Ratan Tata Is No More

Moneylife Digital Team 11 October 2024

Economy & Nation

Ratan Naval Tata, chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, the holding company of Tata group and chairman of Tata Trusts, passed away in Mumbai's Breach Candy Hospital late on Wednesday evening due to health-related issues. He was 86. Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, in a statement says, “It is with a profound sense of loss that we bid farewell to Mr Ratan Naval Tata, a truly uncommon leader whose immeasurable contributions have shaped not only the Tata Group but also the very fabric of our nation.”

On Thursday evening, Mr Tata was given a solemn farewell as his last rites were performed with full state honours at the Worli crematorium in Mumbai.

Prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi expressed grief on the demise of Mr Tata, the chairman emeritus of Tata Sons. “My mind is filled with countless interactions with Shri Ratan Tata Ji. I would meet him frequently in Gujarat when I was the CM. We would exchange views on diverse issues. I found his perspectives very enriching. These interactions continued when I came to Delhi. Extremely pained by his passing away. My thoughts are with his family, friends and admirers in this sad hour. Om Shanti,” the PM wrote on X.

PM Modi also spoke with Noel Tata and expressed condolence. While the PM has left for Lao PDR to take part in the 21st ASEAN-India and 19th East Asia Summit, Amit Shah, Union minister of home affairs, will attend the last rituals of Mr Tata.

Maharashtra government has declared a day of mourning in the state on Thursday to pay tributes to Mr Tata, the chief minister's office says in a communication. The last rites of the illustrious industrialist will be performed with full state honours, Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde said.

Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd, says Mr Tata's passing away is a big loss, not just to the Tata group, but to every Indian. "At a personal level, the passing of Ratan Tata has filled me with immense grief as I lost a dear friend. Each of my numerous interactions with him left me inspired and energised and enhanced my respect for the nobility of his character and the fine human values he embodied. Ratan, you will always remain in my heart."

Shapoorji Mistry, chairman of SP group, says the Mistry family has had a long-standing relationship with the Tata group and with Ratan Tata. "Mr Tata's unfortunate passing marks the end of an era. He will always be remembered as a leader who left a lasting mark on the evolution of the Tata group. We offer our heartfelt condolences to his family, loved ones and the whole Tata fraternity."

Industry leaders, including Google’s India-born chief executive officer (CEO) Sundar Pichai, mourned the death of Mr Tata, saying the veteran industrialist cared about making India better.

“He leaves an extraordinary business and philanthropic legacy and was instrumental in mentoring and developing the modern business leadership in India. He deeply cared about making India better,” Mr Pichai says in a post on X.

The Tata group's chairman emeritus was interviewed by Moneylife's editor, Debashis Basu and managing editor, Sucheta Dalal in their book 'Pathbreakers-2'. He told them in 2007 that those of them who head industries, ought to focus on what we can really do to make the world a safer place, 50 or 100 years onwards.

Do read the interview which we have made free for a few days (link at the end of this article). Also, do buy a copy of the Pathbreakers 2 where we have featured interviews with Mr Tata, Hemendra Kothari, RK Laxman, Amitabh Bachchan, Lord Meghnad Desai, Prahlad Kakkar, Uday Kotak and many others.

Born on 28 December 1937, Mr Tata was the chairman of Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata group, from 1991 till his retirement on 28 December 2012. From 29 December 2012, he was conferred the honorary title of chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, Tata Industries, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and Tata Chemicals.

Mr Tata served on the international advisory boards of Mitsubishi Corporation and JP Morgan Chase. He was also the chairman of the Tata Trusts, amongst India's oldest, non-sectarian philanthropic organisations that work in several areas of community development. He was the chairman of the Council of Management of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and also served on the board of trustees of Cornell University and the University of Southern California.

Ratan Tata received a B Arch degree from Cornell in 1962. He worked briefly with Jones and Emmons in Los Angeles before returning to India in late 1962. He completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 1975.

In 1962, he joined the Tata group. After serving in various companies, in 1971, he was appointed director-in-charge of the National Radio & Electronics Company Ltd. In 1981, he was named as the chairman of Tata Industries, the group’s other holding company, where he was responsible for transforming it into a group strategy think-tank and a promoter of new ventures in high technology businesses.

In 2008, the government of India honoured Mr Tata with its second-highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan. He was also appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, and the Rockefeller Foundation has conferred him the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Among his other achievements, Mr Tata was also an honorary fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Royal Academy of Engineering and a foreign associate of the National Academy of Engineering. He has received honorary doctorates from several universities in India and overseas.

Read Moneylife interview with Ratan Tata from Pathbreakers 2 here…