RP Singh front-runner to head PNB

Former Punjab & Sind Bank Chairman and Managing Director RP Singh is likely to be appointed as the head of Punjab National Bank (PNB), the country’s third largest public sector player.

The government today appointed Basant Seth as chairman and managing director of Udupi-based Syndicate Bank. Seth, who was the deputy managing director of Small Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi), will serve Syndicate Bank till February 29, 2012. The top post in Syndicate Bank fell vacant after George Joseph retired on April 30.

Sources close to the development said that the finance ministry was processing the proposal to appoint Singh, an Indian Administrative Service officer from the Andhra Pradesh cadre, at the Delhi-headquartered bank. The 1976 batch officer, who is eligible for appointment as a secretary in the Union government, has headed Punjab & Sind Bank since March 19, 2005, before the bank’s Executive Director GS Vedi took over last week. At present, the IAS officer is awaiting posting.

Singh took over at a time when the bank was reeling under a large pool of bad debt and had been without a full-time chief for a while. He is widely credited to have turned around the unlisted bank.

The Punjab National Bank’s chairman and managing director’s post has been lying vacant since June this year, when KC Chakrabarty moved to the Reserve Bank of India as deputy governor.

Along with Singh, Allahabad Bank Chairman and Managing Director K R Kamath was also in race for the job.

Last week, Oriental Bank of Commerce got a new head with the appointment of TY Prabhu as chairman and managing director.

The government follows the process of lateral movement in case of appointing chairman in large banks such as PNB, Union Bank of India, Bank of India, Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda and Central Bank of India. For all other state-owned banks’ top post, an executive director of a bank is promoted.

PNB is currently the only state-owned bank in which the top post is still vacant. After filling PNB’s chairman’s position, the government is likely to start appointing executive directors in other banks.

Around a dozen posts of executive directors need to be filled up. V Santhanaraman, one of the executive directors of Bank of Baroda who retired today is likely to be replaces by NS Srinath of Canara Bank. Government banks with business of Rs 1,00,000 crore are eligible to have two executive directors.

Among the officials whose names are doing rounds for various banks, are SC Kalia for Union Bank of India, Suvalakshmi Panse for Vijaya Bank, AA Taj for Andhra Bank, V Ramgopal for Indian Bank, D Sarkar for Allahabad Bank, Nupur Mitra for Indian Overseas Bank and Ajai Kumar for UCO Bank.