Ratan Tata building is set to be inaugurated at the University of Oxford. Somerville College and the Tata Group are joining hands to initiate a project in memory of Indian Industrialist Ratan Tata. This project will enhance Somerwille’s research and educational facilities leading the college’s commitment to a global and progressive academic community. The construction is set to start next year. Ratan Tata shared a long-standing association with Somerville College.

The statement said the idea of naming a new building on the name of Ratan Tata was taken long time ago. However, the news of his demise left people with a lingering feeling of great loss throughout the world and this has given this tribute an even more significant meaning.

The new building envisions creating a space that is both equitable and inclusive. Elaborating upon the interior design and facilities of the building, the statement added,” New seminar rooms and offices will exist alongside spaces of shared study and interdisciplinary collaboration, reception rooms and accommodation for visiting academics.” They envision the space facilitating an ‘interchange of ideas’ and a ‘model of collegiate working’.

Owing to the donation made by the Tata Group, Somerville College will build a new Radcliffe Observatory Quarter. The statement emphasized the strategic location of the Tata building, which will be opposite the internationally renowned Blavatnik School of Government.

Somerville College’s Principal, Baroness Royall, said of the news: “This building is the fruit of many conversations, hopes and dreams over the past decade and our long association with Mr Tata. In its capacity to meet our College’s present and future need, to embody our values, and to guide us towards an exciting future, it is unparalleled. Now it will stand as a permanent legacy to the life of a remarkable man and a dear friend of Somerville. I am deeply grateful to Mr Chandrasekaran, Chairman of the Tata Group, and all those involved for enabling us to create this dynamic expression of friendship between Oxford and India, to pay tribute to Mr Tata and to cement Somerville’s plans as a world-class academic institution.” to which Mr. N Chandrasekaran, Chairman of the Board of Tata Sons, commented, “In Mr Tata’s vision for India, research and critical inquiry went hand in hand with development and prosperity. This partnership with Somerville College is a tribute to Mr Tata’s values. The building in his name will be home to research that is necessary and urgent for India.”