Ahead of polls, Centre appoints Rubber Board chief

Senior IAS officer A Ajith Kumar was today appointed as Kerala-based Rubber Board's chairman, a post lying vacant for over a year and a half.
The appointment comes less than a month ahead of Assembly polls due in the southern state on May 16.
The Appointments Committee of Cabinet has approved the appointment of Kumar,a 1994 batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre, to the post of chairman, Rubber Board, Kottayam, an order issued by Department of personnel and Training said.
He has been appointed for a period up to May 31, 2018, which is the date of his superannuation, it said.

The post has been lying vacant since August 2014.
The vacancy has been a political issue in the state. Congress had late last month criticised the Union government for not appointing a full time Board chairman.

"The post of Chairman has been lying vacant since August 2014. There is no full time secretary or head for the extension department in the Rubber Board," senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh had said in a statement.
Ramesh had then denounced the Union governments policy for the rubber sector, saying India has become a large importer of natural rubber due to poor investments in the Rubber Board.

Polls in 140 Assembly constituencies in Kerala are scheduled to be held on May 16.