K K BIRLA, A PHILANTHROPHIST-INDUSTRY DOYEN AND BUILDER OF
MODERN INDUSTRIAL & SCIENTIFIC INSITUTIONS: FICCI PRESIDENT
NEW DELHI, August 30, 2008. Mr. Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP and President, FICCI, has expressed
deep shock and anguish at the “passing away of Dr. K K Birla, one of India’s greatest entrepreneurs, who
has left an indelible mark on Indian society and industry by upholding moral and spiritual values and
creating landmark business enterprises through sheer dint of hard work and ethical practices.”
Dr. Birla, a former Member of the Rajya Sabha, who held the reins of FICCI during his adept stewardship
of the Chamber in 1974-75, was “an outstanding visionary, a great Parliamentarian, a business leader par
excellence, and the builder of modern educational and scientific institutions,” Mr. Chandrasekhar said.
He said: “Dr Birla, A patron of FICCI, pioneered the setting up of a range of businesses from sugar,
fertilizers, chemicals to heavy engineering, textiles, shipping, newspaper, to establish one of India’s
biggest industrial conglomerates.
As President of FICCI, Dr. Birla was particularly concerned about overcoming the problems of
poverty and unemployment and recommended demand revival and supply expansion measures to
address the vexed issues of inflation and stagnation that had gripped the Indian economy in 1974. He
spoke forcefully and fearlessly and highlighted the importance of select liberalization credit to give a
fillip to industrial production and economic revival.
Dr. K K Birla, son of noted industrialist Ghanshyam Das Birla, was amongst the founder members of the
Indian sugar industry which he joined in 1940. Dr Birla was a Rajya Sabha Member for 18 consecutive
years. In 1961, he was elected Sheriff of Calcutta and in 1997 was conferred Doctor of Letters by
Pondicherry University. He headed a number of associations and chambers of commerce, prominent
amongst them being, FICCI, Indian Sugar Mills Association and Indian Chamber of Commerce..
He established the K K Birla Foundation, which has instituted annual awards for excellence in Indian
literature scientific research and Indian philosophy.
Mr. Chandrasekhar said: “I join my colleagues in Indian industry and FICCI in offering our deep and
heartfelt condolences to the members of Dr. Birla’s family in their hour of bereavement, especially to his
daughters and sons-in-law, Nandini and C S Nopany; Shobhana and Shyam Bhartia and Jyoti and Saroj
Poddar.
MEDIA DIVISION