India Today 11.1.2021

OC Published on every Friday of Advance Week; Posted at LPC Delhi – RMS – Delhi – 110006 on Every Friday & Saturday; Total number of Pages 100 (including cover pages)

NOVEMBER 1, 2021 `75 THE

SPECIAL ISSUE HIGH & MIGHTY
POWER LIST 2021
www.indiatoday.in

RNI NO. 28587/75 REGISTERED NO. DL(ND)-11/6068/2021-22-2023; LICENSED TO POST WPP NO. U(C )-88/2021-23; FARIDABAD/05/2020-22



FROM THE HIGH & MIGHTY

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

S peaking at the India Today Conclave ear- ters of the calendar year 2021 alone. P OW E R
lier this month, writer-journalist Thomas We have four unicorns on PEOPLE
Friedman underlined the relativity of power.
Mother Nature, he said, was the mother of our power list, two of them new
entrants. They are among the nine

all superpowers. It is hard to argue with that when you first-evers in the 19th edition of our list. The mobility

see the world’s sole great power, with an arsenal capable czar who has sold a record number of electric vehicles,

of destroying the Earth 10 times over, brought to its the Olympic gold winner who has captured national

knees by a simple globetrotting virus. The pandemic has attention, the brothers who are disrupting India’s bro-

disrupted human lives across the world, kerage market, the actor who is an OTT

like no other event in recent history. It has magnet, the political strategist with the

proved that power is ephemeral. For a sec- uncanny ability to back winning electoral

ond year running, it has brought a churn horses, the architect who is reimagining

in the INDIA TODAY power list. Our annual the core of the national capital, a billion-

exercise profiles people who wield power in aire stockbroker, a political scion turned

areas beyond their own and who have an cricket administrator and our youngest, a

outsized impact on our lives. Their clout is 22-year-old YouTube sensation.

a result of factors that extend beyond just

wealth or the positions they hold. Mar. 26, 2007 T he pandemic has yet to become a
A handful of perennials continue to be political catalyst in India, though we
are one of the most affected countries.
perched in the power list stratosphere, as

they have since 2003. Business tycoons It was not an issue in the six states that

continue to monopolise our list, a constant went to polls earlier this year (before the

phenomenon since our first instalment. second wave). The political power order

We had 40 entrepreneurs on our list has remained essentially unchanged,

both this year and in the previous one. with Prime Minister Narendra Modi,

Their positions have fluctuated with the Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the

vagaries brought on by the economic RSS-BJP ecosystem firmly entrenched

downturn. India’s aviation sector, for at the top. The opposition continues to

instance, has been one of the hardest hit. be in disarray—de facto Congress chief

The trend of accumulated financial losses Mar. 22, 2010 Rahul Gandhi and regional satraps like
of Rs 22,400 crore last year looks set to Mamata Banerjee and Sharad Pawar are

continue this financial year as well. the only Opposition leaders in our politi-

At the other end of the scale, Digital cal power list. The government’s rule-by-

India is booming. India’s consumer digital bureaucracy, fuelled by a powerful PMO,

economy, pegged at $85-90 billion in has accelerated in recent months. An

2020, is projected to grow tenfold to $800 unprecedented phenomenon—we have the

billion by 2030. The pandemic has accel- largest ever number of retired bureaucrats

erated this change. It has also boosted the serving as cabinet ministers. Globally,

healthcare industry. Over the past year, names like ‘Kamala’, ‘Rishi’ and ‘Priti’

Covid-19 vaccines have gone from clinical now inhabit the world’s highest political

trials to full-scale production. India is the offices. PIOs drive some of the biggest

world’s largest vaccine producer and, con- Oct. 26, 2020 names in BigTech, global bodies like the

sequently, two of our vaccine billionaires World Health Organization and the IMF,

have seen an 18-spot jump on the power list. Most new a testament to the rising power and resilience of the

wealth creators on our power list belong to the digital or Indian diaspora.

health economy. Existing power listers from both have The moral of this year’s High & Mighty is that power

seen a spike in their rankings. can never be taken for granted.

India has the world’s second largest number of uni-

corns—privately-held start-ups with a net worth of over

$1 billion. Twenty-nine start-ups, most of them across

the fintech and edtech sectors, entered India’s coveted

billion-dollar valuation club during the first three quar- (Aroon Purie)

NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 INDIA TODAY 3

UPFRONT LEISURE

A NEW LOOK FOR THE Q&A WITH RUSKIN

INSIDECONGRESSPG8 BOND PG 96

www.indiatoday.in THE HIGH

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WHY THE FOREST GOA: TROUBLE
LAW TWEAKS ARE IN THE BJP

U P F R O N TWORRYING PG 14 RANKS PG 16

PTI BRAINSTORMING
The CWC meeting in
progress on Oct. 15

CONGRESS

A NEW LOOK FOR THE
GRAND OLD PARTY

By Kaushik Deka

O n October 16, during a meet- extended the deadline indefinitely. Gandhi offered a glimpse of how the
ing of the Congress Working The process will now begin on Nov- party high command, particularly the
Committee (CWC), general Gandhi family, envisions the party’s
secretary (organisation) K.C. ember 1, with the enrolment of mem- future. She had a word of apprecia-
Venugopal finally released a schedule bers for the organisational election, and tion for the younger members of the
for party elections. It’s been a long time conclude in September 2022, with the party, indirectly telling the veterans
coming. After many fumbles, the party election of the national president and it was time to make way. “In the past
drew up a roadmap in early 2021 to CWC members. If executed as planned, two years, a large number of our col-
elect a regular president by June 30, but the exercise could dramatically alter the leagues, particularly the younger ones,
the second wave of Covid-19 got in the party’s organisational structure. have taken on leadership roles in tak-
way. In a meeting on May 10, the CWC ing party policies and programmes to
In her inaugural speech at the CWC
meeting, Congress president Sonia

