Search For Uti Head Continues

Sources said the government was still in the process of finalising Capoors successor and it may take another week to arrive at a decision.

The banking department of the finance ministry is notifying Capoors appointment as Reserve Bank of India deputy governor. Capoor is on deputation to UTI from the Reserve Bank, where he formerly occupied the post of executive director.

Capoor was initially appointed the UTI chairman for a three-month term, which was subsequently extended for another month, when the government failed to complete the appointment process, following a public advertisement inviting applications. It was decided at that time that further extensions to Capoor would be discouraged in the interest of continuity and leadership of the premier investment organisation. Instead, efforts were to be made to fill up the post.

 

Sources said confusion continued to prevail on Capoors successor with neither the finance ministry nor the department of personnel plumbing for one single name.

Nicco Corporation chairman & managing director Abhijit Sen was initially the favourite, with finance minister P Chidambaram reportedly favouring a private sector man to head the premier institution. Sen also reportedly has the backing of the Left parties and West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu.

But the issue continues to be shrouded in confusion with none of the ministries concerned actually putting forward one single name. Sources indicated that others such as B V Gupta of the Industrial Development Bank of India and UTI executive trustee P J Nayak continued to be in the running. Ultimately, the decision will be the Prime Ministers, the sources said.

The shortlist of potential incumbents was finalised by a selection panel headed by IDBI chairman S H Khan, RBI deputy governors S P Talwar and Y Venugopal Reddy and noted management consultant Mritunjay Athreya. The selection was based on five major criteria: expertise in financial services, knowledge of capital markets, track record and experience in either public or private sector, commitment to work in an institution like the UTI and personal integrity.

Capoor will be the fourth RBI deputy governor once his appointment is through. The apex bank now has three deputy governors: R V Gupta, Y Venugopal Reddy and S P Talwar.

With Capoors appointment, the RBI will revive the tradition of having four deputy governors, which was discontinued with the retirement of former deputy governor T R Nayak in 1992.