At last - PNGRB member i/v
After deferring interviews twice, the oil ministry was finally successful in interviewing candidates for PNGRB member on March 4 (2024).
Initially planned for January 8 (2024), the oil ministry deferred the interviews to February 26 (2024) and then March 4. "The winner's name isn't out yet," says a source.
"They are still discussing if one or two or three names should be recommended for approval." Expect the interview panel to recommend more than one name to avoid a repeat of what happened when DS Nanaware was selected on June 13 (2022) by a search committee of commerce secretary BVR Subrahmanyam, law secretary Niten Chandra, oil secretary Pankaj Jain and member NITI Aayog VK Saraswat.
Nanaware, who retired on June 30 (2023), was to join the PNGRB shortly after his retirement. However, the oil ministry was forced to re-advertise after the cabinet's appointments committee blocked Nanaware's appointment in July 2023.
On the shortlist for the latest interviews were Prabal Basu, former Balmer Lawrie chairman; IndianOil director refineries (Ms) Sukla Mistry; Balmer Lawrie's present chairman Adika Ratna Sekhar; ONGC director finance Pomila Jaspal; former ONGC director onshore Anurag Sharma; former GAIL director business development Mahesh Iyer; Sanjay Kumar Jha, executive director heading the CGD business at IndianOil; Krishnakant Joshi, director operations and business development at Bharat PetroResources; IAS officer Neeraj Sinha, at the NITI Aayog; and former Sabarmati Gas (SGL) managing director A Ramana Kumar. "Once they decide how many names are sent for approval," adds our source, "the committee might reveal who has won."
One argument against recommending too many names is what happened on June 2 (2021) when former power secretary Sanjeev Sahai headed the list of three shortlisted candidates to become PNGRB chairman. Unimpressed, the PMO returned the list and asked the oil ministry why it had not firmly recommended a single candidate.