8 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1



UPFRONT

the people—whether it is the farmers’ The G23 were a group of 23 senior lead- one outcome is almost certain—Rahul’s
agitation, providing relief during the ers who had written to Sonia Gandhi in return as party president. The CWC
pandemic, highlighting issues of con- August 2020 demanding an overhaul members were unanimous in demand-
cern for youth and women, atrocities of the party’s organisational structure. ing that Rahul once again take charge
on Dalits, and minorities, price rise or And even though they are now reduced of the party. And unlike in the past two
the destruction of the public sector,” to a handful, the rebels are happy at the years, he has agreed to reconsider his
Sonia Gandhi said. announcement of the organisational decision, while still insisting that he
polls. In fact, it was the election of the won’t be rushed into it. So, it is unlikely
Her speech echoed in some ways CWC members that they were more that a non-Gandhi will stand for elec-
what Rahul Gandhi said when he concerned about. Even while not direct- tion as party president. Rahul had won
stepped down as Congress president ly challenging the Gandhis, the rebel the 2017 presidential poll unchallenged.
in 2019. Rahul said he found himself group was demanding collective lead-
fighting a lonely battle against the BJP ership. Many of them were upset with The CWC meeting also conveyed a
and Prime Minister Narendra Modi the way they had been sidelined in the stern message to the rebels. Countering
while several party veterans were busy party’s decision-making process, which, the narrative that the party’s current
shoring up the prospects of their own they felt, was based on Rahul’s whims. crisis stemmed from the lack of a full-
wards. Since then, he has nurtured and time elected president, Sonia asserted
promoted leaders who have shown a At the same time, there is an implicit that she was a full-time, hands-on
zest for working on the ground. “A K.C. acceptance that the party could implode party president and there was no need
Venugopal or Manickam Tagore fits without the Gandhis. So, while they all to speak to her through the media, the
into Rahul’s scheme of things. He wants said they had nothing against Rahul barb clearly aimed at some of the vocal
people who have the patience to walk taking charge of the party, they wanted rebels who freely aired their grievances.
small and steady steps towards building an elected CWC. “We are not worried that she is upset
a Congress of his dreams, who can shun with us. If our demands are met, as
flamboyance and the quest for power WITH ELECTIONS promised in the CWC, nobody will even
and position,” says a close associate. AT EVERY LEVEL— need to make a noise. At least, there is
BLOCK, DISTRICT, movement in that direction,” said one of
T hat is perhaps why Rahul does PCCs, AICC—THE the more vocal rebels.
not seem perturbed by the recent PARTY IS EXPECTING
attrition of leaders, includ- TO OVERHAUL THE The battle lines are clearly drawn.
ing alleged close confidant/es such as If Rahul manages to keep the organ-
Jitin Prasada, Jyotiraditya Scindia or ORGANISATION isational elections free of the veterans’
Sushmita Dev. His inner circle believes influence, there could be a new-look
the Modi magic will wane and people According to the poll schedule rel- Congress team at every level in every
will embrace the Congress’s “inclusive” eased, elections will be held at every state. But, as history shows, outwitting
politics again. “Most commentators level—block, district, state Congress Congress veterans and the old party
refuse to look beyond the veterans who committees and the All India Congress ecosystem is easier said than done.
are either Rajya Sabha types or past Committee (AICC). The elected mem- “The game is not about challenging the
their prime, or suave and media-savvy bers will pick the new presidents in Gandhis, it’s about defining the scope
such as Sachin Pilot. But the Congress the blocks, districts, states and at the of the power they exercise. The veter-
still has talent on the ground, people national level. These new faces will play ans are seeking to protect their say in
working away from the limelight. They a key role in electing the new party pres- decision-making and their electoral or
are building the party brick by brick. ident and the CWC members. organisational positions, including cov-
Jitendra Singh from Rajasthan is one eted constitutional positions such as a
example,” says a Lok Sabha member, While it’s a first step towards fix- Rajya Sabha membership,” says a young
known for his proximity to Rahul. ing the many problems afflicting the Lok Sabha MP from the south.
Congress—weak organisational struc-
And Rahul has been increasingly ture, poor or invisible leadership from Whether they achieve their objec-
assertive—from sacking Amarinder the grassroots to the top and inertia in tives will be determined by the out-
Singh as the chief minister of Punjab to decision-making—the road to recovery come of the organisational polls. Rahul
appointing his favourites as presidents may not be easy. Congress organisa- will either get a team of his choice to
of several state units. “He believed that tional elections are prone to manipula- fight the 2024 Lok Sabha poll or he
Amarinder was backing the G23 reb- tion by leaders with money and muscle will have to make peace with running
els. Hence the retaliation. Appointing power. Irrespective of the overall results, the party under the constant scrutiny
Navjot Sidhu as Punjab Congress chief of certain elected CWC members. An
was a punishment for the captain, not a even bigger challenge will be to main-
reward for Sidhu,” says a CWC member. tain status quo in the party, preventing
further attrition or a split. ■

1 0 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1



UPFRONT

Illustration by SIDDHANT JUMDE A LOSING
STREAK?
GLASSHOUSE
A week is a long time in
PM CARES politics. And a month, an
eternity. The Gandhi siblings
You can take the man out of Gujarat but you cannot take Gujarat out of the man. Rahul and Priyanka may
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is personally supervising the January 2022 have supported cricketer-
Vibrant Gujarat summit in Gandhinagar, a flagship investment jamboree he started turned-politician Navjot
as state chief minister in 2003. He recently reviewed the preparations for the summit Singh Sidhu in outflanking
and has even roped in the foreign ministry to bring in outside delegations. Besides global Captain Amarinder Singh as
Punjab CM, but they refused
investors, the PM wants all Union ministries, PSUs and state governments to attend. to play ball when Sidhu took
Non-BJP states may not comply. Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray has already on new CM Charanjit Singh
objected to PSUs diverting funds to invest in Gujarat at his Dussehra rally. Channi. Infuriated, Sidhu quit
as PCC chief on September
28 and tweeted the letters he
wrote to Sonia Gandhi. Wor-
ryingly for the ex-opener, no
other party has approached
him so far. And while the
Congress has yet to accept
his resignation, his space in
the party is shrinking.

ANI Like Father… K ASIF GAME ON

CABINET CLIFFHANGER T alk of following in daddy’s footsteps. For- Mamata Banerjee’s cab-
mer Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Agarwal inet ministers have
A shok Gehlot has both friends began with the Congress, moved to SP, reason to be relieved. Babul
and foes on tenterhooks, it then BSP, floated his own party—the Akhil Supriyo, who quit as the BJP
seems. He recently indicated a Bharatiya Loktantrik Congress—before joining Lok Sabha MP from Asansol,
cabinet reshuffle, the first since taking the BJP in 2018. Now, son Nitin, an SP MLA, could be up for a re-contest
over as Rajasthan chief minister three has become deputy speaker in from the seat on a TMC
years ago. Expected to accommodate the Uttar Pradesh assembly, ticket. Supriyo’s cryptic “if I
rebels and loyalists, bets are on defeating his own party’s have it in me will win again”
whether the reshuffle will satisfy candidate! Nitin won an ass- tweet seemed to indicate he
arch-rival Sachin Pilot who has been embly seat on a BSP ticket in prefers re-entering the Lok
demanding berths for his loyalists. 2008, vaulted into the SP for Sabha over a berth in the
the 2012 and 2017 state state cabinet, as was being
polls. In 2018, he supported speculated. That’s one less
BJP in the Rajya Sabha high-profile competitor for
poll. The party has now TMC veterans.
returned the favour, with
an eye on the Baniya vote.

—Sandeep Unnithan with Kiran D. Tare, Ashish Misra, Romita Datta, Anilesh S. Mahajan and Rohit Parihar



UPFRONT GREEN BELT
The forested hills of
FOREST ACT AMENDMENT Kalwar Nagur in Balod
district of Chhattisgarh
A CONTENTIOUS
MOVE

By Rahul Noronha

The Forest Conservation Act BHUPESH KESHARWANI
(FCA) of 1980, which, as the
name suggests, came into being an FCA clearance. over the proposed amendments is the
to conserve India’s forest cover, There are fears the proposed question: is it possible to expand for-
is proposed to be amended again (after est cover while at the same time mak-
1988 and 1996) and made less stringent amendments will dispossess tra- ing it convenient for businesses to put
with the stated objective of expanding ditional low-scale users of forest forest land to non-forestry use? “The
India’s green cover. State governments resources and open a wide backdoor proposed amendments show that [the
and other stakeholders have a November for commercial exploitation of forests term] ‘green’ cover is being confused with
1 deadline to respond to the Centre’s on a seemingly legitimate pretext of ‘forest’ cover, which encapsulates many
consultative paper floated on October 1. encouraging plantation on private ‘for- things, including the lives of communities
est’ land to widen tree cover. Besides, dependent on them,” says Kanchi Kohli,
The stated rationale of the proposed the proposed amendments also run senior researcher at the Centre for Policy
amendments is to incentivise plantation afoul of a landmark Supreme Court Research, New Delhi. “The assumption
on private land. This, it is argued, is the judgment (in the T.N. Godavarman that land freed for plantation will neces-
only feasible way for India to meet its Thirumulpad vs Union of India case, sarily be used for that purpose is specula-
global environmental commitments, an 1996) that widened the need for statu- tive. These lands can be acquired by the
important one being the creation of an tory clearances to include projects on government or put to any use by a private
additional 2.5-3 billion tonnes of ‘carbon all ‘forest’ land, not just those falling agency. The bigger issue is that forests are
sink’ by 2030—India’s NDC (nation- under notified forest areas. not seen as contributing to the economy.”
ally determined contribution) target.
Meeting this target entails expansion of At the heart of doubts that linger Former Indian Forest Service (IFS)
India’s tree cover from the present 21.6 officer Manoj Mishra says the issue of
per cent (as per the State of the Forest IT IS FEARED land use change that the FCA dwells on
Report, 2019) to a third of the country’s THAT CHANGES IN (essentially banning non-forest use of
geographical area. (‘Carbon sinks’ are forest land) is being confused with the
reservoirs—natural or otherwise, such as THE FCA WILL process of granting permission to fell
vegetation and oceans—that store carbon DISPOSSESS LOW- trees. “The relaxations being considered
compounds, thereby reducing the pres- in the amendments are misplaced and go
ence of CO2 in the atmosphere. They are SCALE USERS OF against the ‘doctrine of non-regression’
vital in mitigating global warming.) FOREST RESOURCES [in environmental law].” (The doctrine
of non-regression allows amendments in
There are, however, additional rea- AND OPEN A WIDE the law as long as they do not contravene
sons the Union ministry of environment, BACKDOOR FOR the fundamental objectives of the law.)
forests and climate change (MoEFCC) Mishra says the goal of expanding green
proffers for the proposed amendments— COMMERCIAL
facilitating ‘development projects’ and EXPLOITATION OF
reducing imports of wood/ wood prod-
ucts, which cost an estimated Rs 45,000 FORESTS
crore in foreign exchange. The govern-
ment also wants stakeholders to consider
whether ‘strategic’ projects (such as devel-
opment of infrastructure to secure inter-
national borders) or lands acquired for
railways and highways before 1980 (when
the FCA came into force) should require

