DON'T MISS! The most POWERFUL women in theworld.

Rediff.com presents the list of the most powerful women in the world, as per the latest Forbes rankings. Sonia Gandhi C ongress party president Sonia Gandhi was on Wednesday ranked the sixth most powerful woman in the world ahead of US First Lady Michelle Obama, by Forbes magazine in its list of 100 influential women. Gandhi, 65, is among the five Indian women who have been named in the 'World's 100 Most Powerful Women' list released by Forbes on Wednesday. The United Progressive Alliance chairperson was ranked 7th last year. The US-based business magazine said Gandhi, the 'one-time heir to the Nehru-Gandhi political dynasty', successfully underwent a surgery last year and was 'back in fighting spirit last month when she publicly reprimanded a fellow parliamentarian during session who had criticised herparty's handling of this summer's rioting in Assam'. The longest serving chief in the Congress party's history, Gandhi has had to defend herself and the party after a spate of key assembly elections this year, blaming the drubbing on weak candidates and state party organisations. "Lauded for overseeing heavy economic growth, she is also criticised for tolerating political corruption and failing to forge connections with India's fastest-growing demographic--younger voters," the publication said. Angela Merkel G erman Chancellor Angela Merkel has been named as theworld's No 1 Most Powerful Woman for the second year ina row by Forbes. The publication has regarded Merkel as 'The Iron Lady of Europe' and the lead player inthe eurozone economic drama that continues to threaten global markets. Hillary Clinton U nited States Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has been ranked No 2 in the Forbes list. "In keeping with her reputation as a no-nonsense diplomat, Hillary Clinton is spending her final months as Secretary of State far from the campaign trail. Much of that time has been on the go: this year alone she's traveledto 42 countries," the publication noted. "The former US presidential candidate has faced a formidable past 12 months: She's navigated treacherous territory when WikiLeaks released sensitive diplomatic cables in November, urged Syrian President Bashar Assad to hand over his powerand leave his country and recently warned North Koreanleader Kim Jong Un to chart a different course than his militant father," the report added. Dilma Rousseff B razilian President Dilma Rousseff, 64, has been ranked No 3 in the Forbes list. "The president of one of the world's largest economies is ambitious at the mid-point of her first term, launching two aggressive programs meant to reverse the still-strong butshrinking national GDP," the report stated. Melinda Gates M elinda Gates, the 48-year-old Co Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, hasbeen ranked No 4 in the Forbes list. "When you have your name on the top of the world's wealthiest and most generous private foundation, challenging the Vatican to reverse its position against birth control makes news," thereport stated. "This summer Melinda Gates, apracticing Catholic, vowed to dedicate her life -- and an additional personal $560 million -- to improving access to contraception to women in some of the world's poorest countries," the report added. Michelle Obama T he US First Lady, 48, has been ranked No 7 in the Forbes list. "More popular than her husband in this important election year, Michelle Obama's positive approval ratings register at 66 per centwhile US President Barack Obama's term average has hovered just below 50 per cent," the report stated. "The First Lady keeps a high profile with her mission to endchildhood obesity, her commitment to military families and her stylish fashion picks,"the report added. Janet Napolitano J anet Napolitano, secretary, Department of Homeland Security, United States, has been ranked No.9 in the Forbes list. "The first female head of the Department of Homeland Security, a position she took after serving as the governorof Arizona from 2003 to 2009, Janet Napolitano is at the helmof the third largest department in US politics, the report stated. Oprah Winfrey W orld famous TV personalityand entrepreneur Oprah Winfrey has been ranked No.11 in the Forbe s list. "The Queen of Media has upped her on-air presence on24-hour cable channel OWN, bringing in the network's biggest audiences with exclusive interviews with Whitney Houston's family, the Kardashian clan and fellow Power Woman Lady Gaga," thereport stated. -RNK