Karam Chand Thapar
Encyclopedia
Karam Chand Thapar was the founder of the Thapar Group
of companies.
He was originally from Punjab
. He started his career in 1920 as a coal trader in Calcutta, and built up the family fortune through Karam Chand Thapar and Bros. He then started JCT Limited
http://www.jcttextiles.com/Thapar.htm that is into textiles as well as molasses
and alcohol. He also took over the Oriental Bank of Commerce
, and ventured into paper manufacturing with the Ballarpur Industries Limited
.
In 1956 he started the Thapar Institute of Engineering and Tech. In 1985 the college was made a Deemed University and renamed as Thapar University.
A year later, in 1920, he set out for Calcutta, the erstwhile capital of India, where he began to establish contacts with other Indian businessmen with the aim of convincing them to rally against the British stranglehold over coal production and distribution in India. That same year, he started a successful coal distribution business based out of Calcutta. As a leader, Karam Chand managed to consolidate a diverse group of investors and contractors, and incorporate them into his coal distribution network. He then began to rapidly acquire and develop coal mines in the states of Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Karam Chand did not focus on coal alone but also ventured into other fields like paper, textiles, chemicals, sugar as well as banking (Oriental Bank of Commerce) and insurance (United Indian Insurance). In 1929, the flagship parent company of the Thapar Group ["the Group"], Karam Chand Thapar & Bros. Ltd., was formed. In the course of time, various companies owned and/or managed by Karam Chand were brought under its umbrella.
The eldest son, Inder Mohan, was not offered the reins of the group when KCT fell sick. BMT was not ready to take on the responsibility and third son Lalit was made head of the business by KCT before his death, with the undertaking that he (LMT) would ensure that Inder Mohan's son would be given the reins after LMT turns 65 and all of LMT's brothers would be given their due share of the family business.
LMT stood by his word to his dying father and did over the years divide the group among his brothers; his not marrying helped his cause by not adding more claimants to the group assets. However he gave the reins of the bigger part of the company to Gautam Thapar
, son of BMT, and gave the chemicals division to Vikram Thapar, the son of IMT.
Thapar Group
The Thapar group was started by Karam Chand Thapar; till the 1970s and the early 1980s it was one of the top 10 business houses of India. Karam Chand Thapar died in 1963, and his third son L.M. Thapar took over the group, which then included the , as well as Oriental Insurance. Both these companies...
of companies.
He was originally from Punjab
Punjab (British India)
Punjab was a province of British India, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British rule. With the end of British rule in 1947 the province was split between West Punjab, which went to Pakistan, and East Punjab, which went to India...
. He started his career in 1920 as a coal trader in Calcutta, and built up the family fortune through Karam Chand Thapar and Bros. He then started JCT Limited
JCT Limited
JCT Limited is a large manufacturer of textiles and is the flagship company of the Thapar Group, a large Indian conglomerate. BILT and Crompton Greaves being other companies of this group. L. M. Thapar is one of the groups leading names....
http://www.jcttextiles.com/Thapar.htm that is into textiles as well as molasses
Molasses
Molasses is a viscous by-product of the processing of sugar cane, grapes or sugar beets into sugar. The word molasses comes from the Portuguese word melaço, which ultimately comes from mel, the Latin word for "honey". The quality of molasses depends on the maturity of the sugar cane or sugar beet,...
and alcohol. He also took over the Oriental Bank of Commerce
Oriental Bank of Commerce
Oriental Bank of Commerce is an India-based bank in Lahore , is one of the public sector banks in India...
, and ventured into paper manufacturing with the Ballarpur Industries Limited
Ballarpur Industries Limited
Ballarpur Industries Limited is a flagship of the US$ 4 bn Avantha Group and India's largest manufacturer of writing and printing paper. The current chairman of the company is Gautam Thapar, who succeeded his late uncle L.M...
.
In 1956 he started the Thapar Institute of Engineering and Tech. In 1985 the college was made a Deemed University and renamed as Thapar University.
Biography
K C Thapar established Karam Chand Thapar & Bros. Ltd. - the parent company of Karam Chand Thapar & Bros. (Coal Sales) Ltd. (KCT). Having gained some experience of the coal industry in his youth, Karam Chand set out to establish his own coal trading business based out of the Jharia coalfields in 1919. Soon thereafter, he realized that the epicenter of the coal business was not where the mines were located, but in Calcutta, the then established base of all the large European owned mining companies.A year later, in 1920, he set out for Calcutta, the erstwhile capital of India, where he began to establish contacts with other Indian businessmen with the aim of convincing them to rally against the British stranglehold over coal production and distribution in India. That same year, he started a successful coal distribution business based out of Calcutta. As a leader, Karam Chand managed to consolidate a diverse group of investors and contractors, and incorporate them into his coal distribution network. He then began to rapidly acquire and develop coal mines in the states of Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Karam Chand did not focus on coal alone but also ventured into other fields like paper, textiles, chemicals, sugar as well as banking (Oriental Bank of Commerce) and insurance (United Indian Insurance). In 1929, the flagship parent company of the Thapar Group ["the Group"], Karam Chand Thapar & Bros. Ltd., was formed. In the course of time, various companies owned and/or managed by Karam Chand were brought under its umbrella.
Personal life
Born in 1900, he died in 1963 and was survived by four sons: Inder Mohan Thapar, Brij Mohan Thapar or BM Thapar, Lalit Mohan Thapar, or LMT, and Man Mohan Thapar.The eldest son, Inder Mohan, was not offered the reins of the group when KCT fell sick. BMT was not ready to take on the responsibility and third son Lalit was made head of the business by KCT before his death, with the undertaking that he (LMT) would ensure that Inder Mohan's son would be given the reins after LMT turns 65 and all of LMT's brothers would be given their due share of the family business.
LMT stood by his word to his dying father and did over the years divide the group among his brothers; his not marrying helped his cause by not adding more claimants to the group assets. However he gave the reins of the bigger part of the company to Gautam Thapar
Gautam Thapar
Gautam Thapar is an Indian businessman, who is the chairman and the chief executive officer of the Avantha Group. Thapar is a billionaire and appears on the Forbes list with an estimates net worth of $2 billion...
, son of BMT, and gave the chemicals division to Vikram Thapar, the son of IMT.