14 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1

1987THE GREENING to industries and cities; 1.5 per cent
1989AMBITION was taken up by roads and power lines.
1991 Around 12 per cent was used to raise
1993How forests have done dams. Of the 1.5 million hectares divert-
1995under the FCA ed after 1980, when the FCA came into
1997 effect, around 35 per cent came under
199980 mining; roads and power lines took up
2001 8 per cent; dams and canals 10 per cent.
2003Forest cover Another 10 per cent was used for strate-
2005 gic and defence projects and 8 per cent
200976 ( in million hectares)for thermal/ hydel power projects.
2011
201372 The MoEFCC’s concept paper has
2015 invited a mixed response. “The proposed
201768 amendments need to keep in mind a
2019 holistic picture of the status of the envi-
64 ronment,” says Dr Madhu Verma, chief
cover or plantations on private land economist, World Resources Institute.
is linked to how easy it is to secure 60 “International conventions, such as the
permission to fell trees. “Many states Bonn Challenge, target land degrada-
have eased rules for felling, which 25 tion neutrality over 350 million hectares
has promoted plantation,” he says. by 2030 (essentially restoring 350 mil-
Forest cover lion hectares of degraded/ deforested
The Forest Advisory Committee landscapes)…. What will be the impact
(FAC) under the FCA has played a 23 (as % of total area) on these commitments?”
crucial role in conserving forests or at
least slowing down diversion of for- 21 CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat has
est land. According to the MoEFCC, written to environment minister
between 1950 and 1980, about 4.5 19 Bhupender Yadav saying the pro-
million hectares of forest land (an posed amendments to the FCA will
average 0.15 million or 150,000 17 only facilitate the ‘takeover’ of for-
hectares a year) was diverted for non- ests by corporates. But there are oth-
forest use. After the FCA came into 15 ers who see merit in the move. “The
effect, by the early 2000s, such diver- FCA should never have been applied
sion had shrunk to an average 16,000 Source: India State of the Forest Reports on private land. It has undoubtedly
hectares a year. In the 40 years of had a detrimental effect on promot-
FCA, only 1.5 million hectares of for- CURRENT FOREST COVER ing forest cover,” says R.N. Saxena,
est land has been diverted, the min- former principal chief conservator of
istry claims. However, says Mishra: 71.2 mn hectares (21.6% of forests, Madhya Pradesh. However, he
“The working of the FAC should be total area), according to State is guarded on the proposed move to
less ad hoc; it should meet regularly. waive FCA clearances for land allocat-
At present, whenever permission is of the Forest Report, 2019 ed for railways and highways prior to
granted for a project, the developer 1980. “The Indian Forest Act only gave
cries delays while civil society groups INDIA’S 2030 TARGET right of way to linear projects with-
claim the FAC rushed through the out denotifying forests. Waiving FCA
proposals.” Create additional ‘carbon clearances for these linear projects will
sink’ of 2.5-3 billion tonnes impact wildlife, especially elephants.”
What have our forests given way
to over the decades? Between 1950 by bringing 33% of the Is the government’s stated agenda
and 1980, 60 per cent of the diverted landmass under green cover of greening India by freeing private for-
land went into agriculture; 3 per cent est lands for plantation a serviceable
DEFINING FORESTS objective? Can reasonable restraints be
placed on overexploitation of ‘forest’
The definition of forests is an evolving land outside the ambit of the amended
one. To begin with, land was notified FCA? Do the amendments have a
as forests under the Indian Forest commanding oversight of the big-
Acts of 1865, 1878 and 1927. After the picture environmental objectives? The
Forest Conservation Act (FCA) of 1980 jury is still out on those questions. „
came into effect, governments issued
circulars bringing ‘revenue forests’ NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 INDIA TODAY 15
under the definition of forests. For
example, the ‘chhote bade jhaad ka
jungle’ in Madhya Pradesh and Chhat-
tisgarh and the ‘Jhudpi’ jungle in Maha-
rashtra. Following the 1996 Supreme
Court verdict, states began defining

forests as per their geographical
conditions. In MP, any area with a tree

density of 200 trees per hectare is
deemed a forest. The UN’s Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) defines
forest as “land with tree canopy cover
of more than 10 per cent and area of

over 0.5 hectares”.

UPFRONT

BJP IN GOA

BREWING
DISCONTENT

By Kiran D. Tare

O n October 14, while on a HAIL TO THE CHIEF [in the state assembly],” he told report-
tour of Goa, Union home Union home minister Amit Shah ers on September 22. “We could win
minister Amit Shah got a with Goa chief minister Pramod many more.” About a month later, he is a
glimpse of how faction- Sawant in Panaji on October 14 worried man, uncertain if his colleagues
alised the BJP’s state unit has become. Lobo and Rane will support him in his
At a meeting of the party’s core com- households. Chief Minister Sawant also mission to sweep the state.
mittee in Panaji, attended by Chief began an outreach tour, visiting each
Minister Pramod Sawant, two minis- of the state’s 40 assembly constituen- Lobo, minister for ports, is report-
ters—Mauvin Godinho and Vishwajeet cies and promoting his schemes under edly upset that the BJP high command
Rane—openly complained to Shah a programme called ‘sarkar tumchya seems unwilling to give his wife, Delilah,
about how Sawant ignores their advice dari (government at your doorstep)’. a ticket for the Siolim constituency. “As
on governance matters. The state unit is So pleased was he with the public of now, I am contesting on a BJP ticket
also divided on whether the BJP should response that he reportedly predicted from Calangute,” says Lobo. “If [that
go solo in the upcoming assembly elec- the BJP would win a majority by itself. does not happen], the people will choose
tion, scheduled for February 2022. “The figure 22 is just the majority mark my party.” Lobo is influential in at least
Sources say the home minister’s advice three constituencies—Calangute, Siolim
on the day boiled down to one line— SHAH’S ADVICE TO and Saligao. On October 2, he accom-
ensure, at all costs, that Goa’s opposi- THE BJP GOA UNIT panied the BJP’s Goa election in-charge
tion parties do not come together. COULD BE BOILED Devendra Fadnavis to New Delhi to
DOWN TO ONE LINE— meet with Union home minister Shah;
In its bid to win a third term, the on October 14, when Shah visited Goa,
BJP’s Goa unit faces its biggest chal- ENSURE, AT ALL Lobo reportedly kept a low profile. There
lenge in a decade, with the dissidence in COSTS, THAT GOA’S is also speculation he could return to the
its ranks putting a bounce in the stride OPPOSITION PARTIES Congress, his original party.
of a resurgent opposition. On paper,
heavyweights like Pramod Sawant, DO NOT COME
Chandrakant Kavalekar, Vishwajeet TOGETHER
Rane and Michael Lobo lend the state
BJP heft, but their contesting ambi-
tions could spell disaster for the party.
Other major state leaders—including
the Congress’ Digambar Kamat, the
TMC’s (Trinamool Congress) Luizinho
Faleiro, the MGP’s (Maharashtrawadi
Gomantak Party) Sudin Dhavalikar and
the GFP’s (Goa Forward Party) Vijai
Sardesai—further complicate Goa’s
electoral landscape.

