Ten names shortlisted for appointment as CMDs in eight PSU banks

The high-level search panel is headed by Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan

A high-level search panel headed by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan has shortlisted 10 executive directors for the post of chairman and managing director (CMD) in eight public sector banks.

Bank of Baroda Executive Directors (ED) B B Joshi and P Srinivas, Punjab & Sind Bank’s M K Jain and K K Sansi, IDBI Bank Deputy Managing Director B K Batra are among the 10 shortlisted, sources said.

Their names have been sent to the finance ministry and would be subsequently forwarded to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), after vigilance and other necessary clearances.

According to sources, eight names may get the ACC approval for appointment by the end of this month. Two names could be put on the waiting list or dropped subject to certain clearances, they added.

It is not clear if Ashwini Kumar, the lone CMD (of Dena Bank) to have appeared for the interview on November 14 for lateral transfer to a bigger bank, has been shortlisted by the panel or not.

Nineteen candidates appeared for eight vacant posts of CMDs in state-run banks. These 19 candidates were interviewed by three sub-panels separately.

The vacant posts of CMDs are in Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, United Bank of India and Syndicate Bank.

The post of CMD in Vijaya Bank will fall vacant next month.

Earlier this month, the government had decided that all eligible candidates will have to go through sub-committees having two members.

The sub-committees had three outside experts. These experts were former managing director of State Bank of India, S Viswanathan, IIM Indore Director Rishikesha T Krishnan and former chairperson and managing director of Allahabad Bank, S Panse, sources said.

The other three members of screening committees were secretary and additional secretary in the Department of Financial Services, and an RBI deputy governor.

The names have been shortlisted by the appointment board chaired by the RBI governor. It was based on the weighted average marks given by each sub-committee to ensure objectivity and transparency.

The selection process for appointment as chairman and managing director of public sector banks was changed following the government scrapping the selections made by the previous UPA regime.

Last month, the government had cancelled selection of heads of six state-run banks and 14 executive directors made during the UPA tenure following a government-appointed panel finding irregularities in the process.