Jamsetji Tata death anniversary: Some facts about founder of the Tata Group

Jamsetji Tata, the founder of the Tata Group, was a renowned Indian entrepreneur, philanthropist and industrialist. For his valuable contribution to the field of industry, he was also fondly called the “Father of Indian Industry.”

He was one of the biggest Indian businessmen of his time. As the nation remembers the entrepreneur on his death anniversary today, 19 May, here are some  interesting facts about him:

1. Jamsetji Tata was born to a Parsi family in Navsari on 3 March, 1839.
2. Tata graduated from the Elphinstone College in Mumbai in 1858 and joined his father’s trading firm the same year. He worked there till he was 29.
3. He founded a new trading company in 1868, which later became The Tata Group. He purchased a bankrupt and dilapidated oil mill in Chinchpokli, which he later renamed as Alexandra Mill and converted into a cloth mill.
4. Jamsetji Tata set up a cotton mill at Nagpur in 1877 and renamed it “Empress Mill” after Queen Victoria, who became the Empress of India the same year. The entrepreneur was very keen on the textile business and set up mills at Coorla (Kurla) and Bombay.
5. Tata’s eyes were set on fulfilling four major goals- establishing a world-class learning institution that could offer scientific education to Indians, setting up an iron and steel company, founding a lavish hotel in India and generating hydroelectric power. None of dreams, except one, could be fully realised during his lifetime.
6. He established the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai after reportedly being denied entry in one of the city's leading hotels. By the time the building was completed in 1903, it was the first hotel in the country to have German elevators, Turkish baths and American fans.
7. Tata breathed his last on 19 May 1904 in Bad Nauheim, Germany. He was buried at the Brookwood Cemetery in Woking, England.
8. His remaining goals were completed by his successors in later years. The Tata Group remains one of the most respected brands in the country to date.