1988/MS/HS Chairman and Managing Director, Data Patterns, India
Shri. Srinivasagopalan Rangarajan, affectionately known as Ranga, is one of India’s most inspiring entrepreneurial figures in the defence and aerospace electronics sector. He completed his Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Alagappa College of Technology, Madras University in 1979, before going on to earn his Master’s in Industrial Management from IIT Madras in 1988. It is a combination of technical depth, management acumen, and an indomitable entrepreneurial spirit that has defined every chapter of his remarkable journey.
After beginning his career as a Marketing Executive at IDM, Bangalore, he took a leap of faith in 1985 and founded Data Patterns (India) Limited with just Rs. 11,000 from his provident fund closure, operating from a modest 1,000 sq. ft. rented space in Mylapore, Chennai. Starting with the development of gas chromatography integrators and laboratory instrument automation products, he set the company on a deliberate course of indigenous product development at a time when such ambition in India was rare. This foundational commitment to designing and building world-class products domestically has remained the defining philosophy of Data Patterns across four decades.
Under Shri Rangarajan’s leadership, Data Patterns has evolved into a formidable force in India’s defence and aerospace electronics landscape. The company today employs over 1,600 professionals and operates from a world-class, state-of-the-art design and manufacturing facility spanning over 250,000 sq. ft. in Chennai. Data Patterns is the only Indian company with design capabilities across the entire spectrum of electronics, encompassing processors, power systems, RF and microwave, embedded software and firmware, with deep domain expertise in radars, electronic warfare, communications, satellite systems, control systems, and navigation. Its products power land, air, and sea platforms, and include the ground checkout systems for the GSLV and PSLV satellites at Sriharikota, glass cockpits for the Light Combat Aircraft, Intermediate Jet Trainer and helicopters, and the Fire Control System for the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. A contract for nine Precision Approach Radars for the Indian Navy and Air Force, awarded by the Ministry of Defence under the Buy Indian category and worth Rs. 380 crores, stands as a testament to the trust placed in the company by India’s defence establishment.
Shri Rangarajan successfully led Data Patterns through its Initial Public Offering in December 2021, completing the process in under six months to achieve an extraordinary oversubscription of 119 times. The company has forged MoUs with global aerospace and defence leaders including BAE, Leonardo, SAAB, and counts virtually every major Indian defence research laboratory and public sector undertaking among its customers. Data Patterns has also successfully deployed nanosatellite, signalling its ambitions in the rapidly growing domain of micro and mini satellites for national defence.
Shri Rangarajan’s contributions have been widely recognised. He has received the Project Leader Award from the Project Management Association (2018), the Professional Excellence Award at the Corporate Governance Summit by the Institute of Directors (2019), the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Alagappa College of Technology (2021), the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rotary Club of Madras Temple City (2022) and the Global Leadership Award – 2025 conferred by The One World One Family. Most notably, Data Patterns was honoured with the Raksha Mantri’s Award for Excellence for Innovation and Technological Breakthrough in the Medium Scale Enterprise category, presented by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at DefExpo 2022 in Gandhinagar.
In recognition of his extraordinary entrepreneurial vision, his pioneering role in building indigenous defence and aerospace electronics capabilities for India, and his lifelong commitment to the cause of self-reliance in technology, the Indian Institute of Technology Madras and its alumni are proud to confer Shri Srinivasagopalan Rangarajan with the Distinguished Alumni Award for the year 2026.
