Gates still the richest man - Forbes

NEW YORK, JUNE 16. Even though his personal fortune shrank by a third this past year, the $60 billion bankroll of Microsoft Corp. co-founder Mr. Bill Gates is still the world's richest man, according to Forbes magazine's rankings.

The gap between Mr. Gates and his challengers is narrowing, however, thanks to the booms and busts of the high-tech world he helped create.

The world's billionaires' club expanded this year to 482 from 465, pushing the combined wealth of the richest 200 working people in the world upwards of $1.1 trillion - a $100 billion increase from 1999, the magazine reported on Thursday. The rankings appear in the July 3 issue of the magazine, which reaches news stands today.

The 14th annual list of the working rich ranks Oracle Corp. founder Mr. Larry Ellison as the world's second-richest man with $47 billion.

11 Indians make it to the list

Eleven Indians including the Wipro chief Mr. Azim Premji, and Mr. Dhirubhai Ambani of Reliance Industries, have found place in the Forbes billionaires list, nine of them making it thanks to the ongoing information technology revolution.

Mr. Premji, whose Wipro is going for a $500 million listing in the Nasdaq bourse shortly, is the richest Indian with a net worth of $6.9 billion.Mr. Premji, who is happy flying in executive class and travelling in a Ford Escort car, is at the 38th slot.

The three Indians who are among the first 50 billionaires include U.S. settled Indian and founder of I2 Technologies, Mr. Sanjiv Sidhu, with his $6.5 billion worth and petrochemical king Mr. Dhirubhani Ambani along with his family.

While Mr. Ambani along with his family has been placed in the 40th position with $6.60 billion worth, the Hyderabad born 43 year old Mr. Sidhu whose I2 Technologies stock value went up 600 per cent last year is at 41st position with $6.5 billion.

Another U.S. settled Indian, Mr. Gururaj Deshpande, is at 113th position with $3.9 billion, while the HCL group chairman, Mr. Shiv Nadar, ($3.7 billion) is at 126th and Zee Telefilms promoter, Mr. Subhash Chandra, ($3 billion) at 151. The non- resident Indian, settled in the U.K., Mr. Lakshmi Mittal, who owns steel plants in many Asian and Southeast Asian countries is the 197th richest man with a worth of $2.1 billion, followed by the Usha group chairman, Mr. Vinay Ray, and family at the 200th position.

Others in the world's richest club are Mr. Kumar Mangalam Birla with $1.7 billion worth, Mr. Ramalinga Raju of Satyam Computers with $1.3 billion and and the U.K. settled Hinduja brothers with $1 billion.

- AP,PTI

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