Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, a member of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), is now the richest minister in Narendra Modi's cabinet, with a family net worth of Rs. 5,705 crore. Pemmasani and Jyotiraditya M. Scindia were the only two among the top 10 richest winners in the recent Lok Sabha polls to be sworn in as ministers.
According to Pemmasani's election declaration, his wife Sriratna Koneru had assets valued at Rs. 2,324 crore, while he had a net worth of Rs. 2,388 crore. The combined assets of his daughter and son were Rs. 496 crore. Shares in Go4Funding, Pemmasani Huffman Investments, Pemmasani Interests, and Aspen Publishing are among the investments that have contributed to Pemmasani's riches. In addition, he founded and serves as CEO of the online education portal UWorld.
Pemmasani, who grew up in the rural Burripalem village near Tenali in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, is well-known for her rise to political prominence. Later on, his father, a TDP leader, moved to Narasaraopet town and operated a guesthouse. Pemmasani took the Andhra Pradesh Medical Entrance Test (EAMCET) in 1993–1994 and placed 27th. She attended a government school that was taught in Telugu. He attended Geisinger Medical Center in Pennsylvania, USA, for post-graduate work after receiving his MBBS from Osmania Medical College in Hyderabad.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Pemmasani earned 344,695 votes, surpassing Kilari Venkata Rosaiah of the YSRCP by more than 3.4 lakh votes. His appointment to Modi's 3.0 cabinet, which emphasizes the TDP's powerful influence and strategic partnership with the BJP, highlights his rapid rise in the political world.
Pemmasani is involved in charitable work through the Pemmasani Foundation in Dallas, in addition to his political and economic activities. In addition to working on numerous water supply projects in Andhra Pradesh, such as drilling borewells, erecting reverse osmosis water plants, and placing overhead tanks to lessen Palnadu's drinking water shortages, the organization offers medical care to non-resident Indians (NRIs) without insurance.
At 48, Pemmasani replaces Galla Jayadev as the TDP representative from Guntur. It is expected that his rapid rise in popularity and considerable financial ability will provide new insight to the federal government. On social media, Jayadev Galla, a businessman and former TDP MP, thanked Pemmasani and expressed happiness and confidence in his new position.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/ Susmita Bhandary/MSM)
