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NAME: SRICHAND PARMANAND HINDUJA
AGE: 71
DESIGNATION: Chairman
STATE: Hinduja Group |
S.P.
Hinduja, the eldest of the four Hinduja brothers, is once again
in the news. first, it was the Hinduja Group's interest in bidding
for Hutchison Essar. The group is no stranger to telecom and its
erstwhile operation in Gujarat, which was eventually merged with
Hutchison Essar, is today one of the most profitable telecom operations
in the country. While the decision of the group to sell its minority
stake in the company in mid-2006 fetched it a useful $450 million
(Rs 2,025 crore), the recent decision to bid for the company was
rather sudden. The other new development is his desire to revive
the group's coal-fired power project in Visakhapatnam. This 1,040
mw project has been delayed for several years. It was initially
under a company called Hinduja National Power Corporation. Today,
the group is keen on getting its act together on the project with
a new model where the state would not do much apart from transferring
the land. While the group currently holds 1,000 acres, it is seeking
the transfer of another 2,000 acres.
The $11-billion (Rs 49,500-crore) Hinduja Group-that's the consensus
figure floating around; most group companies are privately held;
hence, there are no official estimates on how large it is-is also
looking at investing in a big way in India. It is believed to
be looking at the insurance and auto ancillary sectors. While
the group already has a reasonably large presence in India through
companies like Ashok Leyland, IndusInd Bank and Hinduja TMT, its
broader focus has always been the overseas markets.
S.P. Hinduja, who is based in London, is keenly involved in
issues related to philosophy and spiritualism and is often heard
talking about dharma and philanthropy. Projects like the Hinduja
Foundation, the group's philanthropic institution, consumes a
large part of his time. Clearly, for S.P. Hinduja, life is not
just about work.
-Krishna Gopalan
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