Santosh Panda new NCTE chairman

Santosh Panda, a faculty in IGNOU, has been appointed as the new chairman of National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), the regulator for setting quality standards and running of teacher education institutions in the country.

Panda's name was approved by HRD Minister M M Pallam Raju and cleared by the Appointment Committee of Cabinet, sources in the Ministry said.

In all, 11 candidates were shortlisted for the post, of whom three made it to the final list. Panda was the front runner, they said.