Anand Sinha appointed RBI deputy governor

The government today notified the appointment of Anand Sinha, an executive director of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), as one of the deputy governors of the central bank. He has been given a two-year term.

A deputy governor in RBI can be appointed for a maximum of five years or till the age of 62, whichever is earlier.

The portfolios of Sinha, 59, had not been announced till the time of going to print. As an executive director, Sinha was looking after the departments of banking development and operations, and the financial stability unit, among others.

Sinha, who holds a Masters’ degree in Physics from the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, joined the central bank in 1976.

The deputy governor’s post fell vacant with the retirement of Usha Thorat in November. Sinha will be the fourth deputy governor of RBI, along with Shyamala Gopinath, K C Chakrabarty and Subir Gokarn. RBI has four deputy governors, of which two are promoted from within the ranks, one is an economist and the other one a commercial banker.

A search committee headed by RBI Governor D Subbarao interviewed six executive directors in September to select Thorat’s successor. The panel shortlisted three names and suggested them to the government.

RBI had allocated Thorat’s portfolios to Gopinath till the time a new DG was appointed.