
Najib Shah, Sonal Desai & Dr. M. Mathisekaran Retire As Independent Directors Of CARE Ratings
Najib Shah, Sonal Desai, and Dr. M. Mathisekaran ceased to be Independent Directors of CARE Ratings Limited upon completion of their terms with effect from July 10, 2025.
Shah is a retired officer of the 1979 batch of the Indian Customs & Central Excise Service and former Chairman of the Central Board of Excise & Customs (CBEC). Over a 37-year career, he held key roles including Commissioner of Customs at JNCH Nhava Sheva, Joint Secretary (Drawback) in the Ministry of Finance, Chief Commissioner of Customs New Delhi, Director General of Revenue Intelligence, and Member (Budget), CBEC. He also served at the High Commission of India in Singapore. As CBEC Chairman, he contributed to the development of GST laws and led customs process reforms, including the launch of SWIFT. Shah is a recipient of the Presidential Award for Distinguished Service and currently resides in Bengaluru.
Desai retired from Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) in August 2017, where she last served as Executive Director of Refinery Finance, along with additional responsibility for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). She currently serves as Executive Director at Sushrut Hospital, a charitable trust hospital, and advises Prashanti Medical Trust, which provides free heart surgeries to underprivileged patients. She is also on the Board of Sharda Cropchem Ltd and serves as a member of the Audit Committee, Nomination and Remuneration Committee, CSR Committee, and Risk Management Committee of the company. Desai is a Chartered Accountant with an Executive Diploma in Hospital Administration from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS).