The All India Rubber Industries Association (AIRIA) has honoured Pilloo Aga, financial director of the Gold Seal Group, with its ‘Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Indian Rubber Industry’.

She was presented the award at the recently concluded All India National Rubber Conference held in Mumbai, which was attended by captains of the industry, both from the manufacturing and trading segments. 

Pilloo Aga has been with the Gold Seal Group since 1980, gradually working her way up to become a director. The Gold Seal Group was established by H E Aga in 1958 to supply door seals and glass runs as import substitute products for the Indian automobile industry. In 1960, Gold Seal began OEM supplies to Fiat Automobiles (later Premier Automobiles) and to Hindustan Motors shortly afterwards. In 1972, exports began to Sri Lanka, the Far East, East Africa and a couple of years later to the UK and Europe.

In 1997, as industry demand grew for newer technologies, Pilloo Aga was instrumental in Gold Seal setting up two joint ventures. The first one was a JV with SaarGummi of Germany to expand its core business of door seals and glass runs, together known as weather strips. The second JV came about with Avon Rubber of the UK for the manufacture of coolant conveying systems. 

The Gold Seal Group today operates from three locations in India: Mumbai (site of the original manufacturing facility and now the head office for the Group); Daman (the main manufacturing hub); and Sanand (customer service point for customers in Gujarat).

Pilloo Aga, as finance director, is known to have aggressively driven the Gold Seal Group’s expansion. Having held the purchase portfolio for the Group, she has had a long association with different arms of the rubber industry – from raw materials manufacturers and traders through to rubber machinery manufacturers. The award, conferred by the All India Rubber Industries Association, is to recognise her contribution in driving the growth of the rubber industry in India.

Leading entrepreneur
Pilloo Aga has been an active member of the ACMA managing committee since 1992. During her tenure as chairperson of the Western Region from 1999-2003, she was instrumental in building membership, especially from the MSME sectors, and was recognised for several programmes organised in the Western Region of interest to industry. She was also awarded the ‘Best Woman Entrepreneur’ award by the Mariwala Foundation in association with the Indian Merchants Chamber Of Commerce.

The award was presented to Pilloo Aga by Kamal Chaudhari, president AIRIA; Vikram Makar, senior VP, AIRIA; and Vinod Bansal, chairman,  WR/MC member AIRIA, in the presence of her family members – husband Cyrus Aga and sons Urvaksh Aga and Darius Aga. 

Commenting on her award, Pilloo Aga said: “I am thankful to the All India Rubber Industries Association, the managing committee and all the members for this recognition of the 30-plus years I have been in this industry, which I entered as a novice and a non-technical person. I have worked hard all these years and the support everyone present here has given me – be it the raw materials suppliers, capital equipment makers and the various service providers – has been outstanding. They welcomed and nurtured me, respected me, and I am truly honoured and inspired.”