Sitharaman breaks into Forbes 100 powerful women list

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, HCL Corporation CEO and executive director Roshni Nadar Malhotra and Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw have been named among the world's 100 most powerful women by Forbes. 

The Forbes 2019 list of ‘The World's 100 Most Powerful Women' has been topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, followed by President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde in the second spot and Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, ranked third. Also on the list is Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina (29). 

“In 2019, women around the globe took action, claiming leadership positions in government, business, philanthropy and media. These trailblazers are not to be messed with,” Forbes said. 

Sitharaman, a newcomer on the Forbes most powerful women list, is ranked 34th. India's first female finance minister, Sitharaman had also served as the country's defence minister. 

Sitharaman is the first female to hold the portfolio full time. Before this, former prime minister Indira Gandhi briefly took the additional charge of the ministry. 

Roshni Nadar Malhotra is ranked 54th on the list. As CEO of HCL Corporation, she is responsible for all strategic decisions for the USD 8.9 billion technology company. 

Malhotra is also the chairperson of the company's CSR Committee and is a trustee of the Shiv Nadar Foundation, which is focused on education and has established some of India's top colleges and schools, Forbes said. 

Mazumdar-Shaw, ranked 65 on the list, is India's richest self-made woman and founder of the country's largest biopharmaceutical firm Biocon in 1978. 

Biocon has “successfully forayed into the lucrative US biosimilars market, catching the attention of investors” and it also became the first company to gain approval from the USFDA for two different biosimilars of drugs used in certain cancer treatments. 

Mazumdar-Shaw has invested in research infrastructure and scientific talent with the aim of building a deep R&D-based biotech firm, not a copycat generics maker, Forbes said. 

The Forbes list also includes Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Melinda Gates (6), IBM CEO Ginni Rometty (9), Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg (18), New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern (38), daughter and advisor to President Donald Trump Ivanka Trump (42), singers Rihanna (61), Beyonce (66) and Taylor Swift (71), tennis star Serena Williams (81) and teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg (100). 

Referring to Pelosi's recent "Don't mess with me” remark to a reporter, Forbes said that could be the mantra for just about every one of the Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women. 

"The top-ranked woman for the ninth year in a row, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is crusading against anti-immigrant sentiment in Europe; Taylor Swift is battling industry stalwarts and private equity firms over musician song-ownership rights; and 16-year-old environmental activist Greta Thunberg -- one of 23 newcomers to the list -- is fighting inaction on climate change and galvanizing millions of young people around the globe."