Achievement: Chairman of the Bajaj Group.

Rahul Bajaj is the Chairman of the Bajaj Group,

which ranks among the top 10 business houses
in India. The Bajaj Group has diversified
interests ranging from automobiles, home
appliances, lighting, iron and steel, insurance,
travel and finance. Rahul Bajaj is one of India's
most distinguished business leaders and
internationally respected for his business
acumen and entrepreneurial spirit.

Rahul Bajaj is an alumnus of Harvard, St.

Stephen's and Cathedral. He took over the
reins of Bajaj Group in 1965. Under his
stewardship, the turnover of the Bajaj Auto the
flagship company has risen from Rs.72 million
to Rs.46.16 billion. Rahul Bajaj created one of
India's best companies in the difficult days of
the license-permit raj. He established factories
at Akurdi and Waluj. In 1980s Bajaj Auto was
top scooter producer in India and its Chetak
brand had a 10-year waiting period.

Th
e initiation of liberalization in India posed great
challenges for Bajaj Auto. Liberalisation brought
the threat of cheap imports and FDI from top
companies like Honda. Rahul Bajaj became
famous as the head of the Bombay Club, which
opposed liberalization. The scooter sales
plummeted as people were more interested in
motorcycles and the rival Hero Honda was a
pioneer in it.

The recession and stock market collapse of

2001 hit the company hard and it was predicted
that the days of Bajaj Auto were numbered.
However, Bajaj Auto re-invented itself,
established a world-class factory in Chakan,
invested in R&D and came up with Bajaj Pulsar
Motorcycle. Bajaj Pulsar is currently a leader in
its segment.

Recently, Rahul Bajaj was elected to Rajya

Sabha from Maharashtra.