Jaiprakash Gaur | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1 January 1931[ citation needed ] |
| Alma mater | University of Roorkee (1950) |
| Relatives | Manoj Gaur, Rita Dixit, Sameer Gaur |
Jaiprakash Gaur (born c.1930[ citation needed ]) is an Indian entrepreneur. He founded and, until his retirement in 2010, was the chairman of Jaypee Group, a conglomerate with a heavy emphasis on engineering and construction (particularly for infrastructure and power projects), cement, and hydropower production. In 2012 he was ranked by Forbes magazine as the 70th-richest person in India, with an estimated net worth of US$855 million. [1] Gaur has been associated with the construction industry for more than five decades. [2]
Gaur was born in a Gaur Brahmin [3] family of the village Chitta near Bulandshahr in present Uttar Pradesh. [4] His father was an agricultural inspector in the British government and worked as a serviceman in Beej Godam, Pakki Sarai at Anupshahr. He completed his secondary education at LDAV Inter College, Anupshahr. After graduating as a civil engineer from the University of Roorkee (now IIT Roorkee), he worked as a junior engineer in the Uttar Pradesh State Irrigation Department. [5] [6] [7]
After graduation, Gaur joined the state government's irrigation department as a junior engineer. [8] Subsequently he started his own venture as a civil contractor. [6] [9] Two decades later, he laid the foundation for the Jaypee Group by setting up Jaiprakash Associates, a civil engineering and construction company. [9] [10] To leave a secure government job and pursue contractorship in 1958, when it was considered to be most prestigious, required courage. In 1967, he led and transformed a motley group of persons into a company which took pride in its cable address "Iron Will" and went on to execute:
In 2010 he was ranked by Forbes magazine as the 48th-richest person in India, with an estimated wealth of US$1.5 billion. [8]