savramesh 37 Report post Posted April 13, 2009 Business Standard Monday, Apr 13, 2009 The screening committee set up to select the next chairman of telecom sector regulator TRAI has shortlisted three candidates -- Finance Secretary Arun Ramanathan, Consumer Affairs Secretary Yashwant Bhave and former BSNL director S D Saxena. The committee, which is headed by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar, is learnt to have shortlisted these applicants for the post based on their experience and knowledge of the telecom sector. Sources said that the committee would be forwarding these names to the administrative Telecom Ministry soon. TRAI Member, Finance, A K Sawhney is looking into the day to day activities after Nripendra Misra's retirement on March 22 as the Chairman of TRAI. The DoT had earlier suggested an amendment in the TRAI Act 1997 to allow non-Government experts to apply for the posts. According to DoT, the move is in line with the selection criteria followed by other regulators such as IRDA, CERC and SEBI. Of the 29 applications received for the post of Chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, the screening committee had shortlisted 13 for an interview, based on their experience and knowledge of the telecom sector. While most of the applicants in the fray were former government employees, P V Ramadas, Vice-President, HCL BPO Services, was the only executive from the private sector named in the list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
savramesh 37 Report post Posted April 29, 2009 J S Sarma leads race to become Trai chief Times of India 29 Apr 2009, 0017 hrs IST NEW DELHI: J S Sarma, former secretary and additional secretary of department of telecom (DoT) and at present TDSAT member, has emerged as a frontrunner for the post of Trai chairman, according to sources in the ministry. The cabinet secretariat is learnt to have shortlisted three candidates for the post of Trai chairman. According to ministry sources, these include JS Sarma, Yashwant Bhave, who served as additional secretary in the DoT, before retiring as secretary, consumer affairs and S D Saxena, former finance director of BSNL and a member of its board. Sources revealed that the file has been sent to telecom minister A Raja and Sarma stands a strong chance to emerge as a winner. However, when contacted, Sarma denied any knowledge of the development. Trai is an independent regulator for all issues relating to telecom and broadcasting. Mainly it has recommendatory powers with exception of tariffs and interconnection, where it can have a final say without government interference. Recently the relationship between Trai and DoT has been one of unease and a TDSAT judgment just few weeks ago of which Sarma was one of the authors blamed the regulator for acting without transparency while formulating various guidelines and regulations. A new telecom minister is expected to take office in May, after the general elections but it is not clear clear when the new Trai chief will assume office. It has been a tough race for the top job at Trai with many candidates, mostly former government secretaries, throwing their hats in the ring. Other serious contenders for the position included immediate past DoT secretary, DS Mathur who served for nearly two years before retiring in December 2008, A K Mohapatra, former shipping secretary, PK Mishra, who was former principal secretary of Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, secretary, union agriculture ministry and later, chairman Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) and Arun Ramanathan, former finance secretary. The job has become even more attractive after the salary and emoluments for the chairman's position was recently increased to Rs 3 lakh per month. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