At the beginning of September,
the BJP government looked confident,
rolling out state-sponsored freebies
like 16,000 litres of water free to all

16 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1

GOA VIDHAN SABHA

The BJP’s strength in the last assembly session”.
assembly belies its current With its “Goenchi navi sakal

state of disarray (A new dawn for Goa)” slogan, the
TMC has been aggressively cam-
SEAT COUNT paigning across the state. In a move
that could potentially reshape Goa’s
1 political landscape, TMC strategist
Prashant Kishor has offered Vijai
27 1 Sardesai the option of merging his
GFP into the TMC. Sardesai, whose
31 hopes to align with the Congress
seem to have fizzled, is seriously
4 NOW 3 considering the offer. “We will take
a call on this proposal after Diwali,”
13 1 he says. Sardesai’s hopes may have
3 lifted after Kishor announced that
17 the TMC would name its chief
3 ministerial nominee for Goa in
2017 3 December, and that it won’t be
Faleiro. Close aides say Sardesai
Congress BJP MGP GFP may hold out for the top job, but in
NCP Independents Vacant a sign the GFP is interested, work-
ing president Kiran Kandolkar, in
VOTE SHARE (2017) October, equated Mamata Banerjee
with Goddess Durga, saying, “We
BJP Others will bring Bengal’s Durga [to Goa]
to eliminate [the BJP].”
36% 34%
The MGP has also been play-
Congress ing hardball with the BJP, fielding
candidates in 12 constituencies in
30% north Goa, a BJP stronghold. Sudin
Dhavalikar, an MGP leader, said on
Similarly, Vishwajeet Rane has October 17 that an alliance with the
demanded a ticket for his wife, Dr Divya BJP would be suicidal. “The BJP
Rane, from Poriem, a constituency nur- has ditched us thrice in the past,” he
tured by his father Pratapsinh Rane said. “We are going solo.”
for over five decades. If she is denied
a ticket and chooses to contest as an With the Congress not a serious
Independent, that would no doubt contender, the MGP going alone
embarrass the party. That the BJP no and AAP (Aam Aadmi Party) fail-
longer feels as secure as it once did was ing to make a splash, opposition
also evident in state president Sadanand hopes are increasingly focused on
Tanavade’s statement on October 15 the TMC-GFP combine. Home
that its “doors were open” to regional minister Shah knows this as well—
groups like the MGP, despite their rocky he announced on October 14 that
recent history. Tanavade’s statement he would return to Goa after a
comes at a time when Goa’s electoral fortnight to draft the poll strategy.
landscape seems altered by the TMC’s Though the BJP’s famed electoral
arrival, with former state Congress muscle failed against the TMC in
president Luizinho Faleiro joining Bengal, the battle for Goa is anoth-
Mamata Banerjee’s camp on September er matchup, except that Mamata’s
29. On October 11, Prasad Gaonkar, an resurgent TMC is the newbie chal-
independent MLA from Sanguem, also lenger in this western state. „
announced he would join the TMC, say-
ing he would probably do so “after the

Graphics by TANMOY CHAKRABORTY













HIGH & MIGHTY

P OW E R
PEOPLE

THLEEAAGLUPEHA

CALL IT THE POWER OF RESILIENCE, MUKESH
but many of the 50 stalwarts featured in these AMBANI, 64

pages have been around for several editions Chairman & MD,
of our High and Mighty annual. No doubt it’s Reliance Industries
good to be insulated with a carapace of power,
wealth and fame during a global health crisis AUDACIOUS
and the attendant economic meltdown—and AMBITIONS
this is already our second ‘Power People’ list
since the pandemic began. Still, holding on BECAUSE he is seeking to future-proof Reli-
to the reins of success in a year when so many ance Industries’ (RIL) hydrocarbon portfo-
lio by moving away from fossil fuels towards
have been laid low is not a feat of privilege renewable energy with Rs 75,000 crore in
alone. In these precarious times, the most investment, and setting up the 5,000-acre
prominent figures of Indian business, cul- Dhirubhai Ambani Green Energy Giga
ture and entertainment—call them the civil- Complex in Jamnagar, slated to be among
ian elite—can only remain at the pinnacle by the world’s largest such integrated renew-
staying relevant. Veterans of industry kept able energy facilities. Plans include investing
the wheels of manufacturing turning while in an integrated solar photovoltaic module
responding to the crisis of the second wave factory besides others for advanced energy
by helping to supply essential equipment and storage batteries, electrolysers and fuel cells,
services. Those with a digital orientation got and has already stitched up deals worth Rs
a massive boost due to the pandemic. Pharma 9,300 crore with firms such as Ambri, REC
majors have inevitably acquired a new aura of Solar, Sterling & Wilson Solar, NexWafe and
celebrity and influence by delivering the most Stiesdal A/S in the past four months
necessary medicines. And as the terrors of the
pandemic give way to a fragile sense of hope, BECAUSE India’s largest private sector
our list also acknowledges the talent and char- company posted a consolidated turnover
acter of those who kept us entertained, opti-
mistic, even united through our darkest days.

2 4 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1

REUTERS

of Rs 5.39 lakh crore for FY21 and August 2019, Jio had announced a BECAUSE he is India’s richest person,
profits of Rs 53,739 crore despite a 10-year deal with Microsoft to set up a who has a net worth of $92 billion
challenging business environment. countrywide network of data centres (Rs 6.9 lakh crore), as per the latest
RIL, which owns the world’s biggest oil Forbes list
refining complex in Jamnagar, capable BECAUSE he turned RIL’s telecom and
of processing 1.4 million barrels of retail businesses profitable, with Jio H I G H O N E N E RGY A voracious
petroleum a day, rebranded its refinery Platforms’ consolidated net profit at reader, he devours books on new
& petrochem interests as an O2C (oil Rs 12,534 crore on revenues of energy, often reading till late into
to chemicals) business in 2020-21 to Rs 86,493 crore in FY21, and India’s the night. He also consumes videos
accelerate decision-making and pursue largest fashion retailer Reliance and podcasts on the subject
focused opportunities Retail’s net profit at Rs 5,481 crore on
revenues of Rs 1.58 lakh crore, even as G R A N D PA D U T Y He sets aside a
BECAUSE he raised Rs 2.6 lakh crore traditional businesses prospered few hours every day for grandson
in FY21 to fund his big plans, includ- Prithvi, son of Akash Ambani and
ing Rs 1.52 lakh crore from Facebook BECAUSE the RIL stock continues Shloka Mehta
and Google for Jio Platforms, Rs to be the darling of investors, with
47,265 crore from global private equi- its market capitalisation (share price C OV I D F I G H T E R Reliance Founda-
ty funds for Reliance Retail, Rs 53,124 multiplied by the number of publicly tion set up India’s first dedicated
crore by way of RIL’s rights issue and held shares) at Rs 17.11 lakh crore as Covid hospital in Mumbai. It also
Rs 7,629 crore from UK energy giant on October 14, the highest among rapidly scaled up its operations to
BP for a fuel retailing partnership. In listed Indian companies provide 2,300 Covid beds

NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 INDIA TODAY 2 5

POWER PEOPLE

GAUTAM
ADANI, 59

Chairman,
Adani Group

THE RISE AND RISE

BECAUSE when most ing investments of over
businesses are conserving $20 billion (Rs 1.5 lakh
cash and curtailing invest- crore) to set up equipment
ment, this first-generation manufacturing units and
businessman is aggres- infrastructure over the
sively expanding the Adani next 10 years
empire in infrastructure
sectors such as roads, BECAUSE he forayed into
power, airports and solar the transformational
energy, creating over $100 digital business linking
billion (Rs 7.5 lakh crore) data centres, super apps
in shareholder value and industrial clouds dur-
ing the pandemic, creating
BECAUSE the group’s six AdaniConneX, a data cen-
listed firms in the areas of tre joint venture between
ports, roads, power, clean AEL and EdgeConneX,
energy and mining gener- to develop 1 GW of data
ated an income of centre capacity over the
Rs 96,754 crore in FY21 coming decade
and had a market capi-
talisation of $122 billion H E L P I N G H A N D Used the
(over Rs 9 lakh crore) as on group’s air, land, road, rail
October 19 and sea-based logistics
network to distrib-
BECAUSE he has emerged ute oxygen across the
as India’s biggest private country to needy Covid
airports operator in three patients, procuring 48
years, with group sub- cryogenic tanks capable
sidiary Adani Airports of carrying 780 tonnes
taking over operations of of liquid oxygen in May.
seven airports last year, The Adani Foundation
including the country’s pulled 33,000 children
second busiest, Mumbai, out of malnourishment,
and will also operate the one of the largest private
under-construction Navi programmes of its kind in
Mumbai airport the country

