Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited announced that Atul Sobti will step down from the positions of CEO and MD of Ranbaxy, effective August 19, 2010 and Arun Sawhney, currently Ranbaxy's president, global pharmaceutical business, has been appointed as managing director, effective August 20, 2010.

The board noted its sincere appreciation of Sobti’s efforts during his tenure as CEO and MD as well as for building upon the strong legacy of Ranbaxy as a premier global company.

Commenting on these changes, Tsutomu Une, chairman of Ranbaxy, said: "We are extremely grateful for the significant contribution Sobti has made to Ranbaxy ever since he joined the company. Under his leadership as CEO and MD, Ranbaxy has realized various opportunities to repeat the strong operating performance while continuing to manage key challenges.” Dr Une also said, “we are pleased to appoint Sawhney as the managing director, further advancing the company with the decades of global experience he has in the industry.”

Sawhney, with over three decades of global experience with leading Indian and global pharmaceutical companies, has held the role of president, global pharmaceuticals business, at Ranbaxy, since January 2010, and has been a senior executive at the company from April 2008, providing leadership in diverse functions to achieve optimum synergy to facilitate the business objectives of the organization. Sawhney is one of the founder members of the Pharmexcil and has been an active member on the committees of the prestigious Indian Drug Manufacturer’s Association and Bulk Drug Manufacturers Association (India).