania, USA, and joined M&M in 1947 and became the chairman in 1963.

• In 2012, Keshub Mahindra, who remained as one of the directors on Mahindra & Mahindra's board for 64 years overseeing the group’s metamorphosis from a steel trading company to a $15.4 billion diversified group, handed over the baton to his nephew and the then vice-chairman and managing director Anand Mahindra.

• He played key roles in forging business alliances with global majors such as the Willys Corporation, Mitsubishi, International Harvester, United Technologies, British Telecom and many others.

• He had also served on a large number of Boards and Councils in both private and public domain. He was the founder chairman of Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO), and also served on many corporate boards, including SAIL, Tata Steel, Tata Chemicals, Indian Hotels, IFC, ICICI and HDFC.

• Besides, he also held the position of President of Employers’ Federation of India and the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was a member of the Sachar Commission on Company Law and Reforms, a member of the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade and Industry and chairman of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

• A renowned philanthropist, Keshub redefined good corporate governance in India. He was also a member of the Apex Advisory Council of ASSOCHAM. 

• In 1987, he was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre National de la Legion d’honneur by the French government.

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