Faqir Chand Kohli (born February 28, 1924) is an Indian businessman. He is frequently referred to as the "Father of the Indian Software Industry". He was the first General Manager of Tata Consultancy Services, a leading Indian software consultancy company. He has also worked as the Deputy General Manager of the Tata Power Company.
F.C. Kohli did his BA and B.Sc. (Hons) from Punjab University, Lahore. After coming to Canada he completed his B.Sc. (Hons) in Electrical Engineering from Queen's University, Canada(1948), and subsequently did his MS in Electrical Engineering from MIT(1950).
Faqir Chand Kohli, Sci'48 is a visionary who has been instrumental in two different engineering revolutions in India - Power Engineering and Software Engineering. He is referred to in India as the father of the Indian software industry. (Proceedings of the 15th Conference on Software Engineering and Training)
Dr. Kohli was born on February 28, 1924. After obtaining a BA and BSc (Hons) at the Punjab University, Lahore, he came to Queen's where he obtained a BSc (Hons) in Electrical Engineering, and went on to complete a MS Electrical Engineering Degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In 1951 he returned to India and started working for the Tata Electric Company, advancing until he became Director of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's premier information technology organization in 1974.
By encouraging research and development, introducing advanced technology and advocating for progressive changes in the industry at the government level, Dr. Kohli transformed the company from a 10-person operation to one with 10,000 consultants working in 20 countries around the world.
He is attributed with creating, nurturing and growing India's software industry from scratch.
Dr. Kohli received numerous national and international awards and honours, among them an honorary doctorate in Engineering from University of Waterloo in 1990 and India's third-highest civilian honour, the Padma Bhusan in 2002.
Since retiring in 1999, Dr. Kohli continues as a consultant with TCS, encouraging an increase in hardware availability in India to support the Indian software industry and improved access to technology in rural areas. He is currently using multimedia technology to increase literacy standards in India through a unique 'Functional Learning' concept.
Dr. Kohli credits Queen's Applied Science program with providing him the skills in management and strategic planning that proved invaluable preparation for his future. He continues to inspire generations of young people with his commitment to give back to society something of what he has received from it.
Kohli has been awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honour, for his contribution to the Indian software industry. The awards were announced by the President of India on January 25, 2002, on the eve of India's Republic Day. He has also has been awarded honorary degrees from University of Waterloo, Canada, Robert Gordon University, U.K, IIT Bombay, IIT Kanpur, Jadavpur University, Queen's University and University of Roorkee.[1] He is also a fellow of IEEE USA, IEE UK, Institution of Engineers India, and Computer Society of India among others.
Other awards and honours:
Dadabhai Naoroji Memorial Award, 2000.[3]
Lifetime Achievement Award for Management, All India Management Association (AIMA), 2002.
Gold Medal and Cash Award for paper on 'Economics of Long Distance, Extra High Voltage Transmission Lines'.
Gold Medal from Central Board of Irrigation and Power, for the best paper on 'Inter-System Contracts and Organisational Requirements for Economic Operation of Inter-connected Systems'.
Dr. V. M. Ghatge prize for lecture on 'Automation in Power Systems Operations'.
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Centennial Gold Medal "for extraordinary achievement and deserving of special recognition".
Scroll of Honour from the Institution of Engineers, "for profound dedication to the progress and advancement of the engineering fraternity".
Electronics Man of the Year Award, The Electronic Component Industries Association, 1989.
Lifetime contribution to information technology, Dataquest, 1995.
QIMPRO Platinum Standard Award (QIMPRO Foundation) for Outstanding Contribution in the field of Quality, 1999.
National Award, Delhi Telugu Academy, 2000.
Juran Quality Award, Indian Merchants Chamber, 2000.
Lifetime Achievement Award, Indian National Academy of Engineering, 2000.
Business Leadership Award, Madras Management Association, 2000.
Lifetime Achievement Award, World HRD Congress, 2001.
Vocational Excellence Award, Rotary Club of Mumbai Downtown, 2001.
National Citizens Award, "for outstanding contribution in the field of Information Technology", 2001.
Lifetime achievement award, The Economic Times, 2002 [4]
Positions held
1977 – Director, Tata Infotech Ltd.
1982 - Director, Bradma of India Ltd.
1988 - Chairman, WTI Advanced Technology Private Ltd.
1989 - Director, Tata Elxsi (I) Ltd.
1991 - Director, Tata Technologies (Pte) Ltd., Singapore.
1994 - Director, Triveni Engineering Works Ltd.
1999 - Director, HOTV Inc., USA.
1999 – Director, Engineering Analysis Center of Excellence Pvt. Ltd.
1999 – Director, eBIZ Solutions Ltd.
2000 - Director, Edutech Informatics India (P) Ltd.
2000 - Director, Technosoft SA, Switzerland.
2000 - Director, Sun F&C Asset Management (I) Pvt. Ltd.
