Anu Aga (born 3 August 1942) is an Indian billionaire businesswoman and social worker who led
Thermax
Thermax Ltd is an Indian multinational engineering conglomerate, involved in clean air, clean energy and clean water, headquartered in Pune.
History
Thermax manufactures boilers to harness the power of steam. The company started with produc ...
, an energy and environment engineering business, as its chairperson from 1996 to 2004. She was among the eight richest Indian women, and in 2007 was part of 40 richest Indians by net worth according to ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' magazine.
She was awarded with the Mumbai Women of the Decade Achievers Award by ALL Ladies League, the all ladies wing of
ASSOCHAM
The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India () is a Non-governmental organization, non-governmental trade association and advocacy group based in New Delhi, India. The organisation represents the interests of trade and commerce in ...
.
After retiring from Thermax, she took to social work, and in 2010 she was awarded the
Padma Shri
Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...
for Social Work by the
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
. She is currently Chairperson of
Teach For India
Teach For India (TFI) is a non-profit founded by Shaheen Mistri in 2009. It is a part of the Teach For All network. Teach For India runs a two-year Fellowship and supports an Alumni movement. The Fellowship recruits college graduates and worki ...
.
She was nominated to
Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...
, the Upper House of
Indian Parliament
The Parliament of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the president of India and two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the ...
on 26 April 2012, by President
Pratibha Patil
Prathibha DeviSingh Patil (born 19 December 1934) is an Indian politician and lawyer who served as the 12th president of India spanning from 2007 to 2012. She is the first woman to become the president of India. A member of the Indian National ...
.
Early life and education
Anu Aga was born to a
Parsi
Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...
Zoroastrian
Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic on ...
family on 3 August 1942 in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
.
She graduated with a B.A. in Economics from
St Xavier's College,
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, and with a post graduation in medical and
psychiatric
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry.
Initial psychi ...
social work from the prestigious
Tata Institute of Social Sciences
Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) is a multi-campus public research university in Mumbai, India. It is Asia's oldest institute for professional social work education and was founded in 1936 in then Bombay Presidency of British India as ...
(
TISS),
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
. She had also been a
Fulbright Scholar
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
and studied in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
for four months.
Career
Anu started her career in
Thermax
Thermax Ltd is an Indian multinational engineering conglomerate, involved in clean air, clean energy and clean water, headquartered in Pune.
History
Thermax manufactures boilers to harness the power of steam. The company started with produc ...
in 1985 and later headed its human resources division from 1991 to 1996. After the death of husband, Rohinton Aga, she took over as Chairperson of Thermax, retiring in 2004 and succeeded by her daughter and company vice-chairperson, Meher Pudumjee. Anu has since remained on company's board of directors,
[ and involved with social work.
As a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha she served on the following committees
* Member, Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice (May 2012 - May 2014) and (Sept. 2014 - Present)
* Member, Parliamentary Forum on Children (Aug. 2012 - May 2014)
* Member, Committee on Empowerment of Women (Sept. 2012 - Sept. 2013)
* Member, Committee on Commerce (Aug. - Dec. 2012)
]
Awards
Mumbai Women of the Decade Achievers Awar
Anu Aga
'Power Brands: Bharatiya Manavata Vikas Puraskar (BMVP) – Edition 2019' for business leadership and philanthropy.
Padma Shri award in 2010.
Lifetime Achievement award by MAEER’s MIT group, Pune in 2015.
Personal life
Anu was married to Rohinton Aga, a graduate from the Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...
and gave birth to a daughter, Meher, and son, Kurush. Rohinton died in 1996 of a massive stroke, and a little over a year later, her son Kurush died at the age of 25 years. Today, Arnavaz 'Anu' Aga lives in Pune
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
, Maharashtra.
Her daughter, Meher Pudumjee is the current Chairperson of Thermax
Thermax Ltd is an Indian multinational engineering conglomerate, involved in clean air, clean energy and clean water, headquartered in Pune.
History
Thermax manufactures boilers to harness the power of steam. The company started with produc ...
, taking over from her mother in 2004. She is a post-graduate in chemical engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, London and joined Thermax in September 1990, and is also a member of the Confederation of Indian Industry
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group headquartered in New Delhi, India, founded in 1895.
CII engages business, political, academic, and other leaders of society to shape global ...
's (CII) Family Business Forum and the Young Indians (YI).
References
External links
Anu Aga – Director, Profile
Thermax India.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aga, Anu
Indian billionaires
1942 births
Living people
Businesspeople from Mumbai
Indian women educational theorists
St. Xavier's College, Mumbai alumni
Recipients of the Padma Shri in social work
Indian social workers
Businesspeople from Pune
Members of National Advisory Council, India
Nominated members of the Rajya Sabha
Indian women business executives
Women in Maharashtra politics
Parsi people
20th-century Indian educational theorists
20th-century Indian businesspeople
20th-century Indian women scientists
21st-century Indian women politicians
21st-century Indian politicians
Indian business executives
21st-century Indian businesspeople
21st-century Indian businesswomen
20th-century Indian businesswomen
Women members of the Rajya Sabha
Social workers from Maharashtra
Women educators from Maharashtra
Educators from Maharashtra
Businesswomen from Maharashtra
Tata Institute of Social Sciences alumni
20th-century women educators