Wipro appoints ex-SBI chief Arundhati Bhattacharya as independent director

Former SBI chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya has joined board of Wipro as an independent director for a term of 5 years, with effect from January 1, 2019, the IT company said Wednesday.

The development comes within days after Reliance Industries appointed Bhattacharya on its board as independent additional director.

Wipro said that the appointment of Bhattacharya "to its board of directors for a period of five years effective January 1, 2019, subject to the approval of shareholders".

"I am confident that her deep repository of knowledge spanning across financial services sector combined with her understanding of technology and proven expertise in driving operational transformation will immensely benefit Wipro," its Chairman Azim Premji said in a statement.

Bhattacharya graduated from Kolkata's Lady Brabourne College in 1977 and picked up banking as a career option for supporting the family following her father's retirement from Bokaro Steel plant as an engineer.

On October 7, 2013 Bhattacharya became the first woman to be appointed as chairman of SBI. Before that she had handled as many as 11 areas, starting with the forex wing of the bank in Kolkata, and going on to work in the entire gamut of retail, rural and corporate banking. Before becoming the chairman, she was chief finance officer and MD.

As chairman, she had received one-year extension so as to see through the merger of associate banks of SBI.