People

The President has appointed Mr Suresh Kumar Kait to be an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court, an official press release said here today.

The release said the appointment would be for a period of two years with effect from September 5, 2010.

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Mr Mukul Joshi has taken over as Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers.

Mr Joshi is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1975 batch (Punjab cadre). Prior to this, he was Secretary, Inter-State Council Secretariat, Ministry of Home Affairs.

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Mr Sutanu Behuria has taken over as the Secretary, Department of Fertilisers in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers.

Mr Behuria is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1976 batch (Himachal Pradesh cadre). Before this, he was Special Secretary and Financial Adviser in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

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Mr Uday Kumar Varma, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1976 batch (Madhya Pradesh cadre), has taken over as the Secretary, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).

He has succeeded Mr Dinesh Rai, who superannuated on August 31.

Mr Varma has a B.Sc. (Hons.) degree from the Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi and a Master's in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, United States. He also has a post-graduate diploma in French language.

He had been awarded a gold medal for obtaining the highest position in the University and another gold medal at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administrtion on completion of his training.

At the Centre, Mr Varma has served as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Labour and was until recently the Special Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

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MTS, the mobile telephony services brand of Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd (SSTL), has announced the appointment of Mr Arvind Kumar as the Chief Operating Officer of its Uttar Pradesh (East and West) circle.

Mr Dinkar Khullar, currently Indian Ambassador to Austria, has been concurrently accredited as the country's Ambassador to Montenegro.

An official press release from the Ministry of External Affairs said Mr Khullar would have residence in Vienna.

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Arup Roy Choudhury

Mr Arup Roy Choudhury today took over as the Chairman and Managing Director of public sector power producer NTPC Limited.

Mr Roy Choudhury has succeeded Mr R S Sharma, who superannuated yesterday.

A civil engineer from the Birla Institute of Technology (BIT), Mesra, Ranchi, with a post-graduation in management from IIT, Mr Roy Choudhury was earlier the Chairman and Managing Director of the public sector National Buildings Construction Corporation. He has also been elected Chairman of the Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE).

Mr Roy Choudhury, 53, started his career in 1979 and has worked in public and private sector companies such as RITES, IRCON and DLF.

He is at present pursuing a doctorate from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, an NTPC press release added.

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Mr Brijeshwar Singh, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1975 batch (Tamil Nadu cadre), has been given an extension of three months as Chairman of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

An official press release said the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet had approved the re-employment of Mr Singh in the position on contract basis for a period of three months from September 1 or till a regular incument takes over, whichever is earlier.

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Religare Capital Markets Limited (RCML), the Investment Banking and Institutional Securities arm of financial services group Religare Enterprises Limited (REL), today said it had appointed Mr Nalin Nayyar as Head of India Investment Banking.

Salahuddin Ahmed.

Mr Salauddin Ahmed, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1975 batch, was today appointed as the new Chief Secretary of Rajasthan.

Mr Ahmed, 58, who is currently the Additional Chief Secretary, Agriculture and Horticulture, in the State Government, will succeed Mr T Srinivasan, who will retire tomorrow.

Mr Ahmed, who has done his M.A in Modern History, has previously served as Chairman and Managing Director, Rajasthan Financial Corporation, and as Principal Secretary in various departments such as Food, Civil Supply and Consumer Affairs and Literature, Art and Culture in the State Government.

He has also held the positions of Chairman, Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation and Chairman and Managing Director Rajasthan State Minerals Development Corporation.

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Biren Nanda

Mr Biren Nanda, Ambassador of India to Indonesia, has been appointed as India's next Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

ASEAN was established on August 8, 1967 by its founding fathers - Indonesia, Malaysia, Phillipines, Singapore and Thailand.

Brunei Darussalam joined the group in January 1984, followed by Vietnam in July 1995, Laos and Myanmar in July 1997 and Cambodia in April 1999.

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Harishankar Brahma

Former Union Power Secretary Harishankar Brahma was today appointed as the third Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India.

"The President is pleased to appoint Mr Harishankar Brahma as the Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India with effect from the date he assumes the office," an official press release said here.

Mr Brahma, 60, a 1975 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer (Andhra Pradesh cadre), belongs to Assam.

The post of an Election Commissioner had fallen vacant recently after the retirement of Mr Navin Chawla as the Chief Election Commissioner and Mr S Y Qureshi's appointment as his successor. Mr V S Sampath is the other Election Commissioner in the three-member Commission.

Incidentally, Mr Brahma had succeeded Mr Sampath as Power Secretary when the latter joined the Election Commission in May last year. He was earlier Special Secretary, National Disaster Management Authority in the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Before that, he had held various assignments in different sectors in the Government of India and the Government of Andhra Pradesh, including energy sector.

