Mumbai, Nov 26, 2024, IANS

Mumbai, Nov 26 (IANS) Renowned industrialist and Essar Group Chairman Shashikant Ruia passed away after an illness, a company official said here on Tuesday. He was 81, and breathed his last at the Breach Candy Hospital. He is survived by his wife Manju, sons Prashant and Anshuman and two daughters, besides his brother Ravikant Ruia, the Group Vice-Chairman, and other relatives. Both Shashikant and Ravikant were the co-founder-owners of the industrial empire Essar Group in 1969, which branched out soon and has multiple business interests ranging from mines to ports with global footprints. Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his deepest condolences to the family and described Shashikant Ruia as a colossal figure in the world of industry. “His visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to excellence transformed the business landscape of India. He also set high benchmarks for innovation and growth. He was always full of ideas, always discussing how we can make our country better. Shashi Ji’s demise is deeply saddening,” said the PM. An iconic industrialist Shashikant Ruia played a major role in redefining India’s corporate landscape, laying the foundation of the Essar Group in the late 1960s-early 1970s, which became a global conglomerate. “With an unwavering commitment to community upliftment and philanthropy, he touched millions of lives leaving an enduring impact. His humility, warmth, and ability to connect with everyone he met, made him a truly exceptional leader,” the Ruia and Essar family said in a statement on Tuesday. It added that Shashikant Ruia's extraordinary legacy will remain a guiding light for all of us, as we honour his vision and continue to uphold the values he cherished and championed. The Essar story started in 1969 when the siblings bagged a Rs 25 crore order from the Madras Port Trust to construct an outer breakwater in the harbor, even as the duo focused on the sunrise construction and engineering sectors, but after a decade branched out to the power sector focusing on oil and gas, adding on other businesses later. Among the companies in the Group are Essar Energy Transition, Essar Oil UK, Essar Oil & Gas Exploration & Production Ltd., Essar Power Ltd., Ultra Gas & Energy, Essar Ports, Stanlow Terminals, Essar Projects, Essar Minmet, Mesabi Metallics, Manoor Bulatn Lestari, KSA Saudi, Black Box (Previously known as AGC Networks Ltd), Essar Shipping, Pluckk. Over the decades, Shashikant Ruia served on various important panels and forums of the government like the PM’s Indo-US CEOs Forum, India-Japan Business Council, Indo-US Joint Business Council, headed the Indian National Shipowners Association, etc.