India’s richest family, known for its lavish lifestyle and control of India’s most valuable company, has a new venture: building the largest zoo in the world.
The Ambanis, the billionaire family that owns the $ 168 billion conglomerate Reliance Industries, plans to build a 280-acre zoo and animal rescue reserve called “Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Kingdom” in Jamnagar, a city west of India, to build, reports The Week Magazine. Reliance owner and majority shareholder Mukesh Ambani is worth $ 78.3 billion, making him the 12th richest person in the world.
The zoo is the ‘pet project’ of Anant Ambani, the 25-year-old son of Mukesh Ambani, according to The Week. Anant is a board member at Jio, Reliance’s telecommunications arm. The zoo is being built near the company’s refinery in Jamnagar, according to The Week.
Anant Ambani arrives at his sister’s wedding in Mumbai in December 2018.
Milind Shelte / The India Today Group via Getty Images
According to local media reports, Anant Ambani’s Zoo is home to nearly 100 species of animals, birds and reptiles from India and around the world, including African lions, piggy hippos, Bengal tigers and Komodo dragons. The animals are housed in different areas with names like Frog House, Dragon’s Land, Aquatic Kingdom, Indian Desert and Exotic Island.
Criticism delivered after two rare black panthers were agreed
The Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Kingdom, which is expected to open in 2023, has already sparked some controversy.
In January, Reliance Industries entered into an agreement to acquire two rare black panthers from the Assam State Zoo in Guwahati, reports the Times of India. In return, Reliance agreed to send the Guwahati Zoo two pairs of zebras from Israel. According to Northeast Now News, activists and a local political party have criticized the criticism of the transfer of the panthers from the state-run Guwahati Zoo to the Ambanis’ private zoo.
‘It seems that even wild animals kept in captivity in zoos cannot escape the tentacles of large corporate houses, given the recent’ hush-hush ‘transfer of two black panthers from the state zoo in Guwahati to a zoo in Gujarat by the Ambanis Dependency Group has proven, ‘said Bobbeeta Sharma, leader of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee, according to a statement.
A pair of black panthers in a zoo in France in 2010.
JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN / AFP via Getty Images
About 100 activists gathered in front of the Guwahati Zoo to protest the transfer of the panthers on Sunday via Telegraph India.
It is unclear whether Reliance bought the 280 hectares in Jamnagar with the aim of developing the zoo and whether the company already owns the land. A Reliance spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.
A family that mixes with celebrities and technical executives
Mukesh Ambani, 63, was the richest man in Asia for about two years before being dethroned by Chinese bottled water and vaccine billionaire Zhong Shanshan in December. Yet he is the second richest man in Asia and by far the richest man in India – the next richest is Gautam Adani, who has a fortune of $ 45 billion compared to Ambani’s $ 78 billion.
The Ambani family is known for its lavish lifestyle. They live in a 27-story skyscraper in Mumbai, with three helicopter plates and an estimated $ 1 billion in food to build. The 2018 wedding of Ambani’s daughter, Isha Ambani, was attended by the likes of Hillary Clinton, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas. And perhaps most impressive, Beyoncé delivered a private performance.
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Reliance Industries – founded by Mukesh Ambani’s father – is the most valuable company in India, with weapons in energy, telecommunications, retail, petrochemicals, and more.
Ambani’s other two children, 29-year-old twins Isha Ambani and Akash Ambani, also play roles at the company.
According to Business Today, Isha holds two board and advisory roles at Jio, the lucrative telecommunications company Reliance, which secured a $ 5.7 billion investment from Facebook last year. Akash also works at Jio as part of the executive committee. He is involved in the company’s product development, messaging and chat services.