BECAUSE he is giving FAS T L A NE Proud owner
a big push to the clean of a fleet of luxury cars,
energy business, announc- including a red Ferrari

2 6 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1

KUMAR
MANGALAM
BIRLA, 54

Chairman, Aditya
Birla Group

CAPTAIN RACHIT GOSWAMI
COOL
acquire iconic luxury brands such backed by the Aditya Birla
BECAUSE his timely intervention as Sabyasachi, Tarun Tahiliani and Group, launched a world-class
through a letter to the Centre on the Shantanu & Nikhil business school in Mumbai, BITS
health of the telecom sector and his School of Management, with
meetings with officials and policy- BECAUSE he made a bold foray global faculty in January
makers highlighting Vodafone-Idea’s into the fast-growing, highly-com-
woes paved the way for a range of petitive paints industry with a Rs FAS T F O RWA R D The group’s stu-
relief measures to Indian telcos 5,000 crore investment in January dio Applause disrupted the OTT
space with binge-worthy shows
BECAUSE he has invested ahead of ECO - FRIENDLY Group company like Scam 1992, Hostages, Crimi-
the cycle in India’s growth story de- UltraTech became India’s first and nal Justice in the past year
spite the pandemic, with the over $45 Asia’s second company to raise glo-
billion (Rs 3.37 lakh crore) Aditya bal capital through green bonds in PA PA’ S FAVO U R I T E Daughter
Birla Group committing to invest February. The sustainability-linked Ananya teamed up with music
$5 billion (Rs 37,500 crore) in fresh issue was oversubscribed 7 times composer A.R. Rahman to release
capex in just the past 12 months a cheer song for the Indian team
FUTURE PERFECT BITS Pilani, headed for the Tokyo Olympics
BECAUSE his companies have consis-
tently created value for shareholders,
with the group clocking the second-
fastest growth in market capitalisa-
tion this year at $73.5 billion (around
Rs 5.5 lakh crore) as in mid-October

BECAUSE the group’s flagship
company Grasim, born 10 days
after Independence, is flourishing
at 75, with annual sales of over $10
billion (Rs 75,000 crore) across sec-
tors as diverse as textiles, chemicals
and cement

BECAUSE he is taking India’s ethnic
fashion and traditional craftsman-
ship to high-street New York. The
past 18 months have seen the group

POWER PEOPLE

CHRIS RATCLIFFE/ GETTY IMAGES

RATAN TATA, 83 BECAUSE Tata Trusts, of which BECAUSE all actions of the
he is chairman, swung into ac- salt-to-software Tata Group last
Chairman Emeritus, tion when the pandemic began, year had his stamp of approval,
Tata Sons committing an initial Rs 500 including the bid for Air India,
crore, upgrading four govern- which the group won on Oct. 8
SPREADING ment hospitals in Uttar Pradesh
WINGS and Maharashtra into Covid L O S T L OV E A sworn bachelor,
treatment centres and handing Tata almost got married to
28 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 them to the state governments, someone he met in Los An-
and tying up with CMC Vellore geles where he worked as an
and the Care Institute of Health architect, in the 1960s, but her
Sciences in Hyderabad to assist parents were unhappy about
healthcare professionals. The her going to India due to the
curated on-line training pro- 1962 Indo-China war
gramme, offered for free, covered
staff from over 2,340 hospitals in S W E E T S U C C E S S Grew emo-
28 states and Union territories tional after winning the Air In-
dia bid, saying JRD, his mentor
BECAUSE Tata Trusts initiated a and predecessor at Tata Sons,
support programme to assist mi- “would have been overjoyed if
grant workers in the aftermath of he was in our midst today”
Covid-19, linking them with gov-
ernment schemes. About 1.6 mil- A DVISOR IN CHIEF Remains
lion households were registered a significant mentor to start-
under the project, 1.9 million ups, with personal investment
applications were submitted, and in over 20 Indian companies,
a monetary benefit amounting to including Ola Electric, Cure.fit,
Rs 125 crore was delivered FirstCry and Urban Company

UDAY KOTAK, 62

MD & CEO,
Kotak Mahindra Bank

THE MONEY MASTER

RACHIT GOSWAMI BECAUSE he helped BECAUSE he is build- BECAUSE he was
recover over 60 per ing the group’s muscle the world’s richest
cent of IL&FS’s through acquisitions banker with a net
outstanding debt of such as taking over worth of $16 billion
around Rs 94,000 Volkswagen Finance’s (Rs 1.2 lakh crore)
crore by October this vehicle financing in the Bloomberg
year after the Centre portfolio in Septem- Billionaires Index in
called upon him to ber, Kotak Mahindra December 2020
revive the troubled Bank acquiring a
non-banking finan- 9.99 per cent stake in BECAUSE with the
cial firm as its chair- investor and issuer RBI giving him a
man in 2018 servicing platform three-year extension
KFin Technologies, as CEO last Decem-
BECAUSE Kotak and a similar stake in ber, he’d have spent
Mahindra is India’s Tata firm Ferbine 20 years at the bank’s
fourth-largest private helm when his tenure
bank with Rs 2.23 BECAUSE the digital expires in 2023
lakh crore in advanc- disruption in finan-
es as on March 31, cial services saw his U N W I N D T I M E Loved
2021; Rs 6,965 crore bank’s mobile app Netflix series Medici
net profit, Rs 2.8 lakh transaction volumes about the medieval
crore deposits in the grow 128 per cent Florence banker.
year and Rs 65,472 and value up 51 per The Crown is his
crore capital reserves cent in FY21 other favourite

Heavy Mettle SAJJAN
JINDAL, 61
BECAUSE JSW Steel, rency, and raised $1 billion
India’s second largest steel (Rs 7,500 crore) in the Chairman,
maker, is eyeing the top slot dollar bond markets in JSW Group
and started production at a September
new 5 million tonnes (mt) a target of 50 per cent re- P RO U D M O M E N T When
per year hot strip mill at its BECAUSE group firm JSW duction in carbon footprint Neeraj Chopra, who
Dolvi plant in Maharashtra Energy is betting big on by 2030, carbon neutrality trained at the group’s
in April, taking the com- renewables and signed a by 2050 Inspire Institute of Spo-
pany’s steelmaking capacity contract with GE Renew- rts, won Olympic gold.
to 23 mt able Energy in October BECAUSE the World Steel Takes an active interest
to supply 810 MW of Association has elected in sports through JSW
BECAUSE JSW Steel onshore wind turbines for Jindal as its chairman for Sports, which is associ-
became the first company its under-construction 2021-22, the first represen- ated with teams such as
in the steel sector globally pipeline of around 2.5 GW tative from India to serve at Bengaluru FC, Delhi Capi-
to issue a sustainability- of renewable projects in the association’s helm tals and Haryana Steel-
linked bond in a hard cur- India. JSW Energy has set ers and top athletes like
Chopra and Sakshi Malik

POWER PEOPLE SUNIL BHARTI
MITTAL, 63
Photograph by BANDEEP SINGH
3 0 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 Chairman, Bharti
Enterprises

