New Delhi:

Avtar Saini, former head of Intel India, died in a tragic accident on Wednesday morning. The 68-year-old was cycling on Palm Beach Road in Nerul when a speeding taxi hit him from behind. Despite wearing a helmet, severe injuries led to his unfortunate demise. The driver attempted to flee but got entangled with the bicycle, dragging Mr Saini for a distance. He was pronounced dead upon arrival at the hospital. 

The accused cab driver, Hrishikesh Khade, is currently facing charges related to rash and negligent driving resulting in death, reports TOI. Inspector Satish Kadam said, “He has not been arrested but served with a notice under the provision of CrPC directing him to co-operate in the probe and to remain present in court when a chargesheet is filed. Saini’s body has been sent for postmortem.”

Some facts about Avtar Saini:

• Avtar Saini was a developer and a microprocessor designer.
• He earned his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from VJTI, Mumbai and got his master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Minnesota.  
• Avtar Saini was the former country manager and director at Intel South Asia and had a lengthy career at the company, from 1982 to 2004. 
• He established the Intel R&D centre in India and played an important role in shaping several key processors, including the Intel 386, Intel 486, and the widely acclaimed Pentium.
• Mr Saini holds 7 patents in microprocessor designing.

Avtar Saini lived alone in Mumbai after his wife passed away three years ago. He was planning to visit his son and daughter in the US next month.