Anil Ambani Gets Almost Same Pay as Brother Mukesh, PTI Reports

By Pratik Parija

Aug. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Anil Ambani, India's second-richest man, got total remuneration of 434.4 million rupees ($10 million) in the year ended March, compared with the 440 million rupees earned by elder brother Mukesh, Press Trust of India said.

Anil's compensation, received from his five group companies, including Reliance Communications Ltd., is 18 times the 24 million rupees he earned in 2007, the report said, citing annual reports of the companies.

Mukesh, India's richest man, received 304.6 million rupees in 2007 from Reliance Industries Ltd. and 247.7 million rupees in 2006. He didn't take any pay from the group's Reliance Petroleum Ltd. and Reliance Industrial Infrastructure Ltd., the report said.

Both got an equal salary of 210 million rupees from Reliance Industries before parting ways, Press Trust said.

The brothers split the Reliance Group in June 2005 after an ownership dispute in an agreement brokered by their mother, widow of founder Dhirubhai Ambani.

Mukesh is chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd., the nation's biggest company, and Anil is chairman of Reliance Communications, India's second-largest cellular phone operator. Anil also heads Reliance Infrastructure Ltd., the third-biggest utility, Reliance Capital Ltd., Reliance Power Ltd. and Reliance Natural Resources.

Mukesh Ambani, 51, is the world's fifth-richest man, with a personal fortune of $43 billion, according to Forbes. Anil, 49, is ranked sixth by the magazine, with $42 billion.

To contact the reporter on this story: Pratik Parija in New Delhi at pparija@bloomberg.net.