The world economy may be slowing but India’s richest have grown even richer this year. The Forbes 2022 list of India’s 100 richest is finally here, according to which, the combined wealth of India’s 100 richest grew by $25 billion to touch a colossal $800 billion. The top 10 richest Indians are worth a cumulative $385 billion.
The gain was largely due to a record-breaking feat by infrastructure tycoon Gautam Adani, which changed the pecking order at the top for the first time since 2008, according to Fobes. He is also the biggest gainer this year in both percentage and dollar terms, Adani announced he would be investing $100 billion over the next decade, 70 percent of it in green energy.
Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani has bagged the top spot on the list with a net worth of a whopping $150 billion (Rs 1,211,460.11 crore). India’s richest person Adani is also the third richest billionaire globally.
Mukesh Ambani
Following Adani on the list is Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani with a net worth of $88 billion or Rs 710,723.26 crore, down 5 percent from last year. Between the top 2 richest Indians, Adani and Ambani now account for 30 per cent of the total wealth of India’s 100 richest.
Radhakishan Damani
The country’s retailing king, Radhakishan Damani, who owns the DMart chain of supermarkets, is the third richest India with a fortune of $27.6 billion (Rs 222,908.66 crore). He broke into the top three for the first time though his net worth declined by 6 per cent.
Cyrus Poonawalla
Another year of bumper profits from Covid-19 vaccines have made Chairman of the world’s largest vaccine manufacturing company’s Serum Institute of India’s Cyrus Poonawalla country’s 4th richest man. He has a net worth of $21.5 billion or Rs 173,642.62 crore.
Shiv Nadar
Worth $21.4 billion or Rs 172,834.97 crore, Shiv Nadar, Chairman Emeritus of HCL Technologies, donated $662 million to education-related causes this year and witnessed the largest drop in net worth in absolute terms.
Savitri Jindal
India’s richest woman and the Chairperson Emeritus of O.P. Jindal Group Savitri Jindal is the only woman billionaire in the Forbes top 10 list. Her net worth is $16.4 billion or Rs 132,452.97 crore.
Dilip Shanghvi
Sun Pharmaceuticals’ founder’s son Dilip Sanghvi is worth $15.5 billion or 125,184.21 crore. He is the central board member of the Reserve Bank of India.
Hinduja Brothers
Worth $15.2 billion or Rs 122,761.29 crore, Srichand, Gopichand, Prakash, and Ashok Hinduja control the Hinduja Group started by Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja in 1914.
Kumar Birla
The chairman of the textiles-to-cement conglomerate Aditya Birla Group has net worth $15 billion or Rs 121,146.01 crore. Birla inherited the group at the age of 28 when his father, Aditya Birla, died in 1995.
Bajaj Family
The family owns a network of 40 companies under the Bajaj Group and is worth $14.6 billion or Rs 117,915.45 crore. The 96-year-old family-led business was started by Jamnalal Bajaj in Mumbai in 1926.
| RANK | NAME | NET WORTH (in Rupees) |
| 1 | Gautam Adani | Rs 1,211,460.11 crore |
| 2 | Mukesh Ambani | Rs 710,723.26 crore |
| 3 | Radhakishan Damani | Rs 222,908.66 crore |
| 4 | Cyrus Poonawalla | Rs 173,642.62 crore |
| 5 | Shiv Nadar | Rs 172,834.97 crore |
| 6 | Savitri Jindal | Rs 132,452.97 crore |
| 7 | Dilip Shanghvi | Rs 125,184.21 crore |
| 8 | Hinduja Brothers | Rs 122,761.29 crore |
| 9 | Kumar Birla | Rs 121,146.01 crore |
| 10 | Bajaj Family | Rs 117,915.45 crore |
New Faces on India’s 100 richest list
Forbes said that are nine new faces this year, including three from IPOs: Falguni Nayar, a former banker who became India’s richest self-made woman after listing her beauty and fashion retailer Nykaa; ethnic garments maker Ravi Modi; and shoemaker Rafique Malik, who listed Metro Brands last December. Late ‘Big Bull’ Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s wife Rekha Jhunjhunwala has replaced him on India’s Rich List. Her net worth is Rs 47,650.76 crore.
Returnees on Forbes rich list
Among the four returnees on the list is Anand Mahindra with a net worth of $2.2 billion or Rs 17,768.08 crore. Bhadresh Shah (Rs 15,345.16 crore), Anu Aga (Rs 18,010.37 crore) and Joy Alukkas (Rs 25,036.84 crore) are also among the returnees on the rich list.
Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma was a notable name among the drop-offs, who saw shares of his One97 Communications tank amid the global tech rout. The cutoff for the top 100 was $1.9 billion this year.
