In year 1857, laying the foundation for House of Birla, Seth Shiv Narayan Birla started trading cotton from Pilani, Rajasthan, there by train to Bombay for export to England and other countries. He was one of the early Indian traders to participate in this cotton trade. Later in early part of 20
th century, the Group’s founding father, Mr. Ghanshyam Das Birla, a member of the Maheshwari Marwari community, set up industries in India. Mr. Ghanshyam Das Birla was a close friend of Mahatma Gandhi and played an active role in the Indian freedom struggle. Moreover, he represented India at the first and second round-table conferences in London, along with Gandhiji.
Aditya Birla Group is now an Indian Multinational private sector conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai, India. Their goal is to deliver super value to customers, shareholders, employees and society at large and to be a premium global conglomerate with a clear focus on each of the business. Basically, Aditya Birla business is expanded to aluminium, copper, cargo handling, fertilizers, acids and hindalco brands.
Hindalco’s phosphatic fertilizer [di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer] is the most popular phosphatic fertilizer because of its high nutrient content and good physical properties which is marketed under the brand name “Birla Balwan”. Birla Balwan stands a strong market position and is very popular among farmers in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Punjab and Haryana.
Agriculture contributes to nearly one third of India GDP. The Hindalco’s phosphatic fertilizer plays an important role in agriculture. It has been like a helping hand to the farmers for earning their bread. Farmers are undoubtedly the backbone of the society who contribute greatly for the upliftment of the society. Coming from a family with a lineage of farmers I personally feel that they still rely on the age-old techniques of farming. So, awareness about new developments and knowledge of fertilizers is very much necessary. Government has started many programs to spread awareness that includes "Krishi mela" and “PM Kisan scheme” but active participation of farmers are also required for its success.
The Challenges I never bowed to
A life without challenges is like a cake without icing. Adversities is a part and parcel of everybody’s life. It adds meaning, reason and direction to one’s life. The whole world at some point of time have tasted failures and hurdles, so have I. My journey is not a smooth one, as I had to face countless setbacks and defaults. But what kept me going was the inspiring words of Dr Abdul Kalam “Dream is not that which you see while sleeping, it is something that does not let you sleep” and the faith and blessings of my mother.
I also took inspiration from many leaders who recounted their success stories, overriding every took challenge that crept in their journey of life. They took the challenges as an “blessing in disguise” and left no stone upturned to work it out. This depicts that life is not a bed of roses but a bed of thrones and to thrive in this world bulging with endless hurdles one has to toil and sweat it out.
I always belonged to the average league. I never scored impressive marks during my school days. Growing up I was more into sports and only sat down to study a week or two before exams. By the time I reached high school I lacked self-confidence and scoring well in exams was distant dream. I was written off by my teachers and my father. Yet my mother stood by me and believe in my capabilities. Her faith and encouragement made me break away the barriers. Like the phoenix which rises from its ashes, I too was able to shed my inhibitions that was weighing me down and move a step closer towards my goal.
Eventually I made up my mind to work on my weakness and master them that would help me to achieve my goal without being a barrier to it together with working hard, being punctual, managing time, being disciplined etc. I improved gradually. Since then, there was no looking back. Today I proudly call myself a student of IIM, Tiruchirappalli.