Monday, December 18, 2006

Remembering Sunil Mehta (1965-2006)

Nasscom vice president Sunil Mehta passed away in Mumbai on Saturday following a cardiac arrest. He was 41.

CIOL reports: Mehta has been instrumental in some of Nasscom’s recent initiatives such as the online national registry of BPO employees and Nasscom Assessment of Competence (NAC) that involves tests to grade BPO applicants.

Like Kiran Karnik, the president of the industry body, he has also been quite vocal in denouncing the anti-outsourcing critics and also defended the country’s BPO industry in the light of the certain security breaches at call centers.

In his role, Mehta was responsible for leading Nasscom’s research initiatives. He also was in charge of Nasscom’s international public affairs and public relations.


I was flipping through the Economic Times this morning when I noticed the ad which carried the sad news. I read and re-read it a few times... It was just too shocking.

Sunil was an amazing human being, whom I was privileged enough to meet and get to know a little over the last two years. Of course, we planned to meet more often than we actually met.

Sunil had a wry sense of humour. He smiled a lot. And probably smoked more than he should have.

Sunil had a lot of fundas to share with me, having been an entrepreneur himself, before joining NASSCOM. After graduating from IIM A in 1988 and working briefly with Citibank, Sunil started a research company called INFAC. From 1989 to 2000, he ran this company, finally selling out to CRISIL.

We joked about the possibility of Rupert Murdoch buying out my company. "Then you too can join NASSCOM".

A little known facet of Sunil Mehta was his blog. It gives you a peek into his sharp and sensitive mind. No, I never got around to adding him to my blogroll...

At times like this, one is reminded of what is truly important in life. How little we know of what lies ahead. My deepest condolences to Sunil's family. Our thoughts and prayers are with them.

Goodbye, Sunil. You will be deeply missed.


Prayer Meetings:

Mumbai: Monday, 18th December 2006 from 5.30 to 7.30 pm.
Venue: 701, Horizon Apts, 9th Rd, near kaifi Azmi Garden, JVPD Scheme, Vile Parle (W), Mumbai. Ph 26701744

Delhi: Wednesday, 20th December 2006 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon
Venue: NASSCOM, International Youth Centre, Teen Murti Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. Phone: 91-11-23010199

Bangalore: Thursday, 21st December 2006
Time and venue to be confirmed. Check here.

7 comments:

  1. Dewang Mehta passed away 5 years ago at the age of 39; and now you report on Sunil Mehta's death at 41. This is sad on more counts than the sorrow caused to his family and his colleagues.

    I am not sure what this says about an organisation representing an industry known for its long-hours work culture (extreme jobs, if you buy into Sylvia Ann Hewlett's jargon), sedentary nature of work and health imbalances. Or it is wider than the industry?

    I think bigger questions need to be asked about health in India.

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  2. Anonymous1:32 PM

    The untimely demise of Mr. Sunil Mehta is very sad. May god give courage and enough strength to their family members to face this tragedy. I full agree

    with Shefaly's comments regarding health issues and work culture in India and especially in software industry. There is no doubt that we have to change

    our lifestyle.

    Pramod Jha

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  3. I knew Sunil since late 1993 when he had that tiny office in Tardeo AC market. My friends and I "inherited" that office when INFAC left. In fact, for many months, the sign board still read INFAC. It is shocking to read of his demise. Though I did not keep in touch with him in the last couple of years, I still remember his sense of humour. Shucks, I will miss him, though I still find it hard to imagine that he expired.

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  4. Glad to see you back in action, Rashmi! I missed your posts:).
    The first thought in my mind on reading this was the same as Shefaly's..Dewang Mehta too passed away on the cusp of 40. Is this a sad coincidence or more to do with the overall general health of top young professionals in India today?

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  5. The sad truth is that Indians have a very high risk of dying of a heart attack at a young age. A hospital near me has a clinic (http://www.southasianheartcenter.org/) dedicated to helping us. It is absolutely wonderful to be screened there by a very caring staff.

    Vimal Goel

    ReplyDelete

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