Cutting Losses, IPO Buzz, Chandra’s Future: What’s On Tata Sons Board’s Agenda

Tata Sons' board of directors is all set to meet at the end of this month, and reports are now emerging detailing what may be on its agenda. The key concern, it seems, is going to be the Chairman of the board himself, N Chandrasekaran.

In the last meeting of the Tata Sons board, his reappointment for a third term was reportedly blocked by a key board member and Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata. He had demanded that Chandrasekaran lay out a roadmap to cut losses faced by several Tata Group ventures, including Air India and Tata Digital. He had also demanded that the current chairman ensure Tata Sons would remain a privately held firm.

According to a Moneycontrol report on Thursday, Tata is expected to ask Chandrasekaran to address these concerns in the upcoming meeting. Citing sources, the report claimed that Tata Trusts, the majority stakeholder in Tata Sons, is likely to ask the Chairman for a detailed strategic plan for the group’s key businesses and new ventures.

Noel Tata has reportedly asked Chandrasekaran for a roadmap to reduce losses at Air India and Tata Digital, which houses platforms like BigBasket and Tata Neu. He is also seeking improved capital efficiency in these businesses. The report claimed that Chandrasekaran may have to outline a timeline under which the new ventures can move towards profitability.

Earlier this week, The Economic Times also reported on the matter, outlining a similar agenda for the upcoming Tata Sons board meeting. The report said N Chandrasekaran is expected to address concerns raised by Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata as uncertainty over his third-term reappointment continues.

According to ET, Chandrasekaran will make a detailed presentation to the board on losses at Air India and newer ventures such as BigBasket, along with other issues raised during the February 24 meeting that deferred a decision on his reappointment.

Concerns Chandrasekaran Will Have to Answer

The meeting comes at a time when reports have claimed that Air India recorded its highest-ever loss after being reacquired by the Tatas in January 2022. The airline reported a net loss of about ₹10,859 crore in FY25, according to Tata Sons’ annual report.

For FY26, Air India’s losses are projected to widen significantly, with several reports estimating the figure could reach nearly ₹28,000 crore. The expected rise is largely linked to aircraft upgrade expenses, integration-related costs and the airline’s ongoing restructuring exercise.

Concerns within the group are not restricted to the aviation business alone. Other relatively new Tata ventures including Tata Digital, Tata Electronics and Tata Projects reported losses of ₹4,610 crore, ₹70 crore and ₹697 crore, respectively.

Among them, Tata Digital has continued to consume large amounts of capital as the group aggressively expands its presence in online retail and digital services through platforms such as Tata Neu and BigBasket.

As per the Moneycontrol report, Noel Tata has asked Chandrasekaran to provide a clearer strategy on narrowing losses across these businesses, improving returns on capital and specifying a timeframe within which the ventures are expected to achieve profitability.

Questions Over Expansion

The report further stated that Noel Tata is not against the Tata Group expanding into new-age businesses, including strategically significant sectors such as semiconductors. However, he is believed to have sought more clarity on how capital is being allocated, whether the investments remain sustainable over the long term and what direction the conglomerate intends to pursue going forward.

Chandrasekaran is now expected to present an updated business roadmap before the board, as the strategy shared last year is reportedly being viewed as outdated amid shifting market conditions, higher capital commitments and changing realities across businesses such as aviation, digital commerce and electronics manufacturing.

Tata Sons Listing Issue

He is also expected to clearly articulate his views on whether Tata Sons should remain unlisted. Tata Sons’ potential listing has remained a sensitive issue within the broader Tata ecosystem over the past few years.

In September 2022, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) classified Tata Sons as an upper-layer Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC-UL) under its Scale-Based Regulation (SBR) framework, which meant the company would have to list by September 2025.

In 2025, Tata Sons disclosed that it had surrendered its registration as a Core Investment Company (CIC) under RBI regulations and sought exemption from the mandatory IPO requirement.