Manjushree Khaitan, the chairperson of Kesoram Industries and the younger daughter of the group patriarch Basant Kumar Birla, passed away at Birla Park in Kolkata on Thursday following a prolonged illness, at the age of 69.
Khaitan was appointed to the Kesoram board in October 1998. The succession plan of Basant Kumar for Kesoram became clear in 2013 when Khaitan became the executive vice-chairman. She assumed the role of non-executive chairperson in July 2019, following her father’s demise.
Kesoram, which operated two primary businesses in tyres and cement, saw Khaitan lead several restructuring efforts to stabilize the company and reduce its debt. Last year, Kesoram opted to spin off its cement division and entered negotiations with UltraTech Cement, headed by her nephew Kumar Mangalam Birla, for an all-stock acquisition. The deal is currently pending regulatory approval.
.