THE FIGHTER

BECAUSE in a year that saw major
telcos, such as Vodafone Idea, struggle
for survival, Bharti Airtel took market
leader Reliance Jio head on, adding
3.8 million subscribers this June to
take its mobile user base to over 350
million. Some analysts say the company
may report better average revenue per
user and stronger sequential growth in
mobile revenue than Jio in the second
quarter of FY22. The group plans to
invest $673 million (Rs 5,050 crore) to
expand its data centre business

BECAUSE the planned fleet of 648 Low
Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites of its sub-
sidiary OneWeb will bring high-speed,
low-latency connectivity to India’s
remotest corners, on land, water and
air. OneWeb is the first private player to
launch satellites from ISRO facilities

BECAUSE Mittal has, in many ways,
defined India’s telecom story—from
calling out abysmally low tariffs to rec-
ommending that telcos share infra-
structure so that the Indian telecom
market is not reduced to a duopoly

BUSINE S S M A NTR A Employee first.
“In the past few years, I have realised
that people who work with you are
the most important. In a service
industry, if my employees aren’t
happy, we’ll never satisfy our cus-
tomers,” he says



HEMANT CHAWLA

MR GENEROSITY

AZIM BECAUSE he topped the of cyber security, DevOps Rs 2,125 crore in May 2021
PREMJI, 76 2020 EdelGive Hurun and quality engineering to expand its work on vac-
India Philanthropy List services, this April cination
Founder with a donation of
Chairman, Rs 7,904 crore BECAUSE the company H U M B L E S TA R T With
Wipro plans to invest $1 billion just Rs 2 per week, his
BECAUSE at a time of few (Rs 7,500 crore) in cloud grandfather M.H. Hasham
international deals, Wipro technologies, capabilities, Premji managed to build
bought UK management acquisitions and partner- one of the largest rice
and tech consultancy firm ships over the next 3 years trading businesses that
Capco for $1.5 billion (Rs has evolved into a diverse,
11,250 crore) in March. It BECAUSE at the beginning multibillion-dollar enter-
also acquired the IT units of of the pandemic, Wipro, prise 75 years later
leading German wholesale Wipro Enterprises and
firm Metro AG for $700 Azim Premji Foundation
million (Rs 5,250 crore) last together committed Rs
December, and Australian 1,125 crore for Covid relief,
firm Ampion, a provider increasing it to

POWER PEOPLE

YASIR IQBAL

N. CHANDRASEKARAN, 58

Chairman, Tata Sons

ON A MISSION
FOR ‘ONE
TATA’

BECAUSE under his watch, group
companies have turned around,
with 29 publicly-listed Tata firms
touching a combined market
capitalisation of $242 billion
(around Rs 18 lakh crore) as on
March 31. At Rs 13.54 lakh crore
(as on October 19), TCS had the
second highest m-cap among listed
companies

BECAUSE Tata Motors registered
69 per cent year on year growth in
FY21 despite zero sales in lock-
down-hit April 2020, and posted
revenues of Rs 47,031 crore, up 7
per cent over the year before. It is
planning a portfolio of 10 electric
vehicles in five years

BECAUSE as part of his ‘One Tata’
strategy to simplify, synergise and
scale up Tata businesses, the group
is working towards massive debt
reduction, digitisation and acquisi-
tions. In May, Tata Digital acquired
a majority stake in online grocery
firm BigBasket, and in fitness start-
up CureFit in June. The group will
soon launch TataNeu, a “super app”
for all consumer services

L O N G H AU L Taking up running
at the age of 44, Chandra, as he’s
fondly called, often goes running
with staff and business partners
while on business trips

POWER PEOPLE

CYRUS S. POONAWALLA, 80

Chairman & MD, Cyrus Poonawalla Group

ADAR POONAWALLA, 40

CEO, Serum Institute of India

VACCINE VICEROYS

BECAUSE the for states by Rs 100 SCALING IT UP
Serum Institute of to encourage more The Serum Insti-
India (SII) has been vaccinations tute has machines
a leading player in that fill 500 glass
helping India reach BECAUSE the vials a minute,
its Covid vaccina- Poonawallas took a and steel bioreac-
tion targets. Close calculated risk and tors almost two
to 89 per cent of the invested heavily in storeys high that
977 million doses Covid vaccine pro- can produce over
administered so duction. SII spent 10 million vaccine
far have been of Rs 4,000 crore on shots a month
Covishield, manu- building the world’s
factured by SII largest multi- WINGS OF DESIRE
functional product The family owns
BECAUSE the facility in Pune. In two ultra-long-
Poonawallas are February 2021, the range business
working with CII Adar Poonawalla- jets—a Gulfstream
to supply Covid controlled Rising G550 and a Bom-
vaccines to India’s Sun Holdings bardier Global
remote parts. SII acquired a 60 per 6000—costing over
has reduced the cent stake in NBFC $60 million (Rs 450
price of Covishield Magma Fincorp crore) apiece

BANDEEP SINGH BECAUSE he gets busier as he gets
older. Be it TV, where he hosts the
popular quiz show Kaun Banega
Crorepati, or the big screen, where
he will be seen alongside Ajay
Devgn (Mayday), Ranbir Kapoor
(Brahmastra), Prabhas (untitled
project) and Deepika Padukone
(remake of Hollywood film The
Intern), Big B is a long way from
hanging up his thespian gloves

BECAUSE he aces even the good
samaritan act. From arranging
oxygen concentrators, ventilators
and other medical equipment for
hospitals to donating money to set
up Covid facilities in Mumbai, the
star has been in action throughout
the pandemic

BECAUSE if there’s a health issue

3 4 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1

AMITABH
BACHCHAN, 79

Actor

Our
Forever
Idol

SAMYUKTA LAKSHMI/ GETTY IMAGES

PARESH MEHTA NANDAN NILEKANI, 66

Co-founder, Infosys; former
Chairman, UIDAI

DIGITAL EVANGELIST

to advocate for, he is the favoured BECAUSE Nilekani ture of its CEO and a up with Ratan Tata
candidate. Bachchan lent his has emerged as boardroom shake-up to launch Avanti Fi-
voice to telephone messages for a troubleshooter #1 for nance and offer micro
government campaign promoting the government— BECAUSE he has loans to the poor
Covid-19 safety protocols, moti- from giving inputs on been at the forefront
vated frontline workers and raised the ongoing fintech of India’s digital BECAUSE Nilekani
awareness about mental health revolution in India to revolution, from has been nurturing
resolving issues with setting up Infosys in start-ups in India. He
BOL BACHCHAN Became the first GSTN and the new 1981 to now steering backs Fundamentum
Indian celebrity to have his voice income tax portal. He the digital payments Partnership, a $100
featured on Amazon’s Alexa. had convinced Prime campaign as head of million (Rs 750 crore)
On the device, ‘Amit ji’ narrates Minister Modi and the RBI committee venture capital fund
anecdotes, recites his father’s former finance min- on digital payments for tech companies
poems and motivational quotes ister Arun Jaitley to
persist with Aadhaar BECAUSE Nilekani, LOOKING AHEAD
WRITE WAY On Twitter, he num- and the Direct Ben- among the 100 rich- “Covid-19 widened
bers his tweets, on Tumblr he efit Transfer scheme. est Indians in 2021 the digital divide.
categorises his entries by day Nilekani was called with a net worth We must design ap-
back to Infosys—the of $3.4 billion (Rs plications in a
UP NE X T Jhund with Sairat second-largest Indian 25,585 crore), has way that even peo-
director Nagraj Manjule, Ekta IT company after pledged half his ple who don’t have
Kapoor’s Goodbye TCS—in 2017 after wealth to philan- access to devices
the sudden depar- thropy. He teamed can participate”

NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 INDIA TODAY 3 5

POWER PEOPLE

SHIV NADAR, 76

Founder and
Chairman Emeritus,
HCL Technologies

ROSHNI NADAR MALHOTRA, 39

Chairperson, HCL Technologies

SOFT
POWER

BECAUSE HCL pounded annual
Technologies con- growth rate over
tinues to innovate the past four years,
and ranks among with exceptional
the top 20 larg- performance across
est publicly traded all metrics in 2019-
companies in India, 20 as compared to
with a market capi- other technology
talisation of $50 players around
billion (Rs 3.76 lakh the world
crore) as in Septem-
ber 2021. According BECAUSE the
to Roshni Nadar Nadars are among
Malhotra, the the select few
company has had Indian billionaires
its highest com- on global rich lists.

