Former Power Secretary Sanjiv Nandan Sahai picked for PNGRB Chairman post: Sources

• Sahai, along with two-three other candidates, is said to have made an entry into the list of candidates at the last stage

• According to sources, Sahai was in close competition with former Director (Marketing) of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) Gurmeet Singh for the PNGRB post

New Delhi: Former Power Secretary Sanjiv Nandan Sahai has been recommended for the post of the Chairman of Petroleum & Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) by a selection committee headed by Niti Aayog Member Dr VK Saraswat, sources aware of the development told PSU Watch on Thursday. According to sources, Sahai, along with two-three other candidates, is said to have made an entry into the list of candidates at the last stage. And Sahai was the last to be interviewed by the panel. However, an official announcement in this regard is yet to be made.  

Sanjiv Nandan Sahai was in close competition with Gurmeet Singh

According to sources, Sahai was in close competition with former Director (Marketing) of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) Gurmeet Singh, who is said to have been endorsed by Petroleum Secretary Tarun Kapoor. However, sources also said that it was Kapoor who suggested to the selection panel that more names, including Sahai's, be included in the list of candidates for the top position at PNGRB. 

Other candidates interviewed on June 2 for PNGRB Chairman post included former ONGC CMD Shashi Shanker, and former ONGC Director SK Moitra. The PNGRB Chairman post has been lying vacant since December 4, 2020 when DK Sarraf completed his three-year tenure at the regulatory board. The PNGRB board, which comprises four members apart from the Chairman, has been almost defunct since December as Satpal Garg is the only member in the quorum. According to the rule book, three Members of the Board, including the Chairperson, or in his absence the Member presiding over the meeting, shall constitute the quorum for transaction of business at a meeting of the Board.

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Sahai's name has now been forwarded to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) for a decision and the ACC will announce the appointment after obtaining vigilance clearance.

Sanjiv Nandan Sahai

Sahai is a 1986 batch IAS officer of AGMUT cadre. He took over as Secretary in the Ministry of Power in 2019 and superannuated from the post on January 31 this year. Prior to being appointed Power Secretary, Sahai was serving as Additional Secretary in the same ministry. Over the course of his career, he has held a number of positions in the bureaucracy, including five years in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) between 1998 and 2003. 

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