When UK Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds paid homage to Ratan Tata as a “titan” of the business world who played a huge role in shaping British industry, he was referring to the tycoon’s incredible vision for the bilateral partnership that can be seen in action today across different sectors.
It was during his tenure as chairman of the Tata Group that the conglomerate made several high-profile acquisitions in the UK - taking over Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus, luxury car brands Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) and Tetley, the well-known global tea brand.
Coincidentally, as news of the passing away of the legendary businessman came in from Mumbai last week, the UK-India partnership was being celebrating at a Diwali reception co-hosted by the High Commission of India in London and the newly convened India All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) in London.
Indian High Commissioner to UK Vikram Doraiswami said in his tribute: “No man has embodied the India-UK partnership quite as much as Ratan Tata did. This is a man for whom Mumbai/India and London/UK were both home. This is a man who created the sense of an India-UK partnership embodied in everything – from Air India, which is back as Tata airline, to Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) to Taj Hotel to Tata Steel to indeed everything, including industries of the future with his decision to invest in a battery factory in the UK,” he said.
Lord Karan Bilimoria, co-chair of the India APPG, paid tribute to a “fellow Parsi” who worked hard to lay the foundations for the modern-day bonds between India and the UK.
Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), said: “Mr Ratan Tata led many CII delegations across the world and really showed us the way on how Indian companies’ footprints would be spread around the globe. In his memory, it is good to pledge from the Indian industry side that this India-UK economic and commercial corridor would be deepened and taken forward in the true spirit in which he started the globalisation of Indian companies.”
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The reception, supported by British Indian think tank 1928 Institute, also highlighted other aspects of the bilateral partnership.
“The main thing we have all been waiting for is the trade deal,” said Catherine West, the minister for the Indo-Pacific in the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
Jeevun Sandher, co-chair of the India APPG, said: “The India APPG is here to work together to strengthen the UK-India relationship. I come to this with a sense of humility and openness, indeed I have a lot to learn as one of the new crop of parliamentarians, but with a commitment to work towards closer ties especially at this moment when we do face a more dangerous global environment and where we have to transition to net zero.
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“What we do in the decades ahead will not just be about the prosperity of our two nations but, of course, the planet as a whole. With that in mind, there are three key priorities that the APPG will have – prosperity and working together to ensure we do what we can to get the India-UK trade deal over the line; strategy and security to ensure a global rules-based order; and to keep the cultural and educational exchanges between our two nations going.”
