Nandan Nilekani
Nandan Mohan Nilekani | |
|---|---|
 Nandan M Nilekani at the World Economic Forum in Davos, 2007 | |
| Born | 2 June 1955 |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Alma mater | Bishop Cotton Boys' School, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay |
| Occupation | Former Chairman of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) |
| Political party | Indian National Congress |
Nandan Nilekani is an Indian entrepreneur, bureaucrat and politician. He was the Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). After a successful career at Infosys, he headed the Government of India's technology committee, TAGUP.[2] He is the member of Indian National Congress.
Early life
Nandan Nilekani was born in 1955 at a small town Sirsi in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. His parents Durga and Mohan Nilekani are both Konkani Brahmin.[3] His father worked as a General Manager of Mysore and Minerva Mills and subscribed to Fabian Socialist ideals that influenced Nilekani in his early years. Nilekani's elder brother, Vijay, works in the Nuclear Energy Institute.
Nilekani studied at the Bishop Cotton Boys' School and St. Joseph High School Dharwad, Karnataka PU College Dharwad and later at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai.[4]
Career
Information Technology
Nilekani received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in 1978 and joined Mumbai-based Patni Computer Systems, where he met and was interviewed by N.R. Narayana Murthy. In 1981, Mr. Nilekani, Mr. Murthy, and five others left Patni to start their own company, Infosys. Nilekani became the Chief Executive Officer of Infosys in March 2002 and served as CEO of the company through April 2007, when he relinquished his position to his colleague Kris Gopalakrishnan and became co-chairman of the board of directors. Before assuming leadership as CEO in 2002, Mr. Nilekani held various posts, including managing director, president, and chief operating officer. He served as its CEO from March 2002 to April 2007.[5][6][7]
Bureaucracy
Nilekani left Infosys in July 2009 to serve as the chairperson of the Unique Identification Authority of India, a cabinet-ranking position that he entered under the invitation of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.[5][6] As chair of the UIDAI he is responsible for implementing the envisioned Multipurpose National Identity Card, or Unique Identity card (UID Card) project in India. This initiative aims to provide a unique identification number for all residents of India and will be used primarily as the basis for efficient delivery of welfare services.[7] The identification method will be biometric, and the drive to create this government database of the entire population of India has been called "the biggest social project on the planet."[8]
He is a member of the board of governors of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) and the president of NCAER (the premier independent applied economics research institute in India).[7] He also sits on several advisory boards, including those of the World Economic Forum Foundation and the Bombay Heritage Fund.[9]
Nilekani has appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to promote his book Imagining India: The Idea of a Renewed Nation [10] and spoke at a TED conference in 2009 on his ideas for India's future.[11]
Politics
Nilekani joined Indian National Congress in March, 2014 and will contest 2014 Loksabha election from Bangalore South constituency.[12]
Family and personal life
Nilekani is married to Rohini Nilekani, whom he met at a quizzing event at IIT.[13] They have two children, Nihar and Janhavi, each of whom has received an undergraduate degree from Yale University.[14]
Honours and awards
- He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law degree by the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto on 31 May 2011.[15]
- He received NDTV Indian of the Year's Transformational Idea of the Year Award in 2011[16]
- He was named Corporate Citizen of the Year at the Asia Business Leaders Award (2004) organized by CNBC.[17]
- Joseph Schumpeter Prize for innovative services in economy, economic sciences and politics – 2005.[18]
- In 2009, Time magazine placed Nilekani in the Time 100 list of 'World's Most Influential People' [19]
- Was presented the 'Legend in Leadership Award' by the Yale University in November 2009. He is the first Indian to receive the top honour.[citation needed]
- In January 2006, Mr. Nilekani became on the youngest entrepreneurs to join 20 global leaders on the World Economic Forum (WEF) Foundation Board.[9]
- Nilekani was awarded one of India's highest civilian honours, the Padma Bhushan, in 2006.[20]
- Also in 2006, he was named Businessman of the Year by Forbes Asia.[21]
Bibliography
- Nandan Nilekani. Imagining India: The Idea of a Renewed Nation (March 19, 2009 ed.). Penguin Press HC. p. 528. ISBN 1-59420-204-4.
References
- ^ "#1107 Billionaires – Forbes – March 2013". Forbes.
- ^ Special Correspondent (2010-06-07). "Finance Ministry sets up technology advisory group". The Hindu. Retrieved 2013-04-10.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Nandan-Nilekani.
{{cite news}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ Infosys Technologies Limited (2007-06-22). "About Infosys | Management Profiles | Nandan M. Nilekani". Infosys. Retrieved 2009-06-28. [dead link]
- ^ a b "Rs.100 crore for Unique Identification Project", The Hindu, Chennai, India, 17 February 2009, retrieved 2009-06-26,
... The Unique Identification Authority of India is being established under the aegis of the Planning Commission for which a notification has been issued in January 2009. A provision of Rs.100 crore has been made in the annual Plan 2009–10 for this ...
- ^ a b "What exactly is the Unique ID project?", ciol.com, 26 June 2009, retrieved 11 September 2012,
... The appointment of Nandan Nilekani, the co-chairman of Infosys, as the chairperson of the Unique Identification Authority of India is significant, not only because it marks a departure from the traditional government way of working... it shows that the government has actually put out effort to hunt the right person for the job ...
- ^ a b c Background. uidai.gov.in
- ^ Parker, Ian (3 October 2011). "The I.D. Man". The New Yorker. Condé Nast: 26–34. Retrieved 6 July 2013.
- ^ a b Nandan M. Nilekani | World Economic Forum – Nandan M. Nilekani. Weforum.org. Retrieved on 2012-12-13.
- ^ "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Official Website | Current Events & Pop Culture, Comedy & Fake News | Comedy Central". Thedailyshow.com. 2009-03-18. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
- ^ TED2009. "Nandan Nilekani's ideas for India's future | Video on". Ted.com. Retrieved 2013-04-10.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Congress's first list for LS polls: Rahul, Sonia, Nilekani among 194 candidates named". The Times of India. PTI. 2014-03-08. Retrieved 2014-03-08.
- ^ "School and IIT". Imagining India. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
- ^ The Hindu. Chennai, India. 2009-09-06 http://www.hindu.com/2009/09/06/01hdline.htm.
{{cite news}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "Watch Nandan Nilekani's address to Convocation". alumni.utoronto.ca/. Retrieved 5 Apr 2014.
- ^ "NDTV Indian of the Year 2011". ndtv.com. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
- ^ India Today Youth Summit 2010, September 25, New Delhi. Indiatoday.intoday.in (2010-09-25). Retrieved on 2012-12-13.
- ^ "The story continues". Imagining India. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
- ^ The 2009 TIME 100 – Nandan Nilekani Time (magazine).
- ^ Padma Bhushan Awardees – Padma Awards – My India, My Pride – Know India: National Portal of India. India.gov.in. Retrieved on 2012-12-13.
- ^ Nilekani as Businessman of the Year: Forbes Asia – Oneindia News. News.oneindia.in (2006-12-01). Retrieved on 2012-12-13.
External links
