The most powerful Indians in 2011

That’s less churn than in our 2010 power list,which had 36 new entrants. But look closer,the churn this year is more intense. The top 30 in this year’s power list and their ranks tell us a big story — power has partly shifted,from a weakened government to a stronger Opposition and watchdog institutions,from India Inc. to sophisticated activism. There are establishment figures who are far less or far more powerful this year compared to 2010. Therefore,the usual order could no longer apply when we picked the names. And it’s not just in the top 30,there are some fascinating changes elsewhere on the list.

These big changes were what our jury — excluded from this list — sought to identify when they sat down to the tough job of picking the 100 most powerful people in a country of 1.2 billion. As has been the norm,the jury’s decisions were based on the candidate’s ability to command influence; being talented or being a high achiever isn’t enough. And power can be “negative” — the power to disrupt,to block — and we have tried to capture that,too. Happily,there are some who earned their place primarily because their exercise of power was wonderfully positive.

Last year,we had mentioned that the Indian Express annual power lists over a few years,when read together,will be a great way to identify generational change among the most powerful. Are the powerful getting younger? Not quite,but it’s not all bad news. Thirty-eight of those who make it to the list are in the 51-60 age bracket — that’s the largest category. That’s followed by 29 in the 61-70 age bracket. But the average age of those on the list is 56,and that for the top 20 is 46.25. Those are good numbers for those looking for signs of relative youth in the establishment.

As always,we have mini lists: our pick of the top 10 from various fields,from social activism to party hosting. And,as always,if you disagree with our jury,please let us know,at ie100@expressindia.com.