2000 - Director, Aerospace Systems Pvt. Ltd.
2002 - Director, Media Lab Asia Ltd.
F.C. Kohli did his BA and B.Sc. (Hons) from Punjab University, Lahore. After coming to Canada he completed his B.Sc. (Hons) in Electrical Engineering from Queen's University, Canada(1948), and subsequently did his MS in Electrical Engineering from MIT(1950).
Faqir Chand Kohli, Sci'48 is a visionary who has been instrumental in two different engineering revolutions in India - Power Engineering and Software Engineering. He is referred to in India as the father of the Indian software industry. (Proceedings of the 15th Conference on Software Engineering and Training)
Dr. Kohli was born on February 28, 1924. After obtaining a BA and BSc (Hons) at the Punjab University, Lahore, he came to Queen's where he obtained a BSc (Hons) in Electrical Engineering, and went on to complete a MS Electrical Engineering Degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In 1951 he returned to India and started working for the Tata Electric Company, advancing until he became Director of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's premier information technology organization in 1974.
By encouraging research and development, introducing advanced technology and advocating for progressive changes in the industry at the government level, Dr. Kohli transformed the company from a 10-person operation to one with 10,000 consultants working in 20 countries around the world.
He is attributed with creating, nurturing and growing India's software industry from scratch.
Dr. Kohli received numerous national and international awards and honours, among them an honorary doctorate in Engineering from University of Waterloo in 1990 and India's third-highest civilian honour, the Padma Bhusan in 2002.
Since retiring in 1999, Dr. Kohli continues as a consultant with TCS, encouraging an increase in hardware availability in India to support the Indian software industry and improved access to technology in rural areas. He is currently using multimedia technology to increase literacy standards in India through a unique 'Functional Learning' concept.
Dr. Kohli credits Queen's Applied Science program with providing him the skills in management and strategic planning that proved invaluable preparation for his future. He continues to inspire generations of young people with his commitment to give back to society something of what he has received from it.
Kohli has been awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honour, for his contribution to the Indian software industry. The awards were announced by the President of India on January 25, 2002, on the eve of India's Republic Day. He has also has been awarded honorary degrees from University of Waterloo, Canada, Robert Gordon University, U.K, IIT Bombay, IIT Kanpur, Jadavpur University, Queen's University and University of Roorkee.[1] He is also a fellow of IEEE USA, IEE UK, Institution of Engineers India, and Computer Society of India among others.
Other awards and honours:
Dadabhai Naoroji Memorial Award, 2000.[3]
Lifetime Achievement Award for Management, All India Management Association (AIMA), 2002.
Gold Medal and Cash Award for paper on 'Economics of Long Distance, Extra High Voltage Transmission Lines'.
Gold Medal from Central Board of Irrigation and Power, for the best paper on 'Inter-System Contracts and Organisational Requirements for Economic Operation of Inter-connected Systems'.
Dr. V. M. Ghatge prize for lecture on 'Automation in Power Systems Operations'.
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Centennial Gold Medal "for extraordinary achievement and deserving of special recognition".
Scroll of Honour from the Institution of Engineers, "for profound dedication to the progress and advancement of the engineering fraternity".
Electronics Man of the Year Award, The Electronic Component Industries Association, 1989.
Lifetime contribution to information technology, Dataquest, 1995.
QIMPRO Platinum Standard Award (QIMPRO Foundation) for Outstanding Contribution in the field of Quality, 1999.
National Award, Delhi Telugu Academy, 2000.
Juran Quality Award, Indian Merchants Chamber, 2000.
Lifetime Achievement Award, Indian National Academy of Engineering, 2000.
Business Leadership Award, Madras Management Association, 2000.
Lifetime Achievement Award, World HRD Congress, 2001.
Vocational Excellence Award, Rotary Club of Mumbai Downtown, 2001.
National Citizens Award, "for outstanding contribution in the field of Information Technology", 2001.
Lifetime achievement award, The Economic Times, 2002 [4]
Positions held
1977 – Director, Tata Infotech Ltd.
1982 - Director, Bradma of India Ltd.
1988 - Chairman, WTI Advanced Technology Private Ltd.
1989 - Director, Tata Elxsi (I) Ltd.
1991 - Director, Tata Technologies (Pte) Ltd., Singapore.
1994 - Director, Triveni Engineering Works Ltd.
1999 - Director, HOTV Inc., USA.
1999 – Director, Engineering Analysis Center of Excellence Pvt. Ltd.
1999 – Director, eBIZ Solutions Ltd.
2000 - Director, Edutech Informatics India (P) Ltd.
2000 - Director, Technosoft SA, Switzerland.
2000 - Director, Sun F&C Asset Management (I) Pvt. Ltd.
2000 - Director, Aerospace Systems Pvt. Ltd.
2002 - Director, Media Lab Asia Ltd.
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