Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Announces Dr. K. Anji Reddy Has Passed Away
Dr. K. Anji Reddy, Founder & Chairman of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd.,
passed away this evening in Hyderabad. He was ailing for some time.
Dr. Reddy’s mission in life was to provide innovative new medicines at a
price that the common man could afford. His passion for research became
legendary when Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. became the first
pharmaceutical company of India to initiate basic drug discovery
research in 1993. A B.Sc graduate from Bombay University with
specialization in Pharmaceutical Science and Fine Chemicals, Dr. Reddy
obtained his Ph.D in Chemical Engineering from National Chemical
Laboratory, Pune. Soon after his studies, he served in the state-owned
IDPL before he founded the company in 1984.
Under his leadership, the company became a pioneer and trendsetter in
the Indian pharmaceutical industry. Dr. Reddy also set-up the "Institute
of Life Sciences" at Hyderabad, which is a public-private partnership
with the Government of Andhra Pradesh for carrying out cutting edge
research in Life Sciences. Critically aware of his own responsibility to
society, Dr. Reddy in the last decade was renowned for his outcome based
institutionalized philanthropy that positively impacted the lives of
nearly 5 million underprivileged citizens, mainly children and youth.
In 1998, Dr. Reddy set up the Naandi Foundation as a Public Charitable
Trust. Naandi is probably India's largest rural safe drinking water
provider, and gives midday meals to 1.3 million government school-going
children and farmers. Dr. Reddy took up the cause of safe motherhood and
newborn care, thereby reducing maternal and neo-natal care in India. He
also spearheaded and founded the Neo Natal Intensive Care and
Emergencies called “NICE Foundation,” the only institute for newborns in
Asia that also does large scale community outreach programs, saving a
number of lives on a daily basis.
Satish Reddy, MD and COO of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. and son to Dr.
Reddy said: “Dr. Reddy touched millions of lives through his
contribution to the Pharmaceutical industry and his Philanthropic
efforts. In improving access to affordable, high quality medicines and
in innovation, his contributions have been extraordinary. His
philanthropic initiatives made a difference in the lives of so many
Indians in the areas of livelihood, education, clean drinking water and
healthcare. A nation is grateful to a man who paved a way for the
delivery of affordable medicines to the masses and made us believe and
take pride in innovation as a means to prosperity.”
Dr. Reddy served as a Member of the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade &
Industry, Government of India. He was the Chairman of Andhra Pradesh
Industrial Development Corporation (APIDC), and President of The Indian
Pharmaceutical Alliance. He served as a Board Member of GAIN,
Switzerland (Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition) and also was on the
Board of Directors for TB Alliance, New York (Global Alliance for TB
Drug Development).
In April 2011, he was honored by the Government of India with the Padma
Bhushan, one of the highest Civilian Awards in India, recognizing his
distinguished service of high order in the field of Trade and Industry.
In 2012, CNBC TV18 conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award (IBLA) on
him for being a visionary who had spent a lifetime building up his
company into a colossus with a global reach putting Indian industry on
the world map.