Mumbai, May 30 (IANS): Top-notch Mumbai industrialist and director of Piramal Healthcare Ltd., Swati Piramal has been elected member of the Harvard Board of Overseers, a company statement said Wednesday.

The Harvard Board of Overseers is more than 350 years old and was created in the 17th century. It oversees all the Schools of Harvard, including health, business, design, arts and sciences, and has had an illustrious past. The 30-member Board of Overseers is all directly elected by alumni. President John F. Kennedy served on the board in 1957.

Piramal is now one of the five new Overseers elected to the board for a six-year term. She was the only international and Indian candidate nominated for contesting elections by the Harvard Alumni Association committee this year.

"It is a great honour to be elected as an Overseer to one of the most historic and prestigious boards in the world. The Overseer Board brings together a diverse set of people who are all aligned to take Harvard to greater heights of excellence," Piramal said on being elected as Overseer.

Piramal was among the handful of Mumbai industrialists who had met US President Barack Obama during his trip to India in November 2010. Before that, Piramal also met Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

"I believe that my international perspective and deep experience in creating effective change in large institutions will help Harvard graduates recognise their potential as destined leaders who will make a positive difference to their community and their world," she added.

Piramal has a medical degree from the University of Mumbai, a diploma in Industrial Medicine and a Masters in Public Health from Harvard University, US. She currently serves on the Dean's Advisory Board of both the Harvard School of Public Health and the Harvard Business School.

She also serves on the boards of Indian and international academic institutions such as IIT-Bombay and Harvard University. She was the Commencement Speaker at the Harvard School of Public Health in 1992.