Only 4 women on Forbes India's 100 Richest People list; Savitri Jindal takes top spot

Four women have made it to this year's Forbes India's 100 Richest People list.

The four are OP Jindal group Chairperson Savitri Jindal, Biotech pioneer Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, wife of Havells founder Vinod Gupta and USV Pharma Chairperson Leena Tewari.

The four women have a collective wealth of US $11.28 billion while the total net worth of all 100 in the list amount to US $381 billion.

Jindal has retained the tag of being the richest woman in India with a net worth of US $5.2 billion, according to the annual India rich list compiled by business magazine Forbes.

Jindal was placed at 19th position, as her fortune increased with recovery in steel prices.

"(Her) Mumbai-based son Sajjan saw shares of his JSW Steel almost double in the past year. In May, he agreed to acquire a 1,000-megawatt thermal power unit for US $750 million from his struggling younger sibling Naveen's Jindal Power & Steel, which is weighed down by US $3.6 billion in debt," Forbes said.

Among the four women on the list, Jindal was followed by Vinod Gupta at 46th position with a net worth of US $2.5 billion, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (65, US $1.8 billion) and Leena Tewari at 79th rank (US $1.62 billion).

Regarding Gupta, Forbes said buoyant sales of lighting and electrical fixtures boosted shares of Havells, founded by Gupta's late husband and run by youngest son Anil Rai Gupta, who is listed with her this year.

Havells sold its 80% stake in troubled European light manufacturer Sylvania in December for US $160 million to Shanghai Feilo Acoustics. The company has recently started selling home-automation products and solar streetlights.

Mazumdar-Shaw, "India's richest self-made woman" according to Forbes, was one of the eight returned to the ranks after their companies outperformed the stock market's 12 per cent rise in the past year.

"Biotech pioneer Kiran Mazumdar Shaw's wealth climbed along with shares of her listed Biocon, which have more than doubled in the past year. The company, Asia's largest insulin producer, is aiming for a 10 per cent share of the global market," Forbes said adding that shares of contract research arm Syngene are up 92 per cent since its IPO in August 2015.

Mazumdar-Shaw was recently awarded with France's highest civilian honour for her outstanding contribution to bioscience.

Tewari, who chairs privately held USV India, was ranked 79th on the list.

USV India was started by her late father as a joint venture with Revlon in 1961. USV specialises in diabetic and cardiovascular drugs, with a portfolio that spans biosimilar drugs and injectables and active pharmaceutical ingredients.

--PTI