The Wadia Group is one of the oldest conglomerates of India. The group was founded by Sir Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia in 1736. Lovji Wadia secured contracts with the British East India Company to build ships and docks in Bombay in 1736. This, and subsequent efforts, would result in Bombay becoming a strategic port for the British colonial undertakings in Asia. The Bombay dry-dock, the first dry-dock in Asia, was built by Lovji and his brother Sorabji in 1750.
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HMS Minden
The one ship that the Wadias built and of most historic significance for Parsis is the HMS Minden. The Bombay Courier, June 23, 1810 wrote:
"On Tuesday last His Majesty's Ship, the Minden built in the new docks (Bombay) by Jamsetji Bomanji Wadia was floated into the stream at high water, after the usual ceremony of breaking the bottle had been performed by the Honorable Governor Jonathan Duncan. In having produced the Minden, Bombay is entitled to the distinguished praise of providing the first and only British ship of the line built out of the limits of the Mother Country; and in the opinion of very competent judges, the Minden, for beauty of construction and strength of frame, may stand in competition with any man-o-war that has come out of the most celebrated Dockyards of Great Britain. For the skill of its architects, for the superiority of its timber, and for the excellence of its docks, Bombay may now claim a distinguished place among naval arsenals".
Later, the lyrics of "The Star-Spangled Banner" were written on board the Minden.
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Recent management
Sir Neville Wadia was married to Dina, the only daughter of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan and a member of the Jinnah family. Jinnah and his wife Rattanbai Petit had separated soon after their daughter, Dina Wadia was born. Nusli Wadia is Neville & Dina Wadia's son and he is currently heading the group. While his sons Ness and Jehangir are chairpersons.
Companies
The Wadia group now consists of four independently listed companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). These include:
- Bombay Dyeing- Textile company, established in 1879.
- Bombay Realty - Handles the land management and development of Wadia Group land ownings..
- Britannia Industries - A company that sells Britannia and Tiger brands of biscuit. Britannia has an estimated 38% market share.
- Go Air - A low cost airline operating from Mumbai.
- National Peroxide, hydrogen peroxide manufacturer in India.
The Wadia Group also edits the fashion magazine Gladrags and conducts the annual Gladrags Megamodel hunt in Mumbai.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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