THE BECAUSE he is aggressively
DIVERSIFIER expanding the diversified
group’s financial portfolio,
AJAY PIRAMAL, 66 completing the acquisi-
tion and merger of Dewan
Chairman, Housing Finance Limited
Piramal Group (DHFL) in September 2021,
marking the first success-
3 6 INDIA TODAY NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 ful resolution under the
Insolvency and Bankruptcy
Code (IBC) in the financial
services sector. The transac-
tion, for which the Piramal
Group paid Rs 34,250
crore, is amongst the largest
resolutions till date

MANDAR DEODHAR

With a net worth tutions that go
of $31 billion (Rs beyond the lifetime
2.33 lakh crore), of their founders to
Shiv Nadar ranked bring about long-
third in the 2021 term social trans-
Forbes India’s formation. Since its
100 Richest List. inception in 1994,
Roshni Nadar the Shiv Nadar
Malhotra was Foundation has in-
54th on the Forbes vested $988 million
World’s 100 Most (Rs 7,410 crore) to
Powerful Women create institutions
List in 2019 of transformational
education
BECAUSE the
Nadars have been WO R K O F A R T Shiv
consistently setting Nadar’s wife, Kiran
benchmarks in phi- Nadar, gave India
lanthropy. In 2019, its first philan-
Shiv Nadar topped thropic private art
the EdelGive Hu- museum in 2010—
run India Philan- the Kiran Nadar
thropy List, with a Museum of Art.
contribution of Rs She has also been
826 crore in 2018- working for the
19. In 2020, he was education of girls
ranked second (Rs in the backward
795 crore contrib- districts of Uttar
uted in 2019-20). Pradesh. She is a
Nadar follows the bridge player as
concept of ‘creative well and repre-
philanthropy’—the sented India at the
creation of insti- 2018 Asian Games

BECAUSE he is demerging Foundation tied up with tives, supported over 590 been training his two
the group’s pharmaceuti- the NITI Aayog in June farmers and over 450 daily grandchildren, aged 10
cal and financial services 2021 to launch an initiative wagers, distributed 9,700 and 8, to ride at the Ma-
arms into separate listed in 112 ‘aspirational’ dis- fresh produce baskets to halaxmi Racecourse
entities, getting back into tricts of India to assist ad- 48,700 individuals, and in Mumbai
the league of top Indian ministrations in providing acted as a bridge between
pharma companies a de- homecare to Covid patients the government and LIFE LESSONS
cade after selling off his who are asymptomatic or communities through Treats the Bhagavad Gita
drug-making business to have mild symptoms the 104 Health Helpline, as the ultimate manage-
Abbott Labs of the US. attending nearly a million ment and philosophy
The move will help the en- BECAUSE the Piramal calls related to Covid-19 resource. Has frequent
tities become future-ready Group and Piramal Foun- till date interactions with Profes-
and pursue growth strate- dation have, through the sor Nitin Nohria, former
gies with sharper focus pandemic, served nearly TRAINING GROUND dean of Harvard Busi-
27 million meals through A passionate polo player ness School, on busi-
BECAUSE the Piramal various food relief initia- himself, Piramal has nesses of the future

NOV E M BE R 1 , 2 02 1 INDIA TODAY 37

POWER PEOPLE

WALDO SWIEGERS/ GETTY IMAGES

ANIL AGARWAL, 67 BECAUSE Vedanta, an BECAUSE Vedanta is the 1,000 villages in 12 states,
oil and metals giant with only aluminium firm in impacting 2 million lives
Chairman, Vedanta revenues of $11.7 billion India to focus on volume
Resources (Rs 87,750 crore) in 2020- growth and recently anno- BECAUSE he laid out a
21, is looking to invest unced plans to expand its socio-economic develop-
MAJOR $20 billion (Rs 1.5 lakh aluminium capacity by 0.4 ment roadmap worth Rs
MINER crore) in India, including million tonnes and plans 5,000 crore over the next
buying companies in the to take the total to 2.8 mil- five years, under the Anil
government’s divestment lion tonnes over the next Agarwal Foundation, fo-
pipeline, such as BPCL 1-2 years cused on nutrition, women
and Shipping Corpora- and child development,
tion. It has floated a $10 BECAUSE Vedanta has healthcare, animal welfare
billion (Rs 75,000 crore) spent Rs 351 crore on and grassroots level sports
fund for the purpose Covid relief and set up 10
state-of-the-art field hos- SPRE ADING HOPE On
BECAUSE the rise in com- pitals with 1,000 critical the eve of Independence
modity prices is paying care beds across the coun- Day this year, Agarwal
rich dividends to Vedan- try through its Vedanta lent voice to an anthem
ta’s aluminium, zinc and Cares programme and of unity and hope, ‘Hum
oil businesses that form supplied over 2 million Hindustani’, which
over 90 per cent of its litres of oxygen to hospi- brought together 15 in-
EBITDA (earnings before tals. Through the ‘Swasth spiring Indians, including
interest, taxes, deprecia- Gaon Abhiyaan’, it plans to Lata Mangeshkar and
tion and amortisation) strengthen healthcare in Amitabh Bachchan

NARESH TREHAN, 75

Chairman & MD, Medanta
Heart Institute

MEDICAL GURU

BECAUSE he is on of providing quality BECAUSE he advo-
the Supreme Court- healthcare across cates research-based
appointed National states. Medanta medicare. Medanta is
Covid Taskforce to is now present in pioneering research
streamline oxygen al- Bihar, UP, Haryana, on Covid vaccines
location across India. Jharkhand and Mad- and medications like
He is also chairman of hya Pradesh antibody cocktails
the National Health-
care Council at CII BECAUSE he believes T E S T I N G T I M E Dur-
in reducing patient ing the second wave,
BECAUSE Medanta stress through the Medanta in Gu-
has been the go-to complete healthcare rugram, at one point,
hospital for VIPs solutions. Medanta’s had 700 patients
during the pandemic. Cancer Institute on oxygen support.
It set up a 700-bed brings together su- “I spent sleepless
Covid ward at the per-specialists from nights for three
height of the waves all fields of cancer so weeks overseeing
that patients can ac- the logistical man-
BECAUSE he has tak- cess diverse expertise agement needed for
en up the initiative at a single place patients to get bet-
ter,” says Trehan

RAJWANT RAWAT

POWER PEOPLE BANDEEP SINGH

AKSHAY SANJIV PURI, 59
KUMAR, 54
Chairman & MD,
Actor-Producer ITC Limited

VERSATILE HERO PACE-SETTER
FOR GREEN
BECAUSE he’s the most bankable actor of Hindi
cinema. With the might of the three Khans BECAUSE he has been ness, which accounts
waning, Kumar is in the driver’s seat. His films endeavouring to turn for 46 per cent of its
are seen as sure-shot money spinners at the ITC into a water- total revenue, to focus
box-office. That he works continuously and has and carbon-positive on the agriculture and
a release almost every quarter makes him a company. This includes foods segments
favourite of both audiences and theatre-owners drastically reducing
energy needs at their BECAUSE ITC has set
BECAUSE he was hero no. 1 during the premier hotels, creating a shining example of
pandemic. Whether it is teaming up with green buildings, mak- farmer-corporate coop-
his wife, Twinkle, to donate oxygen ing the paper board eration. The company
concentrators during the second wave, business environment says its e-Choupal agri
donating to help daily wage workers friendlier and raising procurement platform
in the entertainment industry or thousands of acres of helped farmers raise
being the face of public service ini- renewable forests productivity by 10-25
tiatives on responsible Covid-19 per cent in 2020-21
behaviour, Kumar has been ac- BECAUSE he leads and upped incomes by
tive in raising awareness India’s largest FMCG up to 50 per cent
conglomerate and is
BECAUSE he’s the most taking on MNCs Hin- TECH-SAVVY
wanted entertainer. His dustan Unilever, Nestle Puri is keenly inter-
penchant for films with and Pepsico head on. ested in digitising the
patriotic and social com- The group posted a group’s operations.
mentary makes him a safe, net profit of Rs 13,032 From e-Choupal to
reliable face for advertis- crore in 2020-21 procurement and
ers. His brand value of marketing, he is en-
$118.9 million (Rs 893 BECAUSE he is reduc- suring the corporation
crore), as per the latest Duff ing the group’s depen- becomes future-
& Phelps Celebrity Brand dence on tobacco busi- ready
Valuation report, is the highest
among all actors

