Indian billionaire industrialist and philanthropist Shiv Nadar is one of the self-made billionaires of India. He is the former chairman and co-founder of the global IT service company HCL Technologies Limited. His company is credited with building India’s first indigenous PC. The entrepreneur celebrates his 77th birthday on July 14, 2022.

Here's a look at Shiv Nadar’s career and achievements on his 77th birthday.

Early Life

Shiv Nadar was born in a village of Tamil Nadu to Sivasubramaniya Nadar and Vamasundari Devi. He pursued a pre-university degree from American College, Madurai and then completed his graduation in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from PSG College of Technology.

He started working at the Walchand group's College of Engineering Pune (COEP) in 1967 and later worked at Cooper Engineering Company. He secured a job at Delhi Cloth Mills which was the third largest company in India at the time.

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However, working for 10-12-hours a day made him realise that he was meant to do something of his own. He and a few of his colleagues who worked in DCM’s calculator division joined him and they all decided to start their own company.

How it began

In 1975, Shiv Nadar started MicroComp Limited with his friends and colleagues. A year later, Nadar realised that India had a big gap to fill in computer manufacturing as IBM was leaving the country due to political issues. Thus, with the initial investment of Rs 18,700 he established Hindustan Computers Limited (HCL).

His vision of technological revolution was recognised by the Uttar Pradesh government, and it granted him an additional Rs 20 lakh in exchange for 26 percent stake in the company. HCL became one of the first Public-Private Partnership (PPP).

In 1978, HCL introduced the first PC in India before IBM and Apple. It was called HCL 8C.

Further, sensing a boom in the IT sector, in 1979, HCL found an opportunity in Singapore to set up Far East computers. HCL was worth Rs 3 crore at the time and was successful enough to achieve sales worth Rs 10 Lakh in its first year.

Later, HCL Overseas Limited was incorporated as a provider of technology development services. It was then renamed as HCL Technologies Limited.

In 2020, Shiv Nadar stepped down from his chairman role at HCL and his daughter Roshni Nadar succeeded him to become the first women to chair a listed IT company.

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Currently, HCL is considered a pioneer of modern computing. The company generates annual revenues of over USD 10 billion, with more than 169,000 professionals operating in 50 countries.

Philanthropy

In 2011, HCL Foundation was established as the social responsibility arm of HCL Technologies Limited. This foundation focuses on alleviating poverty and achieving inclusive growth in the health, education, environment & disaster risk reduction and response sectors.

In 1981, with Shiv Nadar’s assistance, the NIIT was founded. In 1996, he founded the SSN College of Engineering in Tamil Nadu.

In 2008, the SSN trust set up two schools in Uttar Pradesh for rural students.

Shiv Nadar was recognised as the 'Most Generous Indian' as he topped the Hurun India Philanthropy list in 2006 for his Rs 630 crore donation.

In 2011, he founded the Shiv Nadar University in Noida.

Awards and Achievements

In 1995, he was crowned as the Dataquest IT Man of the year.

In 2005, he was awarded with the CNBC Business Excellence Award.

In 2007, he received an honorary doctorate degree by the Madras University.

In 2008, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan Award, India’s third highest civilian award, for his contribution t the IT sector.

In 2010, he was honoured with the Dataquest Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 2011, he was named as one of Forbes' 48 Heroes of Philanthropy in the Asia Pacific.

In 2017, he was ranked Nadar 16th in India's 50 most powerful people by India Today magazine.

(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)