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Maj Gen Sarbjit Singh Pawar has been appointed as the Vice-Chancellor of the Lakshmibai National University of Physical Education, Gwalior, an autonomous institution attached to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

Maj Gen Pawar will succeed Maj Gen S N Mukherjee, whose extended tenure will expire on September 23. He retired from the Indian Army on July 31 this year after a career of about 38 years.

An official press release said that he was instrumental in etablishing a Defence Services Staff College for the Botswana Defence Force. He was awarded the Vishisht Sewa Medal by the President for distinguished service of exceptional order on Republic Day 2010.

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Justice Bhagwati Prasad

The President has appointed Mr Justice Bhagwati Prasad, a Judge of the Gujarat High Court, to be the Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

An official press release said here today that the appointment would be with effect from the date he assumed charge of his office.

Mr Justice Prasad, 61, did his B.Sc. from Government College, Hissar in 1969, LL.B. in 1972 from Doongar College, Bikaner and LL.M. in 1985-86 from the University of Jodhpur.

He enrolled as an advocate on September 2, 1972 with the Rajasthan Bar Council and practised as an advocate for about 24 years. He was elevated as a Judge of the Rajasthan High Court on April 6, 1996. He became a Judge of the Gujarat High Court on February 7, 2008.

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Essar Energy, a part of the Essar Group, today announced it had appointed Mr P Sampath as its Chief Financial Officer in succession to Mr Gerry Bacon, who has decided to leave the company at the end of September.

Debabrata Saha

Mr Debabrata Saha, currently India's Ambassador to Ukraine, has been appointed as the country's next Ambassador to Italy.

The Ministry of External Affairs also announced that Mr Rajiva Misra, at present Joint Secretary in the Ministry, had been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Slovak Republic. He will succeed Ms Homai Saha.

Both Mr Saha and Mr Misra are expected to take up their assignments shortly, the Ministry added.

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The Government has appointed Mr Atulya Misra, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1988 batch (Tamil Nadu cadre), as the Chairman of the Chennai Port Trust.

An official press release said the appointment would for a period of five years with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

Mr Misra is at present posted as Secretary, Transport Department, Government of Tamil Nadu.

The appointment will be subject to the final outcome of a court case (writ petition 12259/09) in the Delhi High Court, the release added.

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File photo of Sam Pitroda.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today approved the setting up of a National Innovation Council to draw up a road map for the Decade of Innovation (2010-2020).

An official press release said the Council would be headed by Mr Sam Pitroda, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations.

It said the Council had been given the mandate to evolve an Indian model of innovation focusing on inclusive growth and creating an appropriate eco-system conducive to fostering inclusive innovation. It will delineate appropriate policy initiatives within the government required to spur innovation. It will also promote the setting up of Sectoral Innovation Councils and State Innovation Councils.

While encouraging all important sectors of the economy to innovate, it will take special efforts to facilitate innovation by micro, small and medium enterprises. Innovation in public services delivery and encouraging multi-disciplinary and globally competitive approaches for innovations would be focused on by the Council, the release said.

Other members of the Council are: Dr. K. Kasturirnagan and Mr Arun Maira, Members of the Planning Commission, Dr. Ramesh Mashelkar, former Director General of CSIR, Mr Kiran Karnik, former President, NASSCOM, Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty of the Narayana Hrudyalaya, Mr R. Gopalakishnan, Executive Director, Tata Sons, Ms Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Chairperson, Biocon, Mr Shekhar Kapur, Film Director, Mr Saurabh Srivastava, Chairman, CA Technologies, Mr Anil K. Gupta, Professor IIM Ahmedabad, Prof. Sujatha Ramadorai, Professor, TIFR, Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII, Mr Amit Mitra, Secretary General, FICCI, Dr. Samir Brahmachari, Director General, CSIR and Mr Sanjay Dhande, Director, IIT Kanpur.

Mr R. Gopalakrishnan, Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office, would be the Member Secretary of the Council, the release added.

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Mrs Janaki Venkataraman, wife of former President R Venkataraman, passed away at a private hospital in the capital this afternoon after a brief illness.

She was 89. She is survived by three daughters - Padma Venkataraman, Vijaya Ramachandran and Lakshmi Venkataraman. Her husband had passed away in January 2009. The funeral will be held here tomorrow, sources said.

Vice-President M Hamid Ansari was amongst those who condoled the death of Mrs Venkataraman.

"I am deeply grieved to learn of the sad demise of Smt. Janaki Venkataraman wife of former President of India, Shri R. Venkataraman. My wife joins me in sending our heartfelt condolences to the members of the bereaved family. We pray to the Almighty to grant them the strength and fortitude to withstand this loss," he said.

