Man from Pakistan was brain behind Ratan Tata’s company

MUMBAI: According to various reports, Faqir Chand Kohli, the founder of Tata Consultancy Services or TCS, had a close association with Ratan Tata, the former Chairman of the Tata Group, Indian media reported.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India’s largest IT services company, is considered the crowning achievement of Ratan Tata, the late Chairman Emeritus of the Tata Group who passed away in October last year. But did you know that TCS, Tata Group’s most valuable company which is worth a whopping Rs1294000 crore, was not founded by Ratan Tata?

Yes, the IT major was established by Faqir Chand Kohli, a visionary leader born in Peshawar, Pakistan, and regarded by many as the “father” of Indian IT industry. Let us find out more about this enigmatic man.

Born in 1924 in Peshawar (now in Pakistan) in pre-partition India, Faqir Chand Kohli completed his schooling in his hometown and later joined the Government College for Men, Punjab University, Lahore, where he earned his BA and BSc (Hons) degree, and was awarded a gold for excellent academic performance.

Later, Kohli traveled to Canada where he earned a BSc (Hons) degree in Electrical Engineering from Queen’s University in 1948, and in 1950, started working for Canadian General Electric, while pursuing an MS in Electrical Engineering at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States.

Kohli’s stint at the Canadian company and his academic excellence at the MIT laid the groundwork for his pioneering contributions that revolutionized the Indian IT industry.

After returning to India, Faqir Chand Kohli embarked on his professional journey when he joined Tata Electric, making his mark in the company within a short span of time. In 1969, the legendary JRD Tata, Ratan Tata’s mentor, recognized Kohli’s untapped potential and handed him the responsibility of handling Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which Tata Sons had launched in 1968.

According to biographers, Faqir Chand was initially hesitant, but eventually came around and transformed TCS into a powerhouse in the global IT industry, a fact that solidified his legacy and earned him the moniker ‘Father of Indian IT industry’.

Over the years, TCS witnessed rapid growth under Kohli’s leadership and sparked socioeconomic advancement in India via technological innovation. Kohli pushed the limits, setting an ambitious goal to double TCS’s growth within five years, a task which was successfully accomplished as the IT major emerged as a comprehensive provider of IT solutions across diverse sectors, ranging from banking to utilities.

Faqir Chand Kohli made several strategic trips to the United States which proved to be instrumental in paving the way for the success of TCS, enabling the firm to secure significant contracts giants like the American Express. During the early 1990s, Kohli took on the challenge posed by the Y2k bug, with TCS emerging as the first Indian IT firm to address this pressing issue.

Kohli’s proactive approach proved to be a significant catalyst for growth, propelling TCS to achieve the remarkable milestone of billion-dollar revenue by 2003.

According to various reports, Faqir Chand Kohli, the founder of Tata Consultancy Services or TCS, had a close association with Ratan Tata, the former Chairman of the Tata Group, who passed away at the age of 86 at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital in October last year.

Ratan Tata, who joined the Tata Group in 1962 after returning from the United States, led the salt-t0-software conglomerate for over 20 years, transforming it into a global powerhouse with over 100 companies spread in more than 100 countries, boasting a market cap of $403 billion (roughly Rs 33.7 trillion).

In 1991, he took over as the chairman of the conglomerate, and brought much-needed reforms in the company founded by his great-grandfather, Jamshedji Nasirwanji Tata in 1868.