One woman director must for certain public cos: Govt

It is mandatory for certain class of public companies to appoint at least one woman director on their boards under the companies law, government said today.
"The Companies Act 2013 and the rules framed thereunder mandate listed and unlisted public companies having paid up share capital of Rs 100 crore or more or a turnover of Rs 300 crore or more are required to appoint at least one woman director on the board of directors," Arun Jaitley said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
Jaitley also said that the government had not received any representations from public sector companies to revise spending limit for activities related to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) norms.

Under the new Companies Act, certain class of companies are required to shell out at least 2 per cent of their three-year annual average net profit towards CSR activities.
"The government has not received any representations from public sector undertakings (PSUs) to revise 2 per cent Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) norms," he said.
The Companies Act, 2013 has incorporated various provisions aimed at strengthening corporate governance in India, Jaitley said.
These include enhanced responsibilities for the board and its committees like the audit committee as well as nomination and remuneration committee, enhanced disclosures as well as better norms for accountability of auditors, he added.