MUMBAI // Sminu Jindal is something of a corporate star.
She is a young Indian entrepreneur who is an inspiration to thousands of business school graduates.
And for good reason.
Ms Jindal, who uses a wheelchair and is in her 30s, leads Jindal Saw, a multimillion-dollar industrial piping company.
She said being a woman on top of the corporate world in India is not always easy - because of prejudices and age-old traditions.
But the tide is slowly turning.
"Discrimination against women in the Indian corporate world still exists, but because of the increased importance of the private sector and rise of multinational companies, the climate is getting better and there's an increase of women managers," she said.
Ms Jindal's words are backed by fresh research from the accountancy firm Grant Thornton, which found that the number of women in top management roles in India is increasing. The percentage of women in senior management has risen to 14 per cent this year from 9 per cent last year, according to Grant Thornton. The corresponding figure globally was 21 per cent, the company found.
India's top female leaders say women are getting ahead thanks to a growing female-friendly culture at corporations in India and the fact that companies are becoming more sensitive to working women's needs.
"Women have much more freedom in their choices today than ever before in India, in terms of part-time work, flexible hours and home working and second career chances. The way ahead looks even … brighter as women are getting recognised for leadership roles not only nationally but on international platforms, too," said Renu Sud Karnad, themanaging director of HDFC, India's largest mortgage company, with annual revenue of about US$5.6 billion (Dh20.57bn).
The report revealed that 66 per cent of Indian businesses support flexible working hours and working from home for women.
This number is higher than the global average of 52 per cent, thanks to widely improved human resources policies.
"These days, HR policies are much more people-friendly. They are looking at encouraging support systems and the overall environment to make it more facilitative towards people with families," said Ms Karnad.
It may not be surprising then that the study revealed human resources was the favourite profession for women, with 23 per cent holding senior positions. Finance and sales ranked number two and three, respectively.
But there is still a long way to go before India reaches equality in the boardrooms. The country remains a largely patriarchal society governed by ancient rules and unwritten customs. "India is a country that prides itself on being a traditional society.
"But the downside of it is that women face everyday social pressure to conform to traditional roles," said Ms Jindal.
But companies that embrace more female directors could be more successful, experts say.
"Investors may see outcomes of having woman on the board as an indication of forward planning and future value in a globalising world, where sensitivity to different outcomes is essential for long-term survival," said Amita Joseph, the director of the Business and Community Foundation, a non-governmental organisation in Delhi.
The Grant Thornton survey covered more than 6,000 businesses globally publicly listed and privately held.
business@thenational.ae
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
yallacompare profile
Date of launch: 2014
Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer
Based: Media City, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: 120 employees
Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)
The specs: 2019 Haval H6
Price, base: Dh69,900
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 197hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 315Nm @ 2,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
UK%20record%20temperature
%3Cp%3E38.7C%20(101.7F)%20set%20in%20Cambridge%20in%202019%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Pad Man
Dir: R Balki
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte
Three-and-a-half stars
Walls
Louis Tomlinson
3 out of 5 stars
(Syco Music/Arista Records)
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
'The Ice Road'
Director: Jonathan Hensleigh
Stars: Liam Neeson, Amber Midthunder, Laurence Fishburne
2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The%20specs%3A%202024%20Mercedes%20E200
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
2024%20Dubai%20Marathon%20Results
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
