Canada Pension Plan in first India-focused fund

* CPPIB commits up to $100 million to Multiples Fund

* Board a leader in global private equity deals (In U.S. dollars unless noted)

TORONTO, April 15 (Reuters) - The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), one of the country's most active global investors, announced plans on Thursday to invest in its first India-focused fund, committing up to $100 million.

CPPIB, which helped lead some of the world's largest private equity deals last year, said it committed to a fund that will invest across corporate sectors, called Multiples Alternate Asset Management.

The fund will make long-term growth investments in mid-sized Indian companies, management led buyouts, and spinoffs of divisions from large Indian groups.

Toronto-based CPPIB ended 2009 with C$123.9 billion ($123.9 billion) in assets under management, making it one of the largest of the Canadian pension fund administrators, which emerged from the economic crisis as some of the world's most liquid investors.

The Multiples fund was set up about a year ago and has a target size of $450 million.

"Multiples will be the first India-focused fund to be backed by CPPIB," the board said said in a statement. "The Fund is expected to announce another close shortly."

The CPPIB was involved in three of the top five global private equity deals of 2009, including the largest leveraged buyout of the year -- the $4 billion acquisition by CPPIB and U.S. private equity firm TPG [TPG.UL] of IMS Health Inc RX.N, a prescription drug sales data provider.

CPPIB was also part of a consortium of buyers that agreed to buy a majority stake in Skype Technologies from eBay EBAY.N for about $1.9 billion in cash.

($1=$1.00 Canadian) (Reporting by Pav Jordan; editing by Rob Wilson)