Former Tata Sons director RK Krishnakumar is no more. He passed away in Mumbai on Sunday, 1 January, 2023.
Krishnakumar had joined Tata Administrative Services in 1963. In 1965, he was transferred to Tata Global Beverages, then known as Tata Finlay, and worked through the re-branding of the company as Tata Tea, to become the vice president of South India Plantations in 1982.
Kumar headed the Indian Hotels Company from 1997 to 2002, till his appointment to Tata Sons, the holding company of the Group, as a member of the board of directors. A year later, he retired from the Board and went back to Indian Hotels Company as its vice chairman and the managing director, and stayed on the job till 2007.
He continued to hold trustee positions for the Sir Dorabji Tata and Sir Ratan Tata Trusts, which together own 66 percent of Tata Sons, and he continued to be a member of the Tata Administrative Service.
Krishnakumar was awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award by the Indian government in 2009, for his contributions to Indian Trade and industry.
