Ratan Tata gifts $50mn to Harvard

In one of the biggest corporate contributions by an Indian business house to education, Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata donated $50 million to the prestigious Harvard Business School to fund a new building that will support a broad range of executive education programmes. HT Correspondent reports.

In one of the biggest corporate contributions by an Indian business house to education, Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata donated $50 million (R220 crore) to the prestigious Harvard Business School to fund a new building that will support a broad range of executive education programmes.

HT Image

The school acknowledged that the fund was the “largest international donation in its 102-year history.”

The Tata chairman was a student of Advanced Management Program at Harvard in 1975.

“It is a privilege and pleasure to give back to Harvard a little bit of what it gave to me,” said Tata. “We are pleased this gift will support the school’s educational mission to mould the next generation of global business leaders.”

His contribution comes in a year during which Indian-born Nitin Nohria took charge as dean of Harvard and also led a donation-seeking trip to India. With the latest act of charity, Tata will get his surname embossed on an academic and residential building that is scheduled to be completed for the fall of 2013 and named ‘Tata Hall’.

The contribution surpasses $10 million donated by Mahindra group vice-chairman Anand Mahindra to Harvard for its Humanities Center made a few days ago.