N Sankar (76), Chairman of the Chennai-headquartered ₹12,500 crore Sanmar Group, passed away on Sunday after a brief illness.

Sankar was on the Board of the Chemplast Sanmar Ltd, a flagship of the Sanmar Group, from 1975 to 2004 and was the Chairman of the Company from July 1998 to July 2004. Before that, he was Vice Chairman and Managing Director

From 2004 till August 2020, he was the Chairman of the Sanmar Group Corporate Board, an Advisory Board of the Sanmar Group. N Sankar has been instrumental in the company’s success for five decades.

“Sankar was an entrepreneur of very high standards. He straddled the macro and the micro with equal ease and skill. He led the Sanmar Group into new areas of growth while ensuring the strictest control of costs and organisational discipline. Many institutions in the field of sports and healthcare in Chennai owe a deep debt of gratitude to him,” said R Seshasayee, Vice Chairman of Hinduja Group.

Sankar also is known for encouraging corporate joint ventures, and the Group has always maintained good relationships.

A graduate in Chemical Engineering from the AC College of Technology, University of Madras, Sankar obtained his Masters degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago.

Sankar has held office in several public bodies representing trade and industry, including President, ASSOCHAM, Chairman, Indo-US Joint Business Council, Chairman, Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry and President, Madras Management Association.

Sankar was involved with the management of many educational and charitable organisations. He was a member of the Management Boards of the Childs Trust and a member of the Board of Governors of the Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode. He was the Chairman of the Chennai Willingdon Corporate Foundation and other similar organisations.

An avid sports follower, Sankar has been the Vice President of the All India Tennis Association and President of the Tamil Nadu Cricket and Tennis Associations. Sankar has been the Honorary Consul General for Denmark in South India for a long time and has been awarded the ‘Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog, First Class’ by the Danish Government in recognition of his services.