Heritage Foods puts Naidu at the top of ADR list of richest CMs
- He has been declared the richest CM in India, with wealth worth around Rs 931 cr, mainly from his family’s stake in Heritage Foods Ltd.
- Heritage Foods, co-founded by Naidu in 1992 and managed by his wife Bhuvaneswari and daughter-in-law Brahmani, has grown from a small dairy business to a company with Rs 4,381 cr market capitalisation and a Rs 4,000 cr annual turnover
New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has once again emerged as the richest chief minister in the country, according to the annual report released by the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR).
Based on affidavits filed before the last assembly elections, Naidu’s declared wealth stands at around Rs 931 crore. Most of it is attributed to his family’s stake in Heritage Foods Ltd, a dairy retail company he founded over three decades ago.
While Naidu himself holds no shares in Heritage Foods, his wife N Bhuvaneswari owns a 24.37 per cent stake. The Nara family collectively owns about 41.3 per cent of the company. Heritage Foods, established in 1992 with an authorised capital of Rs 1 crore and paid-up capital of just Rs 7,000, has grown into a major dairy brand with a market capitalisation of Rs 4,381 crore as of Friday’s BSE closing price. The company hit its peak valuation of Rs 6,755 crore in June 2024.
Heritage Foods officials assert that the firm is a pure-play dairy business and not linked to sectors like infrastructure that often benefit from state support. The company does not receive subsidies or special concessions, they added.
Heritage began operations in 1993 and went public the following year, raising Rs 6.5 crore through an IPO oversubscribed 54 times. The first milk chilling plant was set up in Chittoor district with an investment of Rs 1.6 crore, handling 19,000 litres per day and generating Rs 4.36 crore revenue in its debut year.
Since then, the company’s turnover has crossed several milestones: Rs 100 crore by FY 2000, Rs 1,000 crore by FY 2011, and Rs 4,000 crore by FY 2025. Its net worth has grown from Rs 9.99 crore in 1994 to Rs 972 crore. Expansion was funded through loans from major banks, all of which have been repaid; Heritage is now debt-free.
Bhuvaneswari has been managing director since 1994, while Naidu’s daughter-in-law Nara Brahmani serves as executive director. Nearly three lakh dairy farmers across nine states are associated with Heritage, whose products are sold in 17 states. Officials credit the firm’s growth to ethical practices, farmer empowerment and consumer trust rather than political influence. At the other end of the ADR list, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has the lowest declared assets among India’s chief ministers.
