Former finance secretary Debasish Panda takes charge as Irdai chief

Former finance secretary Debasish Panda on Monday took charge as the new chairman of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai).

The appointment of the Irdai chairman comes nearly nine months after the vacancy was created following Subhash Chandra Khuntia completing his term in May last year.

"Debasish Panda, IAS (Retd), has taken charge as chairman of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India today, the March 14, 2022," Irdai said in a statement.

Last Friday, the government had announced to appoint the former bureaucrat as the chairman of the insurance sector regulator for a period of three years from the assumption of charge.

Panda, a 1987-batch IAS officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre, retired as financial services secretary in January this year after a two-year stint.

In April 2021, the finance ministry had invited applications to replace Khuntia.

Besides, the government last week also appointed Rakesh Joshi, former executive vice-president and group head (debt capital markets) of State Bank of India Capital Markets, as whole-time member (finance and investment) of Irdai.

Prior to elevation as the financial services secretary, Panda served as an additional secretary looking after insurance and financial inclusion division.

He was also the government nominee director on the board of Irdai and served on the boards of some public sector banks and insurance companies. He was also on the board of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

During his stint in Uttar Pradesh, he was principal secretary (home and agriculture and cooperation), resident commissioner and CEO of Greater Noida Authority.

Panda also served as joint secretary in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and deputy director (administration), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.

The Irdai is entrusted with the task of protecting the interest of insurance policyholders and bringing about speedy and orderly growth of the insurance industry.