Cyrus Mistry’s Exit as Chairman of Tata Group

The Tata Group was founded by Jamsetji Tata (Jamsetji) in 1868. In 1874, Jamsetji began with a textile mill and inaugurated the Empress Mill in 1877. After successfully establishing his business, he set up Asia’s first iron and steel company, the Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO) (now Tata Steel), in Bihar (Refer to Exhibit I for a timeline of Tata Group).

In 1904, he started the flagship hotel of India’s first luxury chain – the Taj Group of Hotels. On his demise in 1904, his elder son Sir Dorabji Tata (Dorabji), took over control of the business. He was the driving force in operationalizing the steel plant and the power project as envisioned by his father. He also established the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust that was to become the premier charitable endowment of the Tata Group. The trust provided institutional grants and individual grants. JRD Tata, nephew of Jamsetji, entered the Tata Group as an unpaid apprentice in December 1925 when Dorabji was the chairman of the Group. In 1932, JRD created the Tata Aviation service, which later led to the creation of Air India. JRD Tata became the chairman of the Tata Group in 1938. The Group’s business portfolio when JRD took over in 1938 included steel, power, cement, insurance, and aviation. ...