Cabinet Secretary-Led Panel To Select Candidate For RBI Deputy Governor On Friday
The incoming RBI deputy governor will take the place of NS Vishwanathan who left office on March 31 citing health reasons.
A search panel, headed by the cabinet secretary, will on Friday interview candidates shortlisted for the post of RBI deputy governor, sources said.
The panel had on Aug. 7 held a preliminary meeting for selecting a successor for NS Vishwanathan, who demitted office three months ahead of schedule on March 31 on health grounds. He had served the Reserve Bank of India for 39 years.
The Financial Sector Regulatory Appointment Search Committee has a list of eight candidates who would be interviewed via video conference on Aug. 21, sources said. The name of the selected candidate will be sent to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet for final approval, they added.
Besides the cabinet secretary, other members of FSRASC include the RBI governor, financial services secretary and two independent members.
This vacancy of the RBI deputy governor has been reserved for an internal candidate. This person would look after the key supervisory and regulatory functions at the Mint Road.
According to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the banking regulator should have four deputy governors—two from within the ranks, one commercial banker and another an economist to head the monetary policy department. The RBI at present has three deputy governors—BP Kanungo, MK Jain and Michael Debabrata Patra.
Earlier this year, the government extended Kanungo's tenure by a year, with effect from Apr. 3, 2020. Kanungo, whose term was to end on Apr. 2, had taken charge as a deputy governor in April 2017.
The deputy governor appointments are made for an initial period of three years and the person is eligible for reappointment. The deputy governor gets a fixed salary of Rs 2.25 lakh per month plus allowances.