Four former bureaucrats are in contention for the position of Chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Sources in the know told businessline that they are: former Secretary at the Ministry of Technology and IT, Ajay Prakash Sawhney; former Chairman and CEO of the Railway Board, Anil Kumar Lahoti; former Secretary of Power, Sanjiv Sahai; and former Member Technology at the Department of Telecommunications, AK Tiwari.
With this, the search for TRAI Chairperson could soon be over. The post remained vacant for nearly six months after the surprise retirement of former Chairman, PD Vaghela, who chose not to renew his term on the eve of the deadline. While the Centre had, in a novel move, decided they were open to appointing the Chairperson from the private sector, they have opted to hire a former bureaucrat this time as well.
strong candidates
Experts believe Sawhney and Tiwari are the strongest candidates for the post. Both individuals possess extensive experience in the telecommunications and electronics sector.
This is the second time the TRAI Chairperson candidate list has been drawn up. 1988 batch S Aparna and a former Tata executive were also in consideration for the post.
That list was scrapped, leading to the current delay in the appointment of TRAI chief.
key regulations
The tenure of the Chairman is up to three years or till the post holder is 65 years old, whichever comes first. In the absence of a TRAI Chairman, key regulations are on hold.
The telecom regulator has extended deadlines on comments and counter comments of nearly 12 papers.
