Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, worried about the Great Depression of 2008-09, decided to hold a meeting of captains of industry. All the big names were there and Ratan Tata, the foremost among them, was given the prized seat near the PM. I, too, was invited, as much of the implementation of suggestions would fall on my shoulders.
Sitting quietly in my chair, I felt a gentle hand on my back. I turned around, and Tata smiled at me and introduced himself. I had met all corporate chieftains as Revenue Secretary or Cabinet Secretary earlier, but this was the first time I met Ratan Tata.
Manmohan Singh heard all the bigwigs carefully, without interruption, as was his practice, and later discussed some of them with us. Many suggestions were later integrated into the stimulus packages announced by the government and, as a result, India escaped the worst of the crisis and recovered fastest among the major economies.
Later, Tata called me and my wife for dinner at the Tata guesthouse on Prithviraj Road. The guesthouse was diagonally opposite my government bungalow, and my wife and I strolled across the road at the appointed time. I recall Defence Secretary Vijay Singh and Home Secretary GK Pillai were also there.
We had a long and pleasant conversation, during which Ratan Tata heard more than he spoke. After his post-retirement tenure as UPSC member, Vijay Singh became one of his most trusted colleagues in the Tata Group, and he is now vice-chairman of Tata Trusts and a nominee member of Tata Sons Board.
Fast forward to 2017. I retired and completed a post-retirement tenure as vice-chairman of the Kerala State Planning Board. I was chairman of Federal Bank and president of the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology. One evening, as I was approaching Fort Kochi, N Chandrasekaran, the redoubtable chairman of Tata Sons, rang me up to ask if I would be an independent director of Tata Power. Later, I became a board member of Tata Advanced Systems and a few subsidiary companies of Tata Power.
My first visit to Bombay House, the unostentatious home of the Tata Group, was a revelation. Unlike most corporate headquarters, Bombay House was set in a row of buildings and looked like any other office from outside. Inside, the reception was simple, but what amazed me more was that, as on a railway platform, a number of stray dogs were lying around, many of them with collars.
Ratan Tata was very fond of dogs, particularly street dogs, and feeding them was one of the responsibilities of those who managed the building. Later, when the building was renovated, Tata's first concern was where the dogs would go. Chairman Chandrasekaran had to assure him a kennel would be built for them. Indeed, when Tata came to see the renovated Bombay House, his first port of call was the kennel, which met with his approval.
In the afternoon, I called on Ratan Tata. His office as Chairman Emeritus was not in Bombay House; it was in a separate office about a kilometre away on another road. The Chairman of Tata Sons, Chandrasekaran, was in his office. I sat outside in the reception area and leafed through a magazine. Suddenly, I found Tata coming out of his office and standing before me. He had come to apologise for keeping me waiting. Unlike the ramrod straight Ratan Tata I had seen earlier, he had developed an old age stoop.
After my meeting, he accompanied me to the elevator as I went out. Then, too, I noticed a stray dog lying on the floor. "He missed me when I left Bombay House," he said, "He found his way, all by himself, and came and settled in my office." Years later, when I visited his office with some others, a big dog of uncertain breed, a kind of canine cocktail, strode into the conference room. I was told that Tata had found him on the streets of Goa and petted him. Without further ado, the dog jumped into his car and was brought to his house in Mumbai.
Tata's love for dogs symbolises his deep and genuine concern for the deprived. Some of us are well off, live in unheard-of splendour in gigantic mansions, and celebrate social events without regard for expense. On the other hand, there are the Tatas of this world, imbued by visions of the trusteeship concept espoused by Gandhiji, who believe their wealth is the nation's wealth and must reach those who need it most. Mahatma Gandhi said, "Supposing I have come by a fair amount of wealth — either by way of legacy or by means of trade and industry — I must know that all that wealth does not belong to me; what belongs to me is the right to an honourable livelihood by millions of others."
J R D Tata absorbed and implemented this worldview. Ratan Tata continued and built upon this great tradition. The Tatas' munificence extended to every sphere of human activity: livelihood, healthcare, nutrition, education, skilling, agriculture, startups, digital transformation, women's welfare, social justice and the environment. Besides spending through the trusts, every Tata company endeavours to spend over 2 percent of its profits on welfare activities under the stipulated corporate social responsibility provision.
The Ratan Tata epoch of Tata history also saw remarkable growth of entities within the group and expansion into many areas. Tata was always open to new ideas and, as a great entrepreneur, was willing to take risks. He was unafraid to venture into strategic acquisitions and partnerships, expanding the group's presence in diverse sectors such as automobiles, information technology, telecommunication and hospitality.
He expanded the group's global footprint, acquiring companies like Corus and Jaguar and setting up production units worldwide. Nano is symbolic of his willingness to risk his money for a venture that he thought would benefit the commoner, as well as his investments in startups like Ola, Paytm and FirstCry.
Humility, simplicity, responsibility to the nation and to the less fortunate, and the capacity to listen and act are the lessons he left behind for generations to follow.
K M Chandrasekhar
Former Cabinet Secretary and author of As Good as My Word: A Memoir
(Views are personal)
(kmchandrasekhar@gmail.com)