Savitri Jindal, the Emeritus Chairperson of the OP Jindal Group, has become the richest woman in Asia, replacing China's Yang Huiyan whose fortune fell by 50 percent in the wake of China's real estate crisis. In fact, Yang is now the third richest woman in Asia as her net worth fell below her fellow Chinese tycoon Fan Hongwei, head of chemical-fibre company Hengli Petrochemical Company.
While Yang Huiyan's net worth has dropped to $11 billion, Fan Hongwei is ahead of her with a net worth of $11.3 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Meanwhile, Savitri Jindal is just a little ahead of Fan Hongwei with a fortune worth $11.3 billion, thanks to her conglomerate Jindal Group.
Savitri Jindal is now the 10th richest person in India. She has been consistently ranked India’s richest woman by Forbes for the past few years. She is followed by Biocon’s Kiran Mazumdar and Smita Crishna-Godrej of the Godrej group.
Due to economic uncertainties, Savitri Jindal's net worth has also fluctuated wildly in recent years. In April 2020, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 72-year-old billionaire's net worth shrunk to $3.2 billion. Later, in April 2022, it reached as high as $15.6 billion. The growth in her fortune came as Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent commodity prices soaring.
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Who is Savitri Jindal?
Born in Tinsukia (Assam) in 1950, Savitri Jindal married Om Prakash Jindal, founder of the OP Jindal Group, in 1970. The couple has nine children. After OP Jindal died in a helicopter crash in 2005, Savitri started calling the shots at the company.
Savitri's company is based in New Delhi and has stakes in steel producer JSW Steel and several other ventures in the field of mining, power generation, industrial gases and port facilities. The four divisions of the OP Jindal Group -- steel, power, mining, oil and gas -- are helmed by Savitri's four sons -- Prithviraj, Sajjan, Ratan and Naveen Jindal. The OP Jindal Group is the third-largest producer of steel in India.
Besides business, she achieved success in politics as well. A member of the Indian National Congress, Jindal was also a minister in the Haryana government and a member of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) from the Hisar constituency. However, in 2014, she lost her seat in the Haryana assembly elections.
Meanwhile, she serves as the president in Agroha’s Maharaja Agrasen Medical College.
ALSO READ: HCL Tech’s Roshni Nadar to Nykaa’s Falguni Nayar, here are the top 10 richest women in India
(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)
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