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Atul Sobti

Pharmaceutical major Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited today annunced that Mr Atul Sobti would step down from the positions of CEO and Managing Director of the Company with effect from August 19.

Mr Arun Sawhney, currently Ranbaxy's President, Global Pharmaceutical Business, has been appointed as Managing Director, effective August 20, a press release from the company said.

The company gave no reasons for Mr Sobti's decision to step down. The release said the company's Board of Directors noted its sincere appreciation of Mr. Sobti’s efforts during his tenure as CEO and MD as well as for building upon the strong legacy of Ranbaxy as a premier global company.

"We are extremely grateful for the significant contribution Mr. Sobti has made to Ranbaxy ever since he joined the company," Ranbaxy Chairman Tsutomu Une said.

"Under his leadership as CEO and Managing Director, Ranbaxy has realized various opportunities to repeat the strong operating performance while continuing to manage key challenges." Dr. Une also said,

"We are pleased to appoint Mr. Sawhney as the Managing Director, further advancing the company with the decades of global experience he has in the industry," he said.

Mr. Sawhney, with over three decades of global experience with leading Indian and global pharmaceutical companies, has held the role of President, Global Pharmaceuticals Business, at Ranbaxy, since January 2010, and has been a senior executive at the Company from April 2008.

He is one of the founder members of the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil) and has been an active member on the committees of the prestigious Indian Drug Manufacturer’s Association and Bulk Drug Manufacturers Association (India).

Arun Sawhney

This is the second major change at the top in Ranbaxy after Mr Malvinder Singh and his brother Shivinder Singh, grandsons of Ranbaxy founder Bhai Mohan Singh, sold their entire 34.8 per cent stake in the pharmaceutical giant to Japanese pharmaceutical giant Daiichi Sankyo in June 2008 for nearly Rs 10,000 crore.

Though Mr Malvinder Singh had no stake in Ranbaxy after the sale, it was decided then that he would continue as CEO for the rest of his five-year term.

But, in May last year, Mr Malvinder Singh, who was Chairman, CEO and Managing Director of the company, stepped down from his positions suddenly and Mr Sobti took over as CEO and MD, while Dr Une was elected as the Chairman of the Board.

Ranbaxy, India's largest pharmaceutical company, is an integrated, research based, international pharmaceutical company producing a wide range of quality, affordable generic medicines. It is now a subsidiary of Daiichi Sankyo.

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Mr Vinod Kumar has been appointed as India's next High Commissioner to Fiji, an official press release said here today.

Mr Kumar, at present a Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, was expected to take up his assignment shortly, the release added.

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The President has appointed Mr Hemant Kumar Srivastava as an additional judge of the Patna High Court.

An official press release said here today that the appointment would be for a period of two years with effect from the date he assumed charge of his office.

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Alok Goel

Tile manufacturers Nitco Ltd today announced the appointment of Mr. Alok Goel as its Chief Executive Officer with effect from August 9, 2010.

In this role, Mr. Alok will be responsible for handling the overall operations of the company, a press release from Nitco said.

Mr. Goel is a Mechanical Engineer from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Roorkee and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIMB).

The release said he had experience of more than 28 years in Sales & Marketing, Supply Chain Management, Procurement & Production, Project Management, Construction and also dealing with Government bodies

Before taking up his new assignment, Mr Goel was the CEO of Usha International. He has also served in other organisations such as Tata Motors, ICI, Vam Organic Chemicals Limited and Indo Rama Synthetics Ltd, the release added.

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The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of Mr Pradeep Kumar Misra, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1976 batch (Uttar Pradesh cadre), as the Secretary, Ministry of Steel.

Mr Misra, who is at present the Establishment Officer and Special Secretary, Department of Personnel & Training, will succeed Mr Atul Chaturvedi on his retirement on August 31, an official press release added.

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Jayant Dua

Mr Jayant Dua has been appointed as the Managing Director of Birla Sun Life Insurance Company Ltd (BSLI), a subsidiary of Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd.

A press release from the company said his appointment would be effective July 1, 2010. Prior to this, he was the President and CEO of Aditya Birla Insulators (ABI).

Mr Ajay Srinivasan, Chief Executive – Financial Services, Aditya Birla Group, said, "The life insurance industry completes a decade long journey this year since the entry of the private sector, presenting larger and even more challenging opportunities ahead. Jayant, with his diverse exposure across various facets of business will play a key role in leading Birla Sun Life Insurance towards achieving its goals."

Mr Dua has been associated with the Aditya Birla Group for the last 14 years. He is a chemical engineer from IIT Delhi and has an MBA from IMI, Delhi. He has recently completed the Advanced Management Programme (AMP) from Harvard Business School in the United States.

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