Centre appoints ex-financial services secretary Debasish Panda as IRDAI chief

The government on Friday appointed former financial services secretary Debasish Panda as chairman of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved Panda’s appointment as chairperson of the insurance regulator initially for a period of three years from the assumption of charge, sources said.

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

The appointment of the IRDAI chairman comes nearly 9 months after the vacancy was created following Subhash Chandra Khuntia completing his term in May last year.

In April 2021, the finance ministry had invited applications to replace Mr. Khuntia.

As per the procedure for the appointment of regulators, the name is suggested by the Financial Sector Regulatory Appointments Search Committee (FSRASC) headed by the Cabinet Secretary.

Based on interaction with eligible candidates, FSRASC recommends the name to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for its final approval.