Paul Pothen (1916-2004) was an Indian industrialist and one of the pioneers of fertilizer industry in India.[1] He was the founding managing director of three large scale fertilizer manufacturing firms in India.[1]
Pothen started his career by joining the Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore Limited (FACT) in a senior management position in 1944 where he stayed until 1965 when he was made the founding managing director of FACT Engineering and Design Organisation (FEDO) in 1965.[1] Three years later, when the Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative (IFFCO) was established in 1968, Pothen was made the founding managing director.[1] He continued at IFFCO till 1981 and moved to Krishak Bharati Cooperative (KRIBHCO) as the organization's founding managing director.[1] He headed the Fertilizer Association of India for several years and was also associated with the Travancore Cochin Chemicals[1] and Fact Technical Society.[3]