India's richest woman: Savitri Jindal's net-worth triples in 2 years
What's the story
Savitri Jindal, the richest woman in India, saw her net worth increase three times in just the last two years, according to Forbes. Her net worth tripled from $4.8 billion in 2020 to $17.7 billion in 2022, marking a whopping $12 billion rise. The matriarch of Jindal Group, Savitri took over the conglomerate after her husband OP Jindal's demise in 2005.
Net worth
'Triple whammy,' as net worth balloons three folds
On the Forbes World's Billionaires List, Savitri Jindal currently occupies the 91st position on the list of the world's richest. Notably, she saw her net worth balloon by $12 billion, a three-fold rise in her fortune, during the COVID-19 pandemic years when many businesses struggled to survive. However, her net worth had reportedly dipped to $4.8 billion in 2020 from $5.9 billion in 2019.
Life
India's richest woman never attended college
Jindal is also reportedly one of the top 13 women billionaires in the world. Despite never having attended college, she took over the Jindal Group after her husband died in a helicopter crash in 2005. A mother of nine children, she is not only the head of the Jindal Group but also a homemaker and an Indian National Congress (INC) politician.
Politics
Served as cabinet minister in Haryana government
As a Congress MLA from the Hisar constituency, Jindal has previously served as a cabinet minister in the Haryana government. Though she lost her seat in the 2014 Haryana Assembly elections, she continues to serve as a member of Congress. During her tenure in the Bhupinder Singh Hooda government, she held the portfolios of the Ministries of Power, Disaster Management, and Urban Local Bodies.
Jindal Group
Company revenue rose 4 times after Jindal took charge
Started in 1952 by OP Jindal as a single-unit steel plant in Hisar, Jindal Group has today developed into a conglomerate involved in steel, mining, power, and oil and gas businesses. The four divisions of the $18 billion conglomerate are headed by the Jindal brothers—Prithvi Raj, Sajjan, Ratan, and Naveen. After the matriarch took over the group at 55, its annual revenue reportedly quadrupled.
Indian women billionaires
Other Indian women on the billionaires' list
India currently has 11 women on the Forbes World's Billionaires List, with Jindal at the top. She is currently followed by Falguni Nayar, the founder of Nykaa, with a net worth of $4.5 billion and Leena Tewari of USV Private Limited, with a net worth of $3.8 billion. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, the chairperson of Biocon, presently stands at the fourth spot with $3.3 billion.