Former Tata Steel managing director J.J. Irani. Telegraph picture

Jamshedpur, Nov. 18: Former managing director of Tata Steel J.J. Irani has been honoured with the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award by the Union ministry of steel.

The award was presented to him at the 46th National Metallurgists’ Day and the 62nd Annual Technical Meeting of Indian Institute of Metals organised at the India Expo Centre in Greater Noida on November 14.

The award conferred on Irani, presently the director of Tata Sons, is an acknowledgement of his services in the area of metallurgy and the outstanding contributions he has made in this field.

Accepting the award, Irani said: “I am humbled to get this honour and I would like to thank the Union ministry of steel for conferring this award on me.”

The Union ministry of steel honoured several metallurgists and scientists, technologists and academicians at the function for their remarkable contribution in the field of metallurgy.

Irani has contributed tremendously to the Indian industry, the steel business and the Tatas in the past 44 years. He began his career in 1963 as a senior scientific officer at the British Iron and Steel Research Association, Sheffield.

On his return to India in 1968, he joined Tata Steel as assistant to director (research and development). Later, he was appointed general manager. He became the managing director of Tata Steel in 1992, a position he held till July 2001.

An MSc in geology from Nagpur University, Irani has a doctorate certificate from the University of Sheffield, UK. In October 1997, an honorary knighthood (KBE) was conferred on him by Queen Elizabeth II.

Besides the knighthood, Irani has several awards in his kitty. A recipient of Padma Bhushan, Irani has been awarded the “Metallurgist of the Year” award in 1974.

The prestigious “Platinum Medal” was awarded to him in November 1988 by the Indian Institute of Metals.

Ernst & Young’s “Lifetime Achievement Award, 2001” for entrepreneurial success and the “Twelfth Willy Korf Steel Vision Award” from World Steel Dynamics and American Metal Market are some of the other awards in his kitty.

Sanjay Choudhry, the chief of corporate affairs and communications, Tata Steel, said the steel major feels honoured over the achievement of its former managing director.

“It is a great honour for the company and the metallurgist, who has made a mark on the national and international platforms,” he said.