Sanofi Pasteur has announced the appointment of Dr Harish Iyer as chief executive officer, Shantha Biotechnics Limited. Dr Iyer will report directly to Olivier Charmeil, president and CEO of Sanofi Pasteur, and will be a member of the Sanofi Pasteur Management Committee.

Shantha Biotechnics Limited, which was acquired by Sanofi Pasteur - the vaccines division of the Sanofi Group in 2009.

Dr Varaprasad Reddy, founder of Shantha Biotechnics, has accepted to continue providing strategic guidance to the company as chairman of the board, non executive director. This is in keeping with the long-term strategy of the company post its acquisition by Sanofi Pasteur.

“Shantha represents a key asset in Sanofi Pasteur’s strategy to address the need for high quality affordable vaccination in international markets. Dr Harish Iyer’s arrival materializes our engagement to invest in the company; his experience and dynamism will be key assets to lead Shantha in this new phase of its development”, said Olivier Charmeil.

Dr Harish Iyer is a graduate in chemical engineering from IIT, Madras, who did his doctorate in Chemical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic, New York, USA. He brings over 15 years of experience in biotechnology and biopharmaceutical R&D, successively working with Genentech, IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corporation and Biocon.