Acknowledged scientific leader and Novartis veteran joins Sai Life Sciences

Sai Life Sciences, one of India’s fastest growing Contract Research, Development & Manufacturing Organizations (CRDMOs), today announced the addition of Dr. Mahavir Prashad, an acknowledged scientific leader and industry veteran, to its scientific leadership team as Vice President of Early Phase Process Development. With over three decades of experience in advanced research and roles of increasing responsibility in one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies, Dr. Prashad will provide impetus to Sai Life Sciences’ growing capabilities and help accelerate the drug development programmes of its customers.

Making the announcement, CEO & Managing Director of Sai Life Sciences, Krishna Kanumuri said, “We see Early Phase Process Development as a key pivot in compressing the time to market of our clients’ drug development programs. This priority has now received significant momentum with the joining of Dr. Mahavir Prashad. His deep scientific expertise and rich experience of managing outsourced drug development programs will no doubt be a valuable addition as we strive to build a world class delivery engine.”

Dr. Prashad is a recognized leader in Chemical Process R&D and leveraging Green Chemistry principles and modern technologies in API synthesis. He possesses an excellent scientific track record through 94 publications, 4 review articles, 1 book chapter, 71 patent/applications, and 10 invited lectures at scientific conferences. He was awarded Novartis Leading Scientist award in 2002 and also the 2010 Diversity & Inclusion award of the Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Dr. Prashad has a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the Central Drug Research Institute in Lucknow India and was awarded a Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship at Duke University in North Carolina, USA.

Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Mahavir Prashad said, “I am very excited to be joining Sai Life Sciences and its passionate leadership team with a clear Early Phase Development acceleration strategy. I am looking forward to working with talented and dedicated Scientists at Sai who are enabling their partners in delivering novel medicines to patients in a speedy and socially responsible manner through Science and Innovation.”

Sai Life Sciences is currently amid an organization-wide transformation. It is investing US$150 million during 2019-23, as part of the Sai Nxt initiative, across three core areas – people & culture, processes & automation, infrastructure & scientific capabilities.