New Delhi, Dec 6 (IANS): Online food delivery platform Swiggy on Wednesday announced the appointment of Anand Kripalu as an Independent Director and the Chairperson of its Board of Directors.

"Anand is a veteran in the consumer goods industry, and his deep knowledge and perspective will be instrumental in guiding Swiggy as we continue to innovate and redefine the on-demand delivery landscape in India," Sriharsha Majety, Group CEO of Swiggy, said in a statement.

With close to 40 years of experience in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, Kripalu is the Managing Director (MD) and Global CEO of EPL Ltd (formerly Essel Propack Limited), the world's largest speciality packaging company.

Prior to that, he was the MD and CEO of Diageo India, India's leading beverage alcohol company.

"Swiggy has transformed food and grocery delivery in the country, bringing unparalleled convenience to millions of homes. I am honoured to join its accomplished board, and look forward to lending my experience and perspective as Swiggy shapes the future of convenience", said Kripalu.

He has also held leadership roles at Mondelez International (formerly Cadbury) and Unilever.

Meanwhile, Swiggy's investor Prosus, in its financial filing, stated that Swiggy’s core food-delivery business grew 17 per cent and delivered gross merchandise value (GMV) of $1.43 billion in the first half of FY24.

"This was led by a rise in transacting users that drove double-digit order growth and inflation in AOV," Prosus said.

Prosus, which holds 32.7 per cent of the stake in Swiggy, mentioned trading losses reduced to $208 million. Trading losses in the first half of the previous year were $321 million.