Savitri Jindal tops Forbes’ list to become the richest woman in India

Savitri Jindal is now the richest Indian woman, with a net worth of $35.5 billion in the Forbes’ World Billionaires list 2024. 

Jindal grew up in Tinsukia, a small town near Guwahati. Married to the founder and chairperson of Jindal Group, O.P. Jindal, she was happy being a homemaker devoted to bringing up her nine children. 

After her husband died in 2005, she took over as the chairperson of the steel and power conglomerate. She also served a stint as Cabinet Minister in the Haryana State Government.

With Mukesh Ambani topping the list of Indian billionaires at a net worth of $116 billion, followed by Gautam Adani at $84 billion, Jindal is the fourth richest individual in India. She stands at 46th position in the world. In 2023, she stood at a net worth of $24 billion.

In 2024, Forbes reported that the number of Indian billionaires on its list increased to 200, up from 169 the previous year. Additionally, the proportion of female billionaires rose to 13.3%, with 369 out of 2,781 billionaires being women, compared to 12.8% in 2023 when there were 337 female billionaires.

For the fourth year, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, the heiress of L’Oréal, remains the wealthiest woman globally. Over the past year, her fortune surged by $19 billion, reaching a net worth of $99.5 billion. This increase marks the largest gain among women listed in 2024 as per the report.

Rekha Jhunjhunwala, widow of India's Warren Buffett Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Vinod Rai Gupta from Havells India, and Renuka Jagtiani, chairperson and CEO of the Landmark Group, were other Indian women on the list.