Finolex founder Chhabria passes away
Pune, May 5 : Pralhad P Chhabria (86), the founder and chairman of Finolex Group, died following a brief illness at his residence in Pune on Thursday.
He is survived by his son Prakash and daughter Aruna and their families.
He was born in Karachi and migrated to India during partition. He started from scratch and a humble beginning to what is today the Rs. 10,000 Cr. Finolex Group of Companies.
Mr. Chhabria established the Finolex group which is well known today for its quality products. Finolex Cables Ltd. was established in 1954 and Finolex Industries Ltd. was set up in 1981.
He introduced many innovative solutions such as jelly-filled telecom cables and drip irrigation. Finolex Plasson Ltd., an Indo-Israel joint venture was the first joint venture by an Indian company with Israel.
Well known for his philanthropy, he established Mukul Madhav Foundation & Hope Foundation and Research Centre, active in the fields of medical assistance, education & social welfare to the under privileged. He established Mukul Madhav Vidyalaya at Ratnagiri and Engineering Institutions Finolex Academy of Management &Technology in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra and International Institute of Information Technology at Hinjawadi, Pune.
History of Finolex Group
In July 1945, two young brothers P P Chhabria and K P Chhabria came to Pune from Karachi in search of a livelihood and within six months set up a small shop selling electrical cables. The retail business became quite successful. A sizable order in the mid 1950’s from the Defence Department for wire harnesses for trucks and tanks bolstered their confidence and they decided to manufacture Cables, themselves.
Starting as a small-scale industrial unit in 1956, they manufactured PVC insulated cables for the automobile industry. Finolex brand was born from “Fine” & “Flexibles” and “O” with an electric arc across it – signifying the electrical cable business the company was in. Their relentless search for growth and doughty perseverance saw them through some difficult times and in 1972 the enterprise turned into a limited company.
Since then, there has been no looking back and following a public offering in July 1983, Finolex Cables Limited embarked on a continuous process of expansion and modernization which enabled it to become the most diversified & largest cable manufacturer in the country.
Their relentless quest for growth saw the brothers establishing Finolex Industries Limited (FIL) in 1981. The company sought to manufacture Rigid PVC Pipes and Fittings at Pune, which find large-scale application in the agriculture sector. In a shrewd move towards backwards integration, the company has set up a PVC resin manufacturing facility at Ratnagiri on the west coast of India.
The early nineties saw the Finolex Group expanding into new business domains to manufacture Optic Fibre Cables and Copper Rods. Today the Group turnover exceeds Rs.30 Billion (about US $ 750 million) Finolex Cables Ltd (FCL) and Finolex Industries Ltd (FIL) are the two group companies whose equity shares are listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange. Global Depository Receipts of Finolex Cables Limited are also listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. Professionally managed, with continuous updating of technology and strict quality controls, Finolex strives for maximum customer satisfaction. Over the years, it has attained a significant position on the industrial map of India.
