A mere nine women chief executive officers (CEOs) and 25 women managing directors (MDs) are at the helm of top 500 listed companies in India, according to the data tabled by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in Lok Sabha on Monday.
The data further shows that there are 67 women executive directors (whole-time directors) and 22 women chief financial officers (CFOs) in these top 500 companies categorised based on their turnover.
The government’s response came in reply to questions raised by rebel Trinamool Congress MP Sayani Gosh, who asked whether the Government has assessed the representation of women in senior corporate leadership and the major barriers affecting their progression.
The Corporate Affairs Ministry data further shows that there are a total of 638 independent directors and overall 860 directors or board members in the top 500 listed companies in India. The directors include additional directors (18), directors (738), managing directors(25), nominee directors (12) and whole-time directors (67).
If we look at women’s participation across all companies, the data shows that 11.60 lakh women directors are associated with active companies, out of a total of 39.99 lakh directors. There are a total of 21.39 lakh companies and 5.06 lakh LLPs are currently active across the states. A total of 15.48 lakh companies were registered in the last 10 years.
Vibha Padalkar of HDFC Life, Vishakha Mulye of Aditya Birla Capital, Priya Nair of Hindustan Unilever, Praveena Rai of Multi Commodity Exchange of India, who earlier served as CEO of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), Prabha Narasimhan of Colgate-Palmolive (India) and Jasleen Kohli of Digit Insurance are among the prominent women MD and CEO of the country.
The Ministry said that no such assessment regarding barriers to progression of women directors has been done.
According to the Companies Act, 2013 and Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014, every listed company and every unlisted public company having paid-up share capital of Rs. 100 crore or more or having turnover of Rs 300 crores or more must appoint at least one woman director on its Board. Apart from this, any intermittent vacancy of a woman director shall be filled up by the Board not later than the immediate next Board meeting or three months from the date of such vacancy.
The rule also provided that the sitting fee of a woman director shall not be less than the sitting fee payable to other directors.
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs also provided data on non-compliance with statutory requirements for the appointment of women directors. It shows that over the last five years, from 2021-22 to 2025-26, a total of 50 adjudication orders were passed by the Registrars of Companies, imposing penalties amounting to Rs 71.01 lakh. Of these, two orders were passed in 2021-22, 10 in 2022-23, 19 in 2023-24, 11 in 2024-25 and eight in 2025-26.
Dheeraj Mishra is a Principal Correspondent with the Business Bureau of The Indian Express. He plays a critical role in covering India's massive infrastructure sectors, providing in-depth reporting on the connectivity lifelines of the nation. Expertise & Focus Areas: Mishra’s journalism is focused on two of the country's most capital-intensive and public-facing ministries: Ministry of Railways: Tracking the operations, safety, and development of India's vast railway network. Ministry of Road Transport & Highways: Covering policy decisions, infrastructure projects, and highway development. What sets Mishra apart is his rigorous use of the Right to Information (RTI) Actas a primary tool for news gathering. By relying on official data and government records, he ensures a high degree of accuracy and trustworthiness in his reporting. This data-driven approach has resulted in numerous impactful reports that hold public institutions accountable and bring transparency to government operations. Find all stories by Dheeraj Mishra here ... Read More
