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Mumbai: On Thursday, the police said that 68-year-old former Intel India head Avtar Saini died after a speeding car rammed his cycle in Navi Mumbai, who led the design of the Pentium processor.
According to the police, the accident happened at around 5.50 am on Wednesday, when Saini (68) was riding a bicycle along with fellow cyclists on the Palm Beach Road in Nerul area. Fellow cyclists said Saini’s bicycle was hit from the back by a speeding taxi and as the driver tried to escape the scene, the cycle’s frame got wedged under the front of the car and he dragged for some distance.
Even though he was wearing a helmet when he was hit, Saini suffered severe injuries. After the accident, the fellow cyclists rushed him to a hospital where he was declared dead on arrival. The driver of the cab was caught by cyclists and handed over to the police.
Police said that a case of rash driving and causing death due to negligence has been registered against him. He added that he has not been arrested. Saini, a resident of suburban Chembur, was credited with working on the Intel 386 and 486 microprocessors. Saini was the vice president at Intel India from 1982 to 2004.
He also went on to lead the design of the company’s Pentium processor. His son and daughter live in the US and Saini was due to visit them next month. Intel India president Gokul V Subramaniam expressed grief over Saini’s death saying the prolific inventor would be remembered as a valuable mentor at Intel.
In a post he said,”At Intel, we are deeply saddened by the demise of former country manager and director Intel South Asia, Avtar Saini. Avtar played a key role in setting up the Intel R&D center in India. Avtar will be remembered as a prolific inventor, an outstanding leader and a valuable mentor.”
