A Foundation Fellowship is the highest honour conferred by Somerville College for philanthropy. Chandra, as he is popularly called was elected to the Fellowship by outgoing Principal Baroness Jan Royall and the Governing Body of Somerville College in summer 2025. The ceremony of conferral was held on 23rd September 2025, in the company of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, Professor Irene Tracey, the High Commissioner of India, HE Vikram Doraiswami, Mr Varun Chandra, the UK Prime Minister’s Special Adviser on Business and Investment, and many other distinguished friends and colleagues from the Tata Group and the University of Oxford.

Chandra was elected a Foundation Fellow in recognition of his instrumental role in enabling the creation of Somerville College’s new flagship teaching and learning hub, the Ratan Tata Building. Named in honour of Chandra’s mentor, the revered philanthropist Mr Ratan Tata, Somerville College’s new building will create a permanent home for the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development, which has been leading research into pressing matters of sustainability and development affecting India and the world since 2013.

A Foundation Fellowship is a great honour, creating a lifelong bond between its recipient and Oxford. This Foundation Fellowship is a demonstration of the College’s gratitude for the years of friendship, shared dreams and transformative support which the Tata Group has shown this College and the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development.

Catherine Royle, Principal of Somerville College, said: “Chairman Chandrasekaran is a shining testament to the power of meritocracy and just how much can be achieved through intellect and hard work. I am delighted that we have been able to recognise his contribution to the ongoing partnership between Somerville College, the OICSD and the Tata Group through this well-deserved honour.”

N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons commented: “This rare institution has been quietly blazing a trail on behalf of the most pressing social causes facing our world for almost 150 years and continues to do so today. Their work chimes powerfully with the values of our business and its shining light, Mr Ratan Tata.” Chandra continued, “I am confident that the fertile interdisciplinary environment of Somerville College and the enduring bridge the OICSD creates between Oxford and India mean that this partnership will only grow in the years to come. Working together, we have the opportunity to tackle some of the biggest environmental and social questions facing the world.”

Natarajan Chandrasekaran earned a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Sciences from the Coimbatore Institute of Technology, Tamil Nadu, followed by a Master of Computer Applications (MCA) from the National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli. Ever since finishing his academic studies, Mr Chandrasekaran has devoted himself single-mindedly to furthering the cause of his beloved Tata Group, rising first to become Chairman of Tata Consulting Services, before taking on the Chairmanship of other key Tata Group subsidiaries and finally his current position as Chairman of Tata Sons and the Tata Group, India’s largest business conglomerate.

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Under this partnership, a select group of faculty members from UPL University will travel to Oxford each year for a special training focused on curriculum development and research-based learning, beginning in the summer of 2026. In parallel, experts from the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development will contribute to UPL University’s academic programme by delivering an extra-curricular seminar series to deepen students’ learning about key global priorities. Topics include Artificial Intelligence, Sustainable Development, Climate Action, and Technology Innovation. For the upcoming academic year, two in-person and two online lectures are planned exclusively for UPL University students.

Commenting on the partnership, Jai Shroff, Chairman & Group CEO of UPL Ltd., said, “At UPL, we believe knowledge sharing and collaboration are essential to solving the world’s most pressing sustainability challenges. This partnership between UPL University and the OICSD creates a powerful platform for learning and innovation, empowering the next generation of students and faculty in India to contribute to global sustainability goals. India is uniquely positioned to address global research gaps, and collaborations like this one with OICSD, University of Oxford will help establish UPL University as a hub for international academic exchange and collaboration in sustainability and technology.” 

Reflecting on the partnership’s continuation, Baroness Jan Royall, Principal of Somerville College and Executive Director of the OICSD, said, “The OICSD is committed to contributing meaningfully to the UK–India relationship by fostering collaboration on the most pressing sustainable development challenges of our time. Our renewed partnership with UPL offers an exciting opportunity to make strategic advances in areas such as climate-resilient agriculture, innovation, and environmental stewardship. We are proud to work alongside UPL and its University of Sustainable Technology to deepen this vital exchange of knowledge and ideas between Oxford and India.”

According to Ashok Panjwani, President of UPL University, “This partnership will benefit our faculty and students by offering direct learning opportunities with the OICSD, University of Oxford, and by enabling participation in global discussions on sustainability and technology. It will inspire our academic community and reinforce our commitment to building sustainable solutions for a better future. Exchange initiatives will contribute meaningfully to long-term outcomes for Indian higher education.”

This partnership reflects the shared commitment of both institutions to building inclusive and resilient systems through the power of education, innovation, and global collaboration. The partnership between OICSD and UPL began in 2021 with the co-organisation of the OpenAg Symposium, a platform that brings together leading voices from government, industry and academia to examine the intersection of climate change and agriculture. The most recent edition of the symposium was graced by His Excellency Dr. Julius Maada Bio, President of Sierra Leone, who delivered the keynote address at the fourth edition held on 18th September 2024 at Said Business School, University of Oxford.

In addition to its partnership with the OICSD, University of Oxford, UPL University has established collaborations that have helped enrich the university’s curriculum across a wide range of disciplines, including sustainability, environmental compliance, automation, robotics, and process engineering. Together, these initiatives reflect UPL University’s commitment to providing students and faculty with access to cutting-edge knowledge, practical skills, and global perspectives that prepare them to lead in a rapidly evolving world.

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Experts studied over 1.25million people with Covid and found new diagnoses of psychosis, dementia, seizures and brain fog were more common during the two years after having the virus than with other respiratory infections like the flu.

Children saw fewer increases in most conditions than adults, apart from seizures and psychosis. The study found that in adults, the risk of having a depression or anxiety diagnosis initially increased post Sras-CoV-2 infection but returned to the  same with other respiratory infections after a relatively short time.

The delta and omicron variants were linked with more disorders than the alpha variant. Omicron is related with similar neurological and psychiatric risks. Lead author Professor Paul Harrison, from the University of Oxford, said the study showed that brain conditions linked to Covid may far outlast the pandemic. He called for research into ‘what can be done to prevent or treat these conditions’.

But Professor Paul Garner, from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, cautioned that an increased risk of dementia and psychosis may be related to ‘societal upheaval’ rather than to Covid itself.

‘I think we need to be careful in the interpretation of the reported small increases in dementia and psychosis: these are, in my opinion, more likely to be related to the societal upheaval and dystopia we have been living through rather than being a direct effect of the virus,’ he said.

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