By Bl Mumbai Bureau

Copyright thehindubusinessline

Somerville College, University of Oxford said it has elected Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran as a Foundation Fellow, the highest honour conferred by Somerville College for philanthropy.

Chandrasekaran was elected to the Fellowship by outgoing Principal Baroness Jan Royall and the Governing Body of Somerville College in summer 2025. The ceremony of conferral was held on September 23, in the company of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, Professor Irene Tracey, the High Commissioner of India, Vikram Doraiswami, Varun Chandra, the UK Prime Minister’s Special Adviser on Business and Investment, and officials from the Tata Group and the University of Oxford.

The Fellowship is in recognition of Chandra’s “instrumental role in enabling the creation of Somerville College’s new flagship teaching and learning hub, the Ratan Tata Building,” said statement said.

The new building will create a permanent home for the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development, which has been leading research into pressing matters of sustainability and development affecting India and the world since 2013, it added.

“This rare institution has been quietly blazing a trail on behalf of the most pressing social causes facing our world for almost 150 years and continues to do so today. Their work chimes powerfully with the values of our business and its shining light, Mr Ratan Tata,” saidChandrasekaran.

“I am confident that the fertile interdisciplinary environment of Somerville College and the enduring bridge the OICSD creates between Oxford and India mean that this partnership will only grow in the years to come,” he added.

Catherine Royle, Principal of Somerville College, said that Chandrasekaran was a “shining testament to the power of meritocracy and just how much can be achieved through intellect and hard work.”

Published on September 26, 2025