Healthcare and Lifesciences
How A Velumani, a landless farmer's son, built Thyrocare into a billion-dollar behemoth before a surprise sell-off
30 Jun 2021
It’s been a long and tiring journey for A Velumani. But, at the end of it, the 62-year-old is a satisfied man.
The son of a landless farmer, whose father couldn’t afford to buy him a pair of pants or slippers, Velumani has traversed some rather difficult terrains since starting out from the nondescript village of Appanaickenpatti Pudur near Coimbatore. Along the way, the bespectacled scientist had also redefined the medical diagnostic industry in the country.
His 26-year-old company Thyrocare Technologies is one of India’s largest healthcare diagnostic chains that has been instrumental in India’s long drawn fight against Covid-19 for over a year now. “Mine is a story of grit, guts and glory,” Velumani, the chairman and managing director of Thyrocare Technologies had told Forbes India in an interview a few months ago. His company is today worth a staggering Rs 7,000 crore and Velumani’s own stake in that venture used to be around Rs 5,000 crore.