In a time when entrepreneurial achievements frequently take centre stage, the appeal of salaried positions may seem to have diminished. But, contrary to widespread perception, the realm of salaried employment remains vibrant, particularly for those leading the most esteemed corporations in India. Presented below are details on the top-earning CEOs in the country.

1. Thierry Delaporte, Wipro

Wipro’s Managing Director, Thierry Delaporte is the highest-paid CEO in India. As per data reported in March 2023, the 56-year-old took home ₹82.4 crore for FY23 (April 2022-March 2023). An increase of around 3.3% from the ₹79.8 crore salary he received in FY2022.

2. Sandeep Kalra, Persistent Systems

Sandeep Kalra who is the Executive Director & CEO of Persistent Systems made ₹61.7 crore during the last financial year. His salary saw an increase of around 31% from the ₹46.9 crore he took home in FY22. The 51-year-old joined the company in 2019 and was made CEO in 2020.

3. Nitin Rakesh, Mphasis

The IT services giant’s head honcho made ₹59.2 crore in FY23. As per the company’s disclosure, Rakesh’s salary went up 68.4% from the ₹35.1 crore he made in FY22. The Harvard alum joined the company as CEO in 2017.

4. Salil S Parekh, Infosys

The head of the country’s second-biggest IT company made 56.45 crores in FY23, marking a 23% slump from the ₹71 crore salary he took home in FY22. The 59-year-old IIT alum joined the company in 2018 as CEO.

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5. Sanjay Nayak, Tejas Networks

Tejas Network, a subsidiary of the Tata Group is helmed by Sanjay Nayak. Nayak took home a total of 52.3 crore last financial year, a massive 1858.8% increase from the 2.7 crore salary he received in FY22. The huge increase includes the value of stock options he exercised during the period. If we cut that out, his effective salary would be around ₹2.7 crore same as last year.

6. Rajiv Bajaj, Bajaj Auto

Effectively the first non-tech entry in this list is the head honcho of Bajaj Auto, Rajiv Bajaj. His salary for the financial year stood at ₹47.6 crore, a year-on-year increase of around 4.5%. The eldest son of business tycoon Late Rahul Bajaj, Rajiv holds several key positions across Bajaj Group companies.

7. S N Subrahmanyan, L&T

Gracing the seventh position on this list is the CEO and Managing Director of construction giant Larsen & Toubro. In FY23, Subrahmanyan took home a sweet 35.67 crore. The 63-year-old is also the Vice Chairman on the boards of LTIMindtree and L&T Technology Services, Chairman of L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited, and Director and Chairperson of L&T Finance Holdings Ltd.

8. Sudhir Singh, Coforge

Sudhir Singh, Executive Director and CEO of IT firm Coforge drew ₹33.94 crore as salary for FY23. This is a 51% increase from the ₹22.3 crore salary he drew in FY22. He was appointed CEO in 2020.

9. C P Gurnani, Tech Mahindra

Taking the ninth spot on the list is the 63-year-old Managing Director and CEO of Tech Mahindra. Gurnani’s salary for the financial year 2023 was ₹30.1 crore. The corporate veteran has been with the company for over 18 years and was appointed CEO in 2009.

10. Rajesh Gopinathan, Tata Consultancy Services

The last spot on the list belongs to another tech CEO. The man running India’s biggest IT firm drew around ₹29.16 crore in the year ended March 2023. Gopinathan joined the company in 2001, and was appointed CFO in 2013. He took over as the CEO in 2017.

Note- Names like Pawan Munjal of HeroMoto Corp and Murali K Divi of Divi’s Labs have not been included in the list since they do not hold the CEO position. In FY23, Munjal’s salary stood at ₹99.55 crore while Divi took home ₹70.49 crore in remuneration.

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_{Note: The list comprises CEOs of listed Indian companies included in the Nifty 500.
Source: Trendlyne and Annual Reports of the companies.}