Dilip Modi, who has been spearheading the cellular business of the group, had his nomination unanimously accepted by the board of directors of the venture, a company statement said here.

Consequently, founder chairman of the joint venture, BK Modi resigned from the board of directors of Modi-Telstra to give a free hand to his son, who has been closely associated with Spice Telecom, cellular venture of the group in Karnataka, besides Modi-Telstra, both at board levels.

Dilip Modi's elevation to the top post of the venture is expected to give a new face to the venture as he has been keenly engaged in the growth and development of the venture.

Taking over the new assignment, the 27-year old chairman said he was aware of the responsibility andcommitment of the position, but added that cellular telephony would lead to a new personal communication system using knowledge and connectivity.

Dilip Modi, who is the youngest chairman of any venture of Modi-Telstra's size, began his stint in cellular business as the director of the venture after beginning his career in a start-up firm "Graphtech India" after graduating in management from the Imperial College, London.

Dilip Modi's elevation as chairman of the venture has been pending ever since BK Modi resigned as the president of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and tried to float a parallel lobby after he was forced to resign on some charges when Sushma Swaraj was the communications minister.

The latest move of the group has been viewed by the industry circles as a measure aimed at building bridges with COAI which has managed to get the highest ever relief for the industry with the latest bailout package.

Timing for Dilip Modi's elevation has been chosen to coincide with theoperators migration into the the revenue sharing system mooted in the new telecom policy.

Operators have been asked to complete required procedure by July 31 and pay 35 per cent of the outstanding licence fee dues by August 15 for migration to the new system.