Friday, June 24 2005 15:41 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Anil Ambani is likely to take charge as Chairman of private telecom major Reliance Infocomm on Sunday (Jun 26, 2005), following its transfer to him from elder brother Mukesh as part of a settlement of ownership in the group.

Anil, who met Communication and IT Minister Dayanidhi Maran on Wednesday (Jun 22, 2005), would take over the top slot, which was vacated by Mukesh, sources said.

Three other nominee directors -- Manoj Modi, Anand Jain and Y P Trivedi have also left the company along with Mukesh.

Immediately thereafter, the younger Ambani would visit Infocomm's headquarters at Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge Centre in Navi Mumbai.

At the company headquarters, Anil is expected to hold a review meeting with the top executives of India's largest private sector telecom company, which posted its first profit of Rs 51 crore during the year 2004-05.

It was, however, not clear as to who would be other directors at Infocomm Board from Anil, who is free to use Reliance brandname and logo as part of the settlement.

Anil, who created Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprises as a distinct entity from Mukesh controlled Reliance, is expected to unveil a road map for Infocomm's future and may give some indication about a possible public offering in the company.

A day after the settlement, Anil had told reporters that listing of Infocomm would be considered in due course of time.

With a employee strength of over 40,000 and a revenue of over Rs 5,000 crore, Infocomm is still considered a money guzzler and would require substantial investment for its complete roll-out plants.

So far, Mukesh Ambani had pumped in about Rs 16,000 crore in the project and it is estimated that another up to Rs 14,000 crore would be needed as additional investment in the company.

Anil is also scouting for some top level executives for the company and it was expected that the some of the current executives would be relieved after the fresh appointments to ensure that organisation provided services smoothly in the transition period.

Immediately after the settlement, Mukesh had sent an e-mail to employees of Infocomm, considered his pet project, and exuded confidence that under the stewardship of his brother the company would scale new highs and play a crucial role in India's development process.