1. Ratan Naval Tata was an Indian industrialist and philanthropist.
47 Facts About Ratan Tata
2.
Ratan Tata served as the chairman of Tata Group and Tata Sons from 1991 to 2012 and he held the position of interim chairman from October 2016 to February 2017.
3.
Ratan Tata was the son of Naval Tata, who was adopted by Ratanji Tata, son of Jamshedji Tata, the founder of the Tata Group.
4.
Ratan Tata graduated from Cornell University College of Architecture with a bachelor's degree in architecture.
5.
Ratan Tata had attended the Harvard Business School Advanced Management program in 1975.
6.
Ratan Tata joined the Tata Group in 1962, starting on the shop floor of Tata Steel.
7.
Ratan Tata later succeeded JR D Tata as chairman of Tata Sons upon the latter's retirement in 1991.
8.
Ratan Tata was born in Bombay, during the British Raj, into a Parsi Zoroastrian family, on 28 December 1937.
9.
Ratan Tata was the son of Naval Tata, and Soonoo Tata.
10.
In 1948, when Tata was 10, his parents separated, and he was raised and adopted by Navajbai Tata, his grandmother and widow of Ratanji Tata.
11.
Ratan Tata had a younger brother Jimmy Tata and a half-brother, Noel Tata, from Naval Tata's second marriage to his stepmother Simone Tata.
12.
Ratan Tata studied at the Campion School, Mumbai until 8th grade.
13.
Ratan Tata then continued his studies at the Cathedral and John Connon School in Mumbai, the Bishop Cotton School in Shimla, and the Riverdale Country School in New York City, from which he graduated in 1955.
14.
In 1975, Ratan Tata enrolled in the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
15.
Ratan Tata donated $50 million to Harvard Business School, Harvard University to establish an executive center, which is called Ratan Tata Hall that supports over 9,000 executive education students each year.
16.
In 2004 Tata met architect A Quincy Jones who spent three weeks as architecture design critic at Cornell.
17.
Ratan Tata achieved initial success by turning the subsidiary National Radio and Electronics around, only to see it collapse during an economic slowdown.
18.
In 1991, JR D Tata stepped down as chairman of Tata Sons, naming him his successor.
19.
Ratan Tata prioritised innovation and delegated many responsibilities to younger talent.
20.
Ratan Tata had Tata Tea acquire Tetley, Tata Motors acquire Jaguar Land Rover, and Tata Steel acquire Corus.
21.
Ratan Tata conceptualised and spearheaded the development of the Tata Nano car after the grand success of Diesel Tata Indica, which helped put cars at a price-point within reach of the average Indian consumer.
22.
On 24 October 2016, Cyrus Mistry was removed as chairman of Tata Sons, and Ratan Tata was made interim chairman.
23.
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal later found in December 2019 that the removal of Cyrus Mistry as the chairman of Ratan Tata Sons was illegal, and ordered that he be reinstated.
24.
Ratan Tata had made small investments in both early and late stage companies in India, such as INR 0.95 Cr in Ola Cabs.
25.
Ratan Tata launched a companionship startup for senior citizens named Goodfellows, to encourage intergenerational friendships.
26.
Ratan Tata was a supporter of education, medicine and rural development, and considered a leading philanthropist in India.
27.
Ratan Tata was the highest international donor to the Cornell University.
28.
Ratan Tata supported University of New South Wales Faculty of Engineering to develop capacitive deionisation to provide improved water for challenged areas.
29.
Ratan Tata Hall at the University of California, San Diego is a state-of-the-art research facility that was opened in November 2018.
30.
The Ratan Tata Institute for Genetics and Society at UC San Diego is a joint initiative between the Ratan Tata Trusts and UC San Diego.
31.
Ratan Tata Hall at the UC San Diego is a 4-storey building that is spread over 128,000 square feet and houses research facilities for the biological and physical sciences.
32.
Ratan Tata Hall is located in the northeast corner of the HBS campus, and is devoted to the Harvard Business School's mid-career executive education program.
33.
Ratan Tata Consultancy Services is a tenant in the space.
34.
Tata Group, under the leadership of Ratan Tata formed the MIT Tata Center of Technology and Design at Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a mission to address the challenges of resource-constrained communities, with an initial focus on India.
35.
Ratan Tata was the highest international donor to the Cornell University.
36.
Cornell University paid tribute to its alumnus Ratan Tata, honouring his leadership, philanthropy, and contributions to education and research, particularly through the Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition.
37.
Ratan Tata served in various capacities in organisations in India and abroad.
38.
Ratan Tata was a member of Prime Minister's 'Council on Trade and Industry' and the 'National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council'.
39.
Ratan Tata was a director on the boards of Alcoa Inc.
40.
Ratan Tata was a member of the board of trustees of University of Southern California, Harvard Business School Board of Dean's Advisors, X Prize and Cornell University.
41.
Ratan Tata was a member on the board of International Advisory Council at Bocconi University.
42.
In February 2015, Ratan Tata took an advisory role at Kalari Capital, a venture capital firm founded by Vani Kola.
43.
Ratan Tata was admitted to Breach Candy Hospital in critical condition and was under intensive care.
44.
Ratan Tata died there at 23:30 IST on 9 October 2024, at the age of 86 due to age-related issues.
45.
Ratan Tata was accorded with military and 21-gun salute during his final rites.
46.
Ratan Tata received the Padma Bhushan in 2000 and Padma Vibhushan in 2008, the third and second highest civilian honours awarded by the Government of India.
47.
Ratan Tata received various state civilian honours such as 'Maharashtra Bhushan' in 2006 for his work in the public administration in Maharashtra and 'Assam Baibhav' in 2021 for his contribution towards furthering cancer care in Assam.