Govt appoints former financial services secy Debasish Panda as IRDAI chairman

Central government on Friday appointed former financial services secretary Debasish Panda as Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) chairman for 3 years. IRDAI regulates insurance sector of the country.

"The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Debasish Panda former Secretary, Department of Financial Services to the post of Chairperson, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) initially for a period of 03 years from the date of assumption of the charge of the post or until further orders, whichever is earlier," the government said in a statement.

Panda is a 1987-batch IAS officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre. He had retired as financial services secretary in January this year after a two-year stint.

The appointment of IRDAI chairman comes nearly 9 months after the vacancy was created following Subhash Chandra Khuntia completing his term in May last year.. Khuntia, a retired IAS of the 1981-batch, was appointed in May 2018 for a period of three years.

In April 2021, the finance ministry had invited applications to replace Khuntia. The consolidated pay and allowances of the chairperson shall be Rs 4.50 lakh per month without the facility of house and car, the Finance Ministry had noted. 

The applicant should have minimum of two years of residual service as on May 7, 2021, that is the applicant's age should not exceed 63 years on said date, it said.

As per the eligibility criterion, the applicant shall not hold office beyond 65 years of age.

The applicant is required to have at least 30 years of work experience and should have served as secretary to government or at equivalent level in other institutions, it said.

Candidates from the private sector can also apply and should have worked as CEO or equivalent of a large financial institution, the notification had said.

(With PTI Inputs)

Also read: Insurers need to publish underwriting norms on their website: IRDAI