Lucknow, Jul 9 (PTI) The relatives of Moradabad-born Sabih Khan who has been elevated to the prestigious role of Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Apple, the global technology giant behind the iPhone, are upbeat and full of pride while Uttar Pradesh has a new reason to celebrate. The appointment was announced on Tuesday and it places Khan in an elite group of India-born executives, following in the footsteps of luminaries like Indra Nooyi, Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai who have ascended to C-suite positions at major international corporations. The news has also cast a spotlight on the historic Mohammad Yar Khan ‘kothi’ in Moradabad, the very place where Sabih Khan was born in 1966. A mini-mall, shopping complex and a school now operate from the same sprawling 65,000 sq ft ‘kothi’ in the city’s Civil Lines area. Sabih’s cousins and other relatives now live in a portion of the ‘kothi’. “We are absolutely elated at the news that one of our own will now become the COO of Apple. It’s a matter of such pride not just for Moradabad and Uttar Pradesh but for the entire country as such. What makes this appointment even more special is that he is such a fine human being too,” Amaan Yar Khan, 40, a Moradabad-based hotelier and Sabih’s first cousin, told PTI on the phone. Amaan said his cousin is very much “rooted” despite his achievements. “He is quite elder to me, impeccable in everything he does. What’s more, even if you were to spend a week or 10 days with him, without knowing who he was, he wouldn’t throw the slightest hint that he was in such a high place. He is so rooted, humble,” Amaan said. “He is my bua’s eldest son and studied in the city’s St. Mary’s School before his engineer father, Saeed Khan, shifted to Singapore,” he said, adding that he had already congratulated his cousin, currently the senior vice president of Apple, who is likely to assume his new responsibility later this month. “I met him only last year in Singapore. We have already wished him well, but we would possibly have a more detailed talk sometime later,” he added, stating that the new COO-designate of Apple, who now lives with his wife and three children in San Francisco, is fond of Indian curries and biryanis. Mahfooz Khan, another Moradabad-based resident, told PTI, “I too am a distant relative of Sabih Khan, who has made all of us so proud of his achievements. Most of Moradabad now knows about him, of course, but I guess by now everyone in India is talking of him.” PTI MAN CDN KSS KSS