Two-year extension almost certain for Vaidya
Wimbledon ended earlier this month (July 2023), but the oil ministry continues its back-and-forth tennis marathon with the cabinet's appointments committee (ACC) to win a two-year extension for IndianOil chairman SM Vaidya.
In the latest volley, the oil ministry returned Vaidya's file to the ACC in the third week of July (2023). This time, Vaidya's CVC clearance is included in the file, which has also been routed through the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) in line with protocol.
"Vaidya's clearance from the CVC came on Sunday (July 16, 2023 - a non-workday)," says a source. "And that too within 12 days of the oil ministry sending the file to the CVC."
Six weeks are usually needed to get CVC clearance, he adds. "But the ministry is doing everything to accelerate the process."
In June, the oil ministry controversially sent Vaidya's file directly to the ACC, bypassing the DoPT. But an irritated ACC returned the file with several queries, including why the oil ministry had not secured CVC clearance for Vaidya and why it had not set up a search and selection committee to find his replacement after he retires on August 30 (2023).
In its latest response, the oil ministry argues that IndianOil's board is chronically short-staffed. "Almost every director is holding additional charge of another vacant director position," says our source.
IndianOil's director finance, director pipelines, and director HR roles are vacant while the R&D director SSV Ramakumar retires on July 31 (2023). When forwarding Vaidya's file to the ACC, the DoPT challenged the oil ministry's point about a board-level shortage, arguing that vacant positions could be filled within three to six months.
More, the DoPT proposed a six-month extension for Vaidya, after which a search committee could find a replacement. On May 16 (2023), the PESB interviewed candidates but failed to find a replacement for Vaidya: "The board did not recommend any candidate and advised the oil ministry to take an appropriate course of further action including search/selection committee or as deemed appropriate for the selection with the approval of the competent authority," said the PESB.