NEW YORK (Diya TV) — Fortune Magazine’s list of ‘World’s Greatest Leaders’ for 2016 features men and women from across the world who have excelled in business, government, philanthropy and the arts, and this year, additionally features a trio of India’s best and brightest — Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal came in with the No. 42 ranking, American politician and lawyer Reshma Saujani is ranked No. 20 and South Carolina governor Nikki Haley rounded out the trifecta with the highest ranking at No. 17.
Kejriwal’s ranking comes despite his recent popularity struggles due to the odd-even scheme. He stands alone on the list as the only Indian national in the rankings, where Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos sits atop. According to Fortune, Kejriwal, founder of the Aam Aadmi Party, has worked tirelessly towards controlling the pollution of one of the busiest metros in India through employing the odd-even scheme.
“When Kejriwal unveiled a blueprint to tackle the smog in New Delhi — called the world’s most polluted city by the World Health Organization — many were skeptical. A key component: an ‘odd-even’ pilot project in which vehicles were allowed on the roads only on alternate days,” Fortune writes.
It also added: “The uplifting result of the pilot this January: roads were less clogged, hourly particulate air pollution concentrations dropped by 13 percent, and citizens could breathe deeply.”
Reshma Saujani, CEO Girls Who Code
Saujani, founder and CEO of Girls Who Code, an organization which seeks to bridge the gap of gender in technology came in on the list at No. 20. The 40-year-old former Wall Street attorney has provided and fostered training and internship programs for more than 40,000 girls. During a TED talk in February, Saujani stressed the importance of teaching young girls to be brave rather than perfect.
Also on the list is Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who according to Fortune is the only female leader among the Organization of Islamic Cooperation member states.
“Hasina has deftly navigated the competing demands of Islamic tradition and women’s rights,” Fortune writes.
Pope Francis is listed at the 4th position followed by Apple CEO Tim Cook. Additionally, the names of German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2), Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at (3), US astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko (22), IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde (36), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Co-chair and CEO Melinda Gates and Susan Desmond-Hellmann (41), Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (48) and Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay (50).
