Strides appoints R Ananthanarayanan as CEO, MD

Drug firm Strides Pharma Science on Wednesday said it's board has appointed R Ananthanarayanan as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of the company effective January 09.

He will succeed Arun Kumar, founder and the incumbent CEO and MD of the company, Strides Pharma Science said in a statement.

"Arun will transition his active responsibilities at Strides by the financial year ending March 31, 2020, and will step into a strategic role as Chairman of the Board with effect from April 01, 2020," it added.

Ananth brings with him over three decades of top global pharmaceutical experience across both the technical and commercial functions, the statement said.

Until recently, Ananth was the Global Chief Operating Officer at Cipla, where he was responsible for the company's generics business in regulated markets and branded generics in emerging markets, it added.

"Having founded Strides and led the company for close to 30 years, I believe the time is right for me to step aside and have Ananth lead it to greater heights," Kumar said.

As Ananth takes on the mantle of Strides, "I will now move to a more strategic role as the Chairman of the Board and will dedicate time to Strides' newly announced investments in Biotech and sterile injectables," he added.