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Gaganvihari Lallubhai Mehta

Gen 5 - 1900-74 (74 years)

Gaganvihari, popularly known as GL Mehta in business circles (home name Gagandas), donned several hats, was the youngest child of Lallubhai and Satyavati. He too has contributed immensely to the Nation, just like both his brothers and their forefathers did.

  • A graduate from Elphinstone College and later, an Honorary Fellow of London School of Economics (LSE)

  • Worked as Manager at Scindia Steam Shipping Company (co-founded by his father) for 20 years at the Kolkata branch

  • President, FICCI (1939-40; 1942-43), and the Indian Tariff Board (1947-52)

  • Member of the Indian Constituent Assembly (1947)

  • Declined the offer to become India's First Finance Minister (asked by Acharya Kriplani), and also chose not to become West Bengal's First Finance Minister (inspite of Chief Minister Dr. Profulla Ghosh's insistence)

  • Member of India's first planning commission along with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru (1950-52)

  • India's Ambassador to USA and Mexico (1952-58)

  • The first Gujarati to be Awarded Padma Vibhushan (1959)
  • Member of Nalini Ranjan Sarkar Committee that decided setting up 5 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). Visited Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to come up with recommendations.

  • One of the key decision-makers to help setup the first Indian Institute of Management at Ahmedabad (IIMA) (1961-62)

  • Chair of Hindustan Shipyards and the National Shipping Board (1958-63)

  • Chair of Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI) till 1971

  • Member of the Board of Directors of Air India and Indian Airlines (1965-67)

  • Chair of the board of governors of IIT Bombay (1965-71)

  • IIT Bombay now organises "GL Mehta Memorial Lectures" at their campus

Audio Recordings of GL Mehta

Interviewed at his house - around 1972

00:00 / 22:04

Part 1/2

00:00 / 36:30

Part 2/2

GL Mehta audio recordings
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