Mehli Mistry, a long‑time director of the M Pallonji Group and close confidant of the late Ratan Tata, has announced that he will not seek re‑election to the board of the Tata Medical Centre Trust (TMCT). The decision, communicated to the board by email on Sept 15, will take effect when his current term expires on Sept 30, 2026, marking his sixth departure from an institution linked to the Tata legacy since Ratan Tata’s death in Oct 2024.
TMCT, established in 2005 by the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sir Ratan Tata Trust, runs the 600‑bed Tata Medical Centre in Kolkata, a cancer hospital built at a cost of ₹700 crore. The facility, modeled after Mumbai’s Tata Memorial Centre, serves patients from eastern and northeastern India and neighbouring countries, and has long been self‑sufficient, generating enough revenue to cover its operating costs without external capital from the parent trusts.
Mistry’s exit follows a series of resignations that began when he was removed from the boards of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) and Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) in Oct 2025 after a dispute with Noel Tata, Vijay Singh and Venu Srinivasan. He had previously stepped down from the National Cancer Prevention Association and the Small Animal Hospital in Mumbai, but remains on the board of the Tata Education and Development Trust, the richest entity within the Tata Trusts.
The series of departures signals a shift in the governance of Tata‑affiliated institutions amid the broader succession battle over Tata Sons. Mistry’s decision to hand over responsibility to Noel Tata, who was invited onto the TMCT board in Oct‑Nov 2024, illustrates the growing influence of the Tata family’s next‑generation leaders.
The TMCT board will convene on Oct 5 to formalise the appointment of Noel Tata, his children Leah, Maya and Neville, and former defence secretary Vijay Singh as the new trustees, who will oversee the hospital’s operations for the next term.