After Ratan Tata | In Noel the Tatas trust

It wasn’t just another meeting of the board of the 132-year-old Tata Trusts in Mumbai on October 11. Just two days ago, Ratan Tata, 86, the charismatic chairman emeritus of the Tata Group and chairman of Tata Trusts—the philanthropic giant that has a 66 per cent stake in Tata Sons, the holding company of the $165 billion (Rs 13.8 lakh crore) salt-to-software conglomerate—had passed away. The meeting, held a day after his state funeral, had a significant agenda—to decide on his successor at Tata Trusts. What followed was a “smooth transition”, as insiders would put it, with Noel Tata, 67, a trustee on the board and Ratan Tata’s half-brother, unanimously elected as the chairman.