Cessation of CFO, interim CFO, new full-time CFO from 1 Jan 2027 and new CHRO approved

Board approved: Mr. Pushkar Patwardhan ceases as CFO & KMP from close of 19th October, 2026; Ms. Manaswini Goel is Interim CFO & KMP from 20th October, 2026 to 31st December, 2026; Mr. Surender Kalra becomes CFO & KMP from 1st January.

Mon 12 Oct 2026

CFO Cessation Effective

close of 19th October, 2026

Interim CFO Tenure

20th October, 2026 to 31st December, 2026

New CFO Effective Date

1st January, 2027

CFO transition and a new CHRO

SML Mahindra's Board of Directors met on Monday, 12th October, 2026 and approved changes in the company's Key Managerial Personnel — the Chief Financial Officer — along with the appointment of a Chief Human Resources Officer.

Who is moving out

• The Board noted and accepted the resignation of Mr. Pushkar Patwardhan as Chief Financial Officer and Key Managerial Personnel, with effect from the close of 19th October, 2026.
• The update states he has decided to pursue a career opportunity outside the Mahindra Group, and his letter to the Board forms part of this intimation.

Interim arrangement

• Ms. Manaswini Goel has been appointed Chief Financial Officer and Key Managerial Personnel, designated as Interim Chief Financial Officer, for the period from 20th October, 2026 to 31st December, 2026.

The incoming CFO

• Mr. Surender Kalra has been appointed Chief Financial Officer and Key Managerial Personnel with effect from 1st January, 2027, on a full-time basis.
• He is a Chartered Accountant with over three decades of experience across finance, governance, business planning and transformation.
• He has been associated with the Swaraj business for nearly 30 years, having joined erstwhile Punjab Tractors Ltd. in 1996 and continued with Mahindra & Mahindra Limited following the acquisition in 2007.
• Since 2022 he has served as Vice President - Finance, Swaraj Division and is a member of the Swaraj Executive Council.

About the interim CFO

• Ms. Goel is the Chief Financial Officer for the Aerospace, Advanced Technologies, and Trucks & Buses businesses at Mahindra Group.
• She played a key role in Mahindra & Mahindra's acquisition of a stake in SML Isuzu Limited, now SML Mahindra.
• She joined the Mahindra Group in 2015 and has also served as the Treasurer of Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited; prior to Mahindra she worked with HDFC and National Housing Bank.
• She holds a Bachelor's degree in Commerce from Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi, and is a Chartered Accountant, an associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).

The new HR head

• Mr. Ashudeep Saddi has been appointed Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) and Senior Management Personnel with effect from 19th October, 2026.
• He is an MBA in HR from UBS, Chandigarh and a Law Graduate from Panjab University, Chandigarh, with nearly 30 years of HR experience across consumer durables, telecom, FMCG, engineering and manufacturing sectors.
• He joins from Voltas, where he works as Head HR - International Operations Business Group; prior to that he held various positions with Vodafone, Samsung, Procter & Gamble, LG Electronics and Punjab Tractors Ltd.

How the transition is sequenced

• The outgoing CFO's last day is 19th October, 2026, the interim CFO's term runs from 20th October, 2026 to 31st December, 2026, and the new full-time CFO takes charge from 1st January, 2027, so the role stays filled through the period.
• Both Ms. Goel and Mr. Kalra are appointed as Chief Financial Officer and Key Managerial Personnel.

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