Abu Dhabi: Veteran Indian businessman Lachman Bhatia, fondly known as "Lachu', died in Abu Dhabi on Saturday July 27, his family confirmed on Sunday.
A resident of the UAE since 1975, Lachu Bhatia, 81, was a well-known-figure not just in the expat community but throughout the UAE and Gulf region.
His younger brother Shyam Bhatia confirmed to Gulf News the unfortunate demise of Lachu Bhatia. “Lachu was undergoing treatment at the Burjeel Hospital since June 16 this year. He passed away on Saturday at approximately 9.30pm,” said Shyam.
He said the final rites of the Lachu Bhatia will be conducted tomorrow (Monday) in Al Ain. “The family has arranged a condolence meeting on Wednesday July 31."
Lachu Bhatia was the founder of Falcon Traders, one of the biggest building materials distributors in UAE. Prior to that, he worked for Indian Oil, which is ranked in the Top Fortune 100 list.
The late businessman is survived by his wife Mira Bhatia, son, Manish Bhatia and daughter, Rhea Tharyamal.
His brother Shyam told Gulf News: “I was in the UK for the World Cup cricket matches. On the day of the India–Pakistan match, I got a call from Manish saying that Lachu had been admitted to the hospital after he complained of severe stomach pain.
“He had suffered two strokes and the first one resulted in a blood clot in the intestine. He was recovering, but fell ill again and suffered another stroke that resulted in several clots to his brain, arteries, large and large intestine. Unfortunately, he couldn't recover from the second one."
Mohan Jashanmal Jhangiani, shareholder of Jashanmal group of companies and patriarch of the Indian community, in a telephone interview to Gulf News expressed sadness on the demise of Lachu Bhatia. “He was a successful businessman and a very jovial person. He was a large-hearted man. I used to meet him for cricket matches back in 70s when we played a number of friendly games together. His brother Shyam Bhatia was cricket captain for Dubai team and I was captain for the Abu Dhabi team.”
