Date:11/09/2003 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2003/09/11/stories/2003091104291100.htm

National

New PTI chairman

NEW DELHI SEPT. 10. M.P. Veerendrakumar, chairman and managing director of the Mathrubhumi newspaper group, was today unanimously elected chairman of the board of directors of the Press Trust India (PTI), succeeding Vineet Kumar Jain, managing director of the Times of India group.

Philip Mathew, managing editor of the Malayala Manorama group, was unanimously elected vice-chairman at a meeting of the board following the 55th annual general meeting of the agency's shareholders here.

Mr. Veerendrakumar, a former MP, has served as the Union Minister of State of Finance and Labour and is the deputy president of the Indian Newspaper Society (INS).

He is the author of 11 books in Malayalam and has served as the chairman of PTI in 1992-93.

Mr. Jain, N. Ravi (The Hindu), Shekhar Gupta (The Indian Express), and two public service directors, Justice H.R. Khanna, former judge of the Supreme Court, and E.V. Chitnis, eminent physicist, were re-elected to the board.

Shobhana Bhartia (The Hindustan Times), C.R. Irani (The Statesman), Aveek Kumar Sarkar (Anand Bazaar Patrika), Pravinchandra V. Gandhi (Janmabhoomi Group), Vijay Kumar Chopra (Hind Samachar) and R. Lakshmipathy (Dinamalar) are the other members of the board. — PTI