The six-member board of Tata Sons held a marathon meeting on Friday, during which the heads of five heavily loss-making group companies presented their turnaround plans.
With three board seats vacant, including one representing the Tata Trusts, the board currently has only six members. Those present at the meeting included Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Noel Tata, Venu Srinivasan, Harish Manwani, Anita M George and Saurabh Agrawal, sources said.
The crucial meeting, which lasted over five hours and ended late in the afternoon, did not take up the reappointment of Chandrasekaran. The matter was originally scheduled for the failed February board meeting after Noel Tata raised concerns over mounting losses at several group companies.
According to two sources aware of the developments, Noel Tata had sought a detailed turnaround strategy from Chandrasekaran, making his third term contingent on the same. The board also did not discuss the more contentious issue of the regulatory requirement for taking Tata Sons public. Chandrasekaran’s current term ends in early February next year.
Chandrasekaran declined to speak to reporters waiting outside Bombay House, the headquarters of the over $165-billion conglomerate with businesses spanning salt, airlines, automobiles and semiconductors.
The five loss-making companies are estimated to have closed FY26 with combined losses of nearly Rs 30,000 crore, up sharply from Rs 10,905 crore in FY25, sources said. However, details of the turnaround plans and timelines could not be independently confirmed.
Campbell Wilson, the outgoing chief executive of Air India, presented a turnaround roadmap for the airline, whose losses have reportedly doubled to around Rs 26,000 crore, or $2.8 billion, under his tenure.
The second-largest loss-making entity is Tata Digital, which continues to incur losses running into thousands of crores. Its chief executive, Sajid Shivnandan, also presented a strategy focused on reducing losses and improving profitability.
Randhir Thakur, who heads Tata Electronics and oversees the group’s semiconductor and other critical new ventures, also made a presentation before the board.
The other two companies under scrutiny were Agratas Energy Storage Solutions, the Tata Group’s battery business focused on lithium-ion cells for electric vehicles and stationary energy storage, and Tejas Networks, which designs and manufactures telecom and networking products for 4G/5G, broadband and optical networks.
Sources further said that the Tata Trusts, barring the Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT), are likely to meet on June 8, a development that may clear the appointment of a third nominee director to the Tata Sons board.
Currently, Noel Tata and Venu Srinivasan represent the trusts on the board, although Srinivasan’s continuation is said to be uncertain amid an apparent rift with Noel Tata.
