Avtar Saini, Man Behind Intel's Pentium Processor, Killed In Mumbai Crash

Former Intel India head Avtar Saini, who led the design of the Pentium processor, died on Wednesday morning after a speeding car rammed his cycle in Navi Mumbai, police said.

The 68-year-old was killed while he was riding his bicycle along with other cyclists at around 5.50 am on the Palm Beach Road in Nerul. Fellow cyclists said Mr Saini's bicycle was hit from the back by a speeding taxi. As the driver tried to escape, the cycle's frame got wedged under the car and Mr Saini was dragged for some distance.

Even though he was wearing a helmet, Mr Saini suffered severe injuries and was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors declared him brought dead.

The driver of the cab was caught by the other cyclists and handed over to the police. A case of rash driving and causing death due to negligence has been registered against him, police said, adding that he has not been arrested. 

A resident of Chembur, Mr Saini lived alone after his wife died three years ago. His son and daughter live in the US and he was due to visit them next month.

Intel India president Gokul V Subramaniam expressed grief over Mr Saini's death saying the prolific inventor would be remembered as a valuable mentor at Intel.

"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," he wrote in a post on LinkedIn.

Mr Saini was vice president at Intel India from 1982 to 2004, during which he helped design several processors, including Intel 386, Intel 486 and the popular Pentium processor.