Tribute to the legend JN Tata

By Cdr Sanjeev Raman (Retd)

JN Tata was not just a visionary but a very conscious leader. His vision for a successful enterprise lays emphasis on doing our “Duty” or what we call “Dhram” towards community. Our Vedic philosophy says that “The body can be purified by water, the mind is purified by truth, intellect is purified by knowledge but the soul is purified by Dhram”.

JN Tata articulated a vision that presented a better future world towards which all its associated leaders have a moral obligation.

In 1895, during the extension of the Empress Mill, JN Tata has said, “We think we started on sound and straightforward business principles, considering the interest of the shareholders our own, and the health and welfare of the employees the sure foundation of prosperity.” The western world believed that commercial enterprise should focus on commercial motives and not on patriotic or philanthropic motives. But his sense of commercial motives was not restricted to earning quick money but he always had the ultimate benefit of the country. He lived in both the world, the eastern philosophy  or the world of ideas about community living coupled with western commercial motives or the world of action.

The importance of industrial revolution in the Indian freedom struggle was understood by him alone during his time. He believed that the basic ingredient of economic progress were steel, electric power and technical education combined with research. Although he did not live to see the commissioning of the steel plant, the hydro electric power plant and the Institute of Science at Bangalore but his vision inspired his sons and his trusted lieutenants to carry forward his ideas with great vigour and determination to this day.

The philosophy of the Tata group is embedded in the very thinking of it’s founder Shri JN Tata. The world is now realising about the impact of not caring about community, and the challenges it faces for its very survival due to adverse impact of intense change in weather leading to rising sea levels, more warm oceans, heat waves, drought, floods, extreme cold and storms.

The house of Tata’s has survived and continued to prosper only due to the principles and ideas of JN Tata.

“In a free enterprises, the community is not just another stakeholder in business but is in fact the very purpose of its existence” Jamshedji Tata

 (Author is Secretary, Jamshedpur Citizens Forum)