Â鶹´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Ratan Tata, former chairman of Tata Group, dies at age 86

India's business titan Ratan Tata attends the annual general meeting of Tata Steel shareholders in Mumbai, India on Aug. 14, 2012 (Rajanish Kakade / AP Photo) India's business titan Ratan Tata attends the annual general meeting of Tata Steel shareholders in Mumbai, India on Aug. 14, 2012 (Rajanish Kakade / AP Photo)
Share
NEW DELHI -

Ratan Tata, a former chairman of India’s oldest conglomerate Tata Sons, died at a Mumbai hospital on Wednesday night. He was 86.

Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran confirmed Tata's death and described him in a statement as his "friend, mentor, and guide." He did not provide a cause of death.

Tata was admitted this week to the Breach Candy Hospital in south Mumbai, the city where he lived. Soon after he was hospitalized, Tata issued a statement on Monday saying there was no cause for concern regarding his health and he was undergoing checkups for age-related medical conditions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Tata as a visionary leader, and a compassionate and an extraordinary human being.

"He provided stable leadership to one of India's oldest and most prestigious business houses. At the same time, his contribution went far beyond boardrooms," Modi said on X.

"Tata endeared himself to several people, thanks to his humility, kindness and an unwavering commitment to making our society better," Modi said in his tributes, referring to his philanthropy work.

Industrialist Harsh Goenka called him a "titan."

Google CEO Sundar Pichai, said Ratan Tata left behind an extraordinary business and philanthropic legacy and he was instrumental in mentoring and developing modern business leadership in India.

"My last meeting with Ratan Tata at Google, we talked about the progress of Waymo and his vision was inspiring to hear," Pichai said on X.

"He deeply cared about making India better," he said.

Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, said, "It is a very sad day for India and India Inc. Ratan Tata's passing away is a big loss, not just to the Tata Group, but to every Indian."

"With him gone, all we can do is to commit to emulating his example," Anand Mahindra, chairman of the Mahindra Group, said on X.

Tata received the Padma Bhushan, one of India's most distinguished civilian awards, in 2000 and "Padma Vibhushan" in 2008,

Tata Group is a sprawling collection of nearly 100 companies, including the country's largest automaker, the largest private steel company and a leading outsourcing firm. The companies employ more than 350,000 people worldwide. In June 2008, Tata bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford for US$2.3 billion.

Tata pioneered commercial aviation in India when it launched an airline in 1932 that later became Air India. The government later took it over.

Tata Group bought state-owned Air India in 2021. It also started a full-service carrier, Vistara, with Singapore Airlines, but recently merged it with Air India.

Tata companies include Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Tata Power and the information technology company Tata Consultancy Services.

In 2009, the company surprised the automobile industry by launching Tata Nano, a tiny vehicle with a rear engine costing about 100,000 rupees (then US$2,000). Publicized as a "People's Car," it could seat up to five adults. Ratan Tata had said it would provide a "safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport" to millions of middle- and lower-income Indian consumers.

However, due to the low sales of the tiny car, the company stopped its production in 2018.

Ratan Tata graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor's degree in architecture. He joined the Tata group in 1961 and succeeded J.R.D. Tata as chairman of Tata Sons upon the latter's retirement in 1991.

In December 2012, Tata retired as chairman of the Tata Sons. He briefly served as interim chairman beginning Oct. 2016, following the ouster of his successor, Cyrus Mistry. He returned to retirement in 2017 when Natarajan Chandrasekaran was appointed chairman of the Tata Group.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Dozens of cars were pulled out of the Detroit River in west Windsor on Tuesday, causing many questions for Windsorites.

A 42-year-old Winnipeg man has been charged with human smuggling following an investigation near a Canada-U.S. border crossing in Manitoba.

Local Spotlight

Saskatchewan’s Jessica Campbell has made hockey history, becoming the first ever female assistant coach in the National Hockey League (NHL).

Have you ever seen videos of hovercrafts online or on TV and thought, 'Wow, I wish I could ride one of those.' One Alberta man did, and then built his own.

A B.C. couple is getting desperate – and creative – in their search for their missing dog.

Videos of a meteor streaking across the skies of southern Ontario have surfaced and small bits of the outer space rock may have made it to land, one astronomy professor says.

A unique form of clouds made an appearance over the skies of Ottawa on Sunday evening.

Bernie Hicks, known as the ‘Batman of Amherst,’ always wanted to sit in a Batmobile until a kind stranger made it happen.

Bubi’s Awesome Eats, located on University Ave West took to social media to announce the closure on Friday.

Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.

Manitobans are in cleanup mode after intense winds barreled through southern parts of the province this weekend.

Stay Connected