How Ratan Tata transformed Tata Group — a timeline

Ratan Naval Tata, the former chairman of Tata Sons, the parent company of the Tata Group of companies, has played a crucial role in making Tata the country's most ubiquitous brand.

The 86-year-old Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, Tata Industries, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and Tata Chemicals, known for his business acumen, vision and strong work ethic, passed away on Wednesday after being in critical condition at a Mumbai hospital.

Ratan Tata breathed his last after remaining in intensive care at Mumbai's Breach Candy hospital, according to reports.

Ratan Tata: The life and times 

1962: Ratan Tata joined the Tata Group in 1962 after working for multiple companies, receiving his B.Arch. Degree from Cornell and briefly working with Jones and Emmons in Los Angeles.

1971: Tata was appointed the Director-in-charge of the National Radio & Electronics Company Limited in 1971.

1981: Tata became the Chairman of Tata Industries, where he was responsible for transforming it into a group think tank and promoter of new ventures in high-tech businesses.

1983: Ratan Tata launched the everyday household salt brand — Tata Salt, India's first national branded salt. Tata Salt was the first to introduce iodized vacuum-evaporated salt at a time when unbranded and unpackaged salt was popular.

1986: Ratan Tata was appointed Chairman of Air India, India's then-luxury national carrier. He stepped down in 1989.

1991: Ratan Tata became the Chairman of Tata Sons and Chairman of the Tata Trusts, succeeding Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy (JRD) Tata.

1999: Ratan Tata and his team were rejected by Ford Motors when they took the company's young passenger car business to the American carmaker. They laughed at the brand's lack of expertise in the passenger vehicle (PV) segment. This took an ironic turn when, later, Ratan Tata bought Jaguar-Land Rover (JLR) from Ford Motors.

2000: Ratan Tata received Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award from the Government of India. The same year, Tata Tea also bought the global tea brand Tetley Group for 271 million euros.

2004: Under Ratan Tata's leadership as the chairman of Tata Sons, the group's IT firm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), was listed on the Indian stock exchanges. The IT firm is now worth $183.36 billion and is the second-largest company in India Inc, according to CompanyMarketCap data.

2006: Tata also ventured into the Direct-to-Home (DTH) television business by launching TataSky. The business is now one of the biggest in the television network distribution space.

2008: The year of irony for the Tata Group and the American carmaker Ford Motors. Tata Motors acquired Jaguar-Land Rover (JLR) from Ford Motors for $2.5 billion. Tata bailed out Ford of a deal filled with financial losses, stiff competition, and quality issues, as the brand then focused on capitalising on JLR's luxury appeal.

Ratan Tata also received the Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian award from the Government of India.

In a bid to make cars affordable for the common man in India, Ratan Tata launched the Tata Nano this year. It was the cheapest car in the country, with a price tag of ₹1 lakh.

December 2012: Ratan Tata stepped down as the Chairman of Tata Sons after 50 years with the Tata Group and was appointed the Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons.

2022: A decade after Tata stepped down as acting Chairman of Tata Sons. Ratan Tata welcomed the airline Air India back into the Tata family after the Group bought it from the Indian government. Tata Group paid the government ₹18,000 crore for the Air India acquisition.