Sonia, Nooyi power way into top ten in Forbes Women List

New York, Aug 31 (UNI) Congress president Sonia Gandhi is the sixth most powerful woman in the world, strides ahead of US presidential aspirant Hillary Clinton, while Pepsico chief executive Indra Nooyi occupies the fifth slot, according to the Forbes Magazine's annual list.

India's place in the global power map is reflected in the reputed magazine's List of the Top 100 most powerful women where Ms Gandhi, who heads the ruling UPA coalition, has captapulted to the sixth rung from last year's 13th slot.

She is ranked above Senator Clinton, who is more than 20 places behind her at the 26th position, entertainment czarina Oprah Winfrey(21), Queen Elizabeth II (23) and Melinda Gates (24), co-chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.

''The Italian-born leader of India's most powerful political party, the Indian National Congress Party, has come far since entering politics in the 1990s. Lawmakers recently elected Gandhi's choice for president, Pratibha Patil, in a historic vote seen as a step forward for India's women...Gandhi is widely revered by her fellow countrymen, especially among India's poor..,'' the magazine said.

While the country's political muscle is flexed by Ms Gandhi's position in the power sweepstakes, the Indian-born Nooyi continues to fly the business flag though she has dropped a rung from last year's fourth slot.

For the second year in running, German Chancellor Angela Merkel tops the list, while Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi has jumped a slot to become the world's second most powerful woman.

Although she continues to wield the US administration's power at the fourth slot, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has dropped two places from last year. According to the magazine, ''Rice sits at the centre'' of the world's negative reaction to the Bush regime's policies.

While 5 slots in the top 10 ten have been bagged by the US, three places have gone to Asia's bag with India, China and Singapore making their presence felt at the 6th, 2nd and 3rd position respectively.

Indian-born Chairman of the 2 bilion dollar Jumbo Group Vidya Chhabria, headquartered in Dubai, is ranked 97th in the elite list.

Jordan's Queen Rania, feted by the magazine as a champion of women's rights in the Middle East, is at 82 in the powerstakes while Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, UAE princess and minister of economy since 2004, narrowly made it to the list at the 99th place.

The magazine said the list was based on a power ranking that is the composite of visibility (measured by press citations) and economic impact.

UNI