BIG BA NG Y E A R There’s no
escaping Kumar in 2022.
He is expected to have seven
releases–Prithviraj, Bachchan
Pandey, Raksha Bandhan,
Ram Setu, OMG 2, a Pooja
Entertainment film and
Atrangi Re

H E A LT H A S S E T Kumar has
invested in GOQii, maker of
wearables and preventive
healthcare devices

SUJIT JAISWAL / AFP



POWER PEOPLE Big Wheel

R.C. BHARGAVA, 87 BECAUSE he’s a voice the face masks on a mass scale
government listens to, be it on
Chairman, Maruti Suzuki manufacturing policy, road- BECAUSE he stepped up the
map for the automotive sector company’s efforts to tackle
PRASHANTH VISHWANATHAN/ GETTY IMAGES or reforms that can have a Covid-19, working with two
far-reaching impact firms to set up oxygen plants.
By May 2021, 73 oxygen
BECAUSE India’s largest car generators had been
manufacturer Maruti Suzuki produced; it was scaled up to
produced 1,457,861 vehicles 140 units in June
in 2020-21 and earned a net
profit of Rs 4,229.7 crore on M R D E P E N DA B L E The bu-
revenues of Rs 66,562 crore reaucrat-turned-business
professional was once feted
BECAUSE Bhargava is giving by his mentor, former BHEL
thrust to greener vehicles. chairman V. Krishnamurthy,
Maruti Suzuki’s CNG car as someone “who would
sales jumped 48 per cent in try to find a solution to a
2020-21 even as overall sales problem and not a problem
contracted 8 per cent due to to a solution”
the pandemic
W H E N N O T WO R K I N G He pre-
BECAUSE Maruti Suzuki and fers light reading. After his
its suppliers worked with successful first book,
start-up firm AgVa Health- The Maruti Story, his next,
care to produce 10,000 ven- Getting Competitive: A Prac-
tilators by June 2020. It also titioners’ Guide for India, was
manufactured PPE kits and published last year

MONETISING EDUCATION

BYJU BECAUSE BYJU’s is has also put down start-up ecosystem
RAVEENDRAN, 40 one of India’s largest roots by buying Akash
learning platforms Educational Services BECAUSE BYJU’s
Founder, BYJU’s and the most valuable Learning App has
edtech company in BECAUSE Raveendran more than 100 million
the world. Since 2011, is the new posterboy of registered students
it has spent over $2.6 Indian entrepreneur- and 6.5 million paid
billion (Rs 19,400 ship. His firm recently annual subscriptions
crore) in acquisitions. raised $300 mn (Rs
Some of its biggest 2,240 crore), increas- D E E P P O C K E T S BYJU’s
buys were in 2020-21, ing its valuation from is the only start-up in
including the $300 $16.5 billion (Rs 1.23 India funded by the
mn (Rs 2,240 crore) lakh crore) in June to Chan-Zuckerberg
White Hat Jr deal and $18 billion (Rs 1.34 initiative (owned by
the $150 mn (Rs 1,120 lakh crore), surpassing Facebook founder
crore) Toppr deal. It Paytm’s position in the Mark Zuckerberg)











POWER PEOPLE

THE BIGGEST BULL

RAKESH BECAUSE at a time when
JHUNJHUNWALA, 61 India’s stock markets are ris-
ing—with the Sensex crossing
Owner, Rare the 60,000 mark just last
Enterprises; investor, month—the ‘big bull of the
trader and film stock markets’ is among the
producer most sought-after people in
India for investment advice.
His portfolio is currently
worth over Rs 40,000 crore

BECAUSE he is known to
choose stocks that give bum-
per returns, with Tata Group
companies Titan and Tata
Motors being his biggest bets

BECAUSE the Centre has
approved his plans for the
operation of a new airline,
Akasa Air, supported by ex-
Jet Airways CEO Vinay Dube
and with former IndiGo
president Aditya Ghosh also
on board. The airline is ex-
pected to take off next year

INVESTMENT PLANS
Jhunjhunwala says he usu-
ally books profits (sells his
stocks in a company) for
one of three reasons: if he
feels the stock’s earning
potential has peaked, if its
PE (price to earnings) ratio
has peaked, or if he sees a
better investment oppor-
tunity elsewhere. He began
his broking career in 1985
with a paltry Rs 5,000; to-
day, his net worth is around
$5.8 billion (Rs 43,500 crore)

Photograph by BANDEEP SINGH

VIJAY SHEKHAR
SHARMA, 43

Founder & CEO,
Paytm

THE CASHLESS
KING

BECAUSE Paytm has accelerated India’s
fintech evolution, with the company claiming
1.2 billion monthly transactions on March 1.
With over 150 million monthly active users,
Paytm has the highest market share in the
offline merchant payments space, with 15 per
cent month on month growth

BECAUSE Sharma is gearing up for an IPO
(hoping to raise $2.2 billion) which will make
it one of the biggest stock market listings
in the country, taking the valuation of the
company to $25 billion (Rs 1.88 lakh crore)

BECAUSE Sharma is one of India’s richest
entrepreneurs, according to the IIFL Wealth
Hurun India Rich List. The list says Sharma’s
wealth grew massively, his rank rising from
171 in 2016 to 44 in 2020

WON IN TRANSLATION
Sharma bunked his classes and studied in
the library instead using an English-to-
Hindi dictionary. His first start-up was born
in the hostel at Delhi College of Engineering

TOMOHIRO OHSUMI/ GETTY IMAGES

POWER PEOPLE

ETAIL INDIA COMPANY

AMIT AGGARWAL, 47 BECAUSE the e- elite group of execu- who is credited with
commerce giant is tives, the ‘S-Team’, making Amazon the
CEO, Amazon India betting big on India, is manning the con- largest online store
having pumped in glomerate’s fortunes in India within a year
over Rs 11,400 crore at a time when India of its launch, faces a
($1.5 billion) in FY is drafting new rules tough battle ahead
2019-20 across the for e-commerce with Walmart-
marketplace, pay- companies. He also owned Flipkart and
ments and wholesale has to ensure good Mukesh Ambani-led
business units and optics with the trader Reliance Industries
Aggarwal is the man community, for they jostling for the same
driving the whole form the bulwark of space
enterprise the ruling BJP’s sup-
port base B O O K WO R M Favou-
BECAUSE Aggarwal, rite book is Built to
part of Jeff Bezos’ BECAUSE Aggarwal, Last by Jim Collins

SANJIV
GOENKA, 60

Chairman, RP-Sanjiv
Goenka Group

Multi-Business Empire

BECAUSE Goenka spear- BECAUSE he is betting SUBIR HALDER
heads a conglomerate on the future with recent
with business interests media investments. The
across sectors, from media group publishes Fortune
to FMCG to IT to power. magazine and has a 51
He turned around Sarega- per cent stake in news
ma, Philips Carbon Black app Editorji
Ltd and First Source and
is targeting a group turn- HEALTHY OPTIONS
over of Rs 40,000 crore After foraying into the
in five years, led by power healthy snacks category
distribution and FMCG in the FMCG business,
all visitors at his office
BECAUSE As a former were asked to taste the
CII president, Goenka is healthy and fried ver-
one of the definitive voices sions of the same snack
from the industry. He is made by a competitor
also a member of the PM’s
council on trade and ind- A R T AT TAC K His head
ustry, and often provides office in Kolkata houses
feedback to the govern- one of the finest art col-
ment on policies, or flags lections